In a time that finds the MSM losing its monopolistic grip, it would appear that another effort is being undertaken with hopes to regain its status among the 'silent majority'. Their bag of tricks of late has generally only included equating the Bush administration with Nixon, and comparing Iraq with Viet Nam. These tactics have not produced the desired stampede of return to dependence on their wisdom and professionalism. It seems that they will now try a 'new' trite trick.

Recently there have been TV ads for a movie (or TV movie) depicting Edward R. Murrow and a few other brave journalists standing up to and resisting the evil Senator Joseph McCarthy. My enquiring mind finds the timing a bit propagandistic. Bush=Nixon, Iraq=Viet Nam as comparisons, coupled now with Murrow vs. McCarthy with intent to shed enlightenment on the present day's Democrats and MSM vs. Republicans and unwashed masses scenario.

Of course, I am prejudging. I learned in Texas to prejudge the probabilities of encounters with rattlesnakes, scorpions, fire ants, and killer bees without giving each and every one a fair chance to prove their goodwill. However, I will bet the aforementioned 'historical' production will not include the following:

"Kennedy also confronted communist subversion at home. As a House labor committee member, he helped convict a communist union official. While in the Senate, he backed Senator Joseph McCarthy's investigations. In January 1955, after McCarthy had fallen from power, JFK walked out on a banquet speech by McCarthy-hating journalist Edward R. Murrow. Three years later, at a Harvard dinner, when a speaker compared McCarthy with convicted Soviet spy Alger Hiss, JFK exclaimed, "How dare you couple the name of a great American patriot with that of a traitor!," and stormed out of the building."

"Eventually, Kennedy came properly to lament McCarthy's methods. Yet unlike most of his liberal Democratic contemporaries, JFK refused to deny the obvious: the high-level Communist penetration of FDR's State Department in the 1930s and 1940s. For this courage he almost paid dearly. In 1960, Eleanor Roosevelt tried mightily to deny him the Democratic presidential nomination, and New York's Liberal Party almost withheld its endorsement of him as well."

Or these excerpts of an article, written in 1949, whose author surprised the crap out of me:

"The economic anarchy of capitalist society as it exists today is, in my opinion, the real source of the evil."

"Man can find meaning in life, short and perilous as it is, only through devoting himself to society."

"I am convinced there is only one way to eliminate these grave evils, namely through the establishment of a socialist economy, accompanied by an educational system which would be oriented toward social goals. In such an economy, the means of production are owned by society itself and are utilized in a planned fashion. A planned economy, which adjusts production to the needs of the community, would distribute the work to be done among all those able to work and would guarantee a livelihood to every man, woman, and child. The education of the individual, in addition to promoting his own innate abilities, would attempt to develop in him a sense of responsibility for his fellow men in place of the glorification of power and success in our present society."

Hint: e=mc(squared), (humane) economics equals multiplicity of (exponential) communism.

QUOTES THAT GIDDIFY MY GALL BLADDER

The discerning Texan quotes from an article by Mark Steyn, "Do you want the chicken or the beef?" (Could this be the Republican theme for the next presidential election?)

John Ray has no compunction about being politically correct when the situation calls for it.

"In the circumstances, it is no wonder that the Anglo-Saxons are so much more influential in the modern-day world than are the French. Someone recently said that the French are basically a Chihuahua that wants to be a bull-terrier. The Ango-Saxons really are that bull-terrier. And, as a former bull-terrier breeder, I can asssure you that, despite their power, bull-terriers are extremely good natured -- not something that one would often say of either Chihuahuas or the French."

(John Ray is an atheist from Australia. He contributes on 6 or 7 blogs and has been otherwise published hundreds of times. He is fearless in his non-whitewashing of research data. His critiques of Leftism and Post-modernism are devastating. He labels President Bush as even more liberal than President Clinton in many ways. Ray even has a Scripture blog that is intelligently done, although I plan to take him to task on several interpretations. For a quick take on his daily thoughts, see Dissecting Leftism. He's very, very good.)

Irony... most often humorous, but also regularly tragic. At present it would not be an original thought to consider the irony between the nations of Iraq and the United States. Just as we are successfully overseeing the early development of a constitutional republic in Iraq, could we also be in the midst of the death of our own? Lance Burri has correctly identified a symptom. Peggy Noonan has done similarly. Lance's article resembles a plea to an alcoholic to recognize his problem as the first step toward change. Peggy's more nearly resembles the first draft of a eulogy.

Critics of 'Bush's War for Oil and Revenge Instigated through Lies' are often heard to question whether or not Iraqi culture is capable of initiating and sustaining the freedom and responsibility necessary for constitutional republic to survive. Quite frankly, I have the same question myself. Can one nation export such a political system to another that has had no historical experience in anything resembling freedom? President Bush asserts that the desire for freedom is inherent in the hearts of all people. I'm not so sure of that, since it is just as feasible to believe that people of certain cultures are equally as prone to a slavery mentality. However, in saying that, I also know that due to modern technologies in communication, the Iraqis are not blind to the possible benefits of Western style 'democracy'. Recently removed from the harsh tyranny of Saddam must also provide incentive and initiative. Great potential exists.

Nearly parallel to the opinions of Lance and Peggy, I have a similar question for the United States. Does our nation's burgeoning dependency/slave mentality afford us the capability of sustaining a constitutional republic? Here again, it is feasible to believe that people of certain cultures are prone to this mindset. Our own culture has undergone a slow and arduous paradigm shift over the past two centuries. Even our heroic World War II generation, often referred to as 'the greatest generation', is the flip-side of the same coin that readily accepted F.D.R.'s socialistically inclined programs and policies.

As our nation increased in wealth and power, complacency and entitlement grew with it. Christianity slowly was replaced by post-modernism; reliance on God was replaced by reliance on our wealth and our central government. The sense of community through rugged individualism was replaced by governmental control over selfish individualism. Senator Clinton's book, 'It Takes a Village', really should have been entitled, 'It Takes a Government.'

Our post-modernist bent has cast off the wisdom of our founders. They earned their sagacity by sweat, blood, and continual sacrifice. Through it they built a firm foundation. We have inherited that capital and have rejected its basis. We chose instead to 'reinvent the wheel' without even the understanding that 'roundness' is a fundamental. They warned us, like a mother warns a small, foolish child, of possible dangers inherent in following our own 'better' ideas. Noah Webster: "...I am persuaded that no civil government of a republican form can exist and be durable in which the principles of that religion (Christianity) have not a controlling influence." John Adams: "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." Robert Winthrop, Speaker of the House: "Men, in a word, must necessarily be controlled either by a power within them or by a power without them; either by the Word of God or by the strong arm of man; either by the Bible or by the bayonet."

As we witness Iraq struggle to gain freedom, it would be tragic to watch us piss away our own. Elect more conservatives or libertarians? That may indeed slow the urine flow, but the prostate cancer remains. The culture itself, the people, must turn from their slave producing culture and return to a worldview that promotes and sustains freedom.

The Speculist has become one of my favorite once-or-twice-a-week reads, because they bring me the latest maybe-gonnabe-real used-to-be-science fiction news, and they're fun to read while they do it.

Take this post about the UN's Office for Outer Space Affairs, for exaple:

Gee, why does it upset the UN so much that they can't control the US when they apparently get to call the shots for the entire universe? Our potential insectoid galactic overlords are going to have a real chuckle over that one. Wasn't there a Pope in the middle ages who divided the world up into quarters (or thirds) and assigned each piece to some western crown? It's somehow comforting to know that, for all the progress humanity has made, we're still capable of the same kind of fatuous nonsense.

Ha. I say again: ha.

How come this kind of thing never happens in my neighborhood?

AP - Suicide mistaken for Halloween decoration

FREDERICA, Del. - The apparent suicide of a woman found hanging from a tree went unreported for hours because passers-by thought the body was a Halloween decoration, authorities said.

I guess they finally figured it out after some kids mistook the body for a pinata, but didn't get any candy.

There are some philosophical/scientific/religious questions that, although extremely important, resist adequate answers. One in particular has puzzled my cerebral cortex for decades. Does a tube of toothpaste ever really empty? My experience seems to indicate that, no matter how flat that tube becomes, one can always get one more toothbrush load from it. Our pragmatic lifestyles usually cause us to throw this tube away and open a new one. By doing this, are we wasting toothpaste, depleting limited world resources, and contributing to the destruction of the planet? The United States, while populated by only a small percentage of the earth's population, uses a disproportionate amount of toothpaste resources. Greedy toothbrush manufacturers produce large headed toothpaste guzzling bristles. There is a significant moral dilemma here. Shall we continue to allow this destructive capitalist consumerism or shall we regulate the toothpaste industry for the sake of the children?

Precociously realizing the gravity of this conundrum at a very young age, I have taken to research aimed at finding a solution in order to help save the planet. I have been working on a tube of Ipana that I've had since 1962. I've squeezed the tube with my fingers, rolled up the tube, used a pair of pliers, and placed the tube in a vice. To this day I am still getting toothpaste out of it. (I do not brush my teeth with it anymore since the paste is now colored greenish-brown and emanates the odor of aged armadillo road kill.) One thing I know for sure, the truism as stated in the hit movie sci-fi thriller, Bathroom Park, "Toothpaste will find a way."

This situation has led to further considerations. Is there a nuclear or chemical reaction within the tube continually producing more? Is the toothpaste actually alive and reproducing itself? If so, is it sexual or asexual reproduction? Is toothpaste in a tube the very definition of 'infinity'? If so, does that make it god? If so, how does toothpaste effect human behavior? What kind of toothpaste do conservatives use? Liberals? Communists and dictators? Are there extra-terrestrials involved?

This quest has also led to some other possible political ramifications, as well. Does toothpaste have Constitutional rights? Does being violently spat down the sink violate these rights? Is labelling toothpaste 'a decay preventive dentifrice' a disparging, politically incorrect abuse? I will try to contact Anthony Kennedy to help answer some of those questions.

Now... about toilet paper...

One,... Two,..., Three! Reggie Lisowski Down for the Count.

Famous Wisconsonite, Reggie Lisowski, died this weekend of a brain stem tumor. He was 79 years old. Although he did win 3 AWA championships, he was most famous competing with his partner in mayhem, William Afflis. (Afflis, by the way, played both ways in the Green Bay Packer line from 1951 to 1954.) Reggie, 'Da Crusher', and William, 'Dick Da Bruiser' won 5 AWA Tag Team Championships, followed by 6 WWA Tag Team Championships. This was back in the days when men were men and metrosexuals were not yet invented, but well off the drawing board. It is often said that Da Crusher made Milwaukee famous.

In our household we will be lowering the top rope to half turnbuckle for the count of three weeks.

And this, surprise, surprise, reminds me of a story...

I attended a professional wrestling match once. I was living in Marietta, GA, (pronounced by the locals as May-redda), just north of Atlanta, and was part of a volunteer organization that matched up its volunteers with one disadvantaged member of the community. My match was named Sammy. He was about my age, but was confined to a wheelchair by his cerebral palsy.We usually just hung out, but he also liked to party, and at one of ours he had a little too much to drink at tipped his chair over backwards.

He wanted to go to a pro wrestling match so I got tickets to one at the civic center. Since he was in a wheelchair, the ushers placed us up on a catwalk above the crowd. It was a great vantage point, not only to see the matches, but also to watch the crowd.

The time frame was the late '70's. Georgia's own Jimmy Carter was president and, in Iran, the whole embassy staff were still hostages to the Ayatollah's Islamofascists.

One of the bouts was a tag team match. As the first team entered the ring, the crowd erupted. They were a team of 'Iranians' carrying an Iranian flag taunting the American crowd. It was intense. I thought the crowd was going to explode and attack those guys themselves. Of course, the American team eventually won after the usual close calls. That was one of the most interesting social situations that I have ever witnessed. That part of the event lasted about a half an hour and I was really expecting a couple of guns to come out and start blasting. Of course, I was a Wisconsin Liberal Yankee in King Redneck's Court and had my view of Southerners as inferior from all the horror stories that I had heard and believed.

I just wish it had been Milwaukee's 'Da Crusher' and 'Dick Da Bruiser' teaming up to body slam those two rabble-rousers around the around the ring.

I expect Reggie will be placed in his coffin face down so that, even there, he will not be pinned.

By the way, Professional Wrestling is real. If you disagree, I have a patented Double Flip, Flying Head Scissors off the top rope for you, girlie-man!

It is time to come to our senses and leave the quagmire now. Many of our finest young people are dying, leaving mothers, fathers, wives, and children to suffer the great loss and fend for themselves. 'Enemy' action is not waning, but increasing in numbers and sophistication. Even our presence inflames the resistance. The native populace has not shown either the will or the ability to police themselves militarily or democratically. One cannot even tell friend from foe from outward appearance or daily activity. We cannot afford to continue in this 'Viet Nam'.

In effect we have even created the monster through our ethnocentric policies. (Perhaps I should say rich-ocentric.) Instead of trying to understand the culture of our 'enemy' and meeting his needs to encourage cooperation, we kill and imprison him. We have refused take responsibility and correct our errors, but contrarily we have only stepped up the pace of our arrogant attitudes and mistakes to increase the problems. And increasing they are. Money wasted and blood spilled with no palpable gain. We must get out and let our boys return safely home.

Indeed, we must get our police off of the American streets of quagmire. This 'Viet Nam' has continued for over 200 years at great loss to our nation. About 150 law enforcement officers die in the line of duty annually. The result of their heroic actions? Although there are 2.1 million prisoners incarcerated in our federal, state and local gulags, the political imprisonment is still growing at a rate of 3.5% per year. Our capitalist society has created these 'criminals'; they have failed these living, breathing, feeling individuals. Many may label them criminals. In truth, however, they are freedom fighters. They fight altruistically, often sacrificing their own lives and freedoms just as the revolutionaries of our nation's founding. They fight to throw off the domination by the oppressive rich just like the signers of the Declaration of Independence. They fight to overthrow the dominion of King Bush, Cheney, Halliburton, and big oil. These god-king wannabees, and their likeminded rich puppeteers, have long been pulling the strings of their police puppets and allowing these noble but ignorant suffer for them. The oppressors just get richer upon the backs and by the blood of the peons. We have failed and must get out. I support our police so bring them home. We now need the aegis of the U.N. more than ever. It's the most patriotic thing to do.

Grunt, strain, sweat... Must...get... tongue....forced... out ... of....cheek... All...ugh...satire...and... errg... no... sobriety...nnhg...make... Steve...a... cynical...boy...uhhh, POP! Whew! Forcing myself to speak like a member of Moveon.org is tough. In preparation I needed to plug my anus with a cork for 2-1/2 weeks beforehand as well as snap a mousetrap on my privates. (So it really wasn't my tongue I was struggling to extract nor was its removal the source of the POP that you heard.)

"Linda!! Get out of the bathroom... I need it BAD!! You always tell me I'm full of it and this time I can agree with you."

The revenge of my ill-spent youth continues. The other evening as I sat to relax and watch the murder and mayhem of 'Forensic Files', I began to slip into a trance. There before me were flowers and rainbows with unicorns frolicking among them. I floated into the billowy clouds and began to pick up speed. Suddenly, Superman sped by, followed closely by Darth Vader in a multi-colored volkswagen minibus. Vader was cursing and shooting Superman the finger. I chuckled at the expression of intergalactic road rage.

Soon I came to a mirror-still mountain lake nestled among scenic snow-capped peaks and settled on a warm, sandy beach. The lake's stillness was interrupted only by the rainbow trout dancing the frug, the boogaloo, and the mashed potato on their tails on the water's surface. The ivory-billed woodpecker's tapped out their theme in the forest behind. There were many other people there, but not really people- kind of like images of embodied spirits of people. Abraham Lincoln, Washington, F.D.R., Ronald Reagan, and Michael Moore were there. I was told, however, that it wasn't really Moore, but just his soul that was sucked out of him long ago. Osama bin Laden was off in a meadow cavorting with his 72 virgins. They were sheep, but he didn't seem to mind, although the sheep seemed extremely agitated.

Out from among the crowd came several American G.I.'s, including Casey Sheehan. They plead with and instructed me to understand the truth. Al Gore really won Florida in 2000 as Kerry had won Ohio in 2004. There was no election fraud in Milwaukee.

The Americans were evil and the cause of all the ills in the world. George W. Bush was personified wickedness. The war in Iraq was founded upon lies and was only fought for oil. They weren't quite sure whether Cheney or Rove was the antichrist, but knew that it was one of them. Republican environmental policies did indeed cause Katrina. Condie Rice, Clarence Thomas, and Thomas Sowell were dark skinned Caucasians and Ward Churchill was really an American Indian. France was the most noble country on Earth.

All the terrorists were really misunderstood persons. Being forced out of work by Bush's foreign policy they had to work somewhere. An international educational program with cash payments overseen by the U.N. would solve their problems.

Now enabled to share the truth with the world, I was determined to carry on where Cindy Sheehan had left off. I would pitch a tent on the White House lawn until Bush agreed to meet with me. I would share my experience with the New York Times and the Washington Post, ABC, NBC, CBS, and CNN. The world would know the truth and could be set free. I could make a difference.

I travelled back to Earth in similar fashion as I had come, mission in hand.

I awoke in my recliner drenched in sweat, incontinent of bowel and bladder, and covered in my own vomit. But, I didn't mind.

You're right, Dorothy. There's no place like home.

.-- .- -. - + - --- + -.- -. --- .-- + .-- .... .- - + - .... .. ... + ... .- -.-- ...

-.-. .-.. .. -.-. -.- + .... . .-. .

The Monday, October 17, 2005 edition of the Janesville Gazette included a commentary on the front page of the sports section by Tom Powers, a writer for the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The commentary was entitled, "Ouch: Loss will haunt Gophers," and of course dealt with the Badgers' freaky win over the Gophers.

In this piece, Mr. Powers writes, "The actual on-the-field loss is tough, obviously. But a defeat always gives the Badgers' coaching staff- regarded as the Big Ten Conference kingpins of negative recruiting- a little more ammunition." Kingpins of negative recruiting? I've never heard that before. But, what the heck.... We're #1... We're #1...!!

The commentary included a quote by Minnesota coach Glen Mason that I thought really strange at first, "It really hurts. It hurts more than when you get killed."

Oh, Mah, gopher stew agin'? But we had that last year!

Scott Ott of Scrappleface is usually so hilarious in his poignance. Mom's sister, Geraline, was an Ott. I wonder if we are related to Scott.

Here's his take on the Harriet Miers upcoming confirmation hearings.

"(2005-10-11) -- Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter, R-PA, announced today he will delay confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers until he can locate some Senators who are intellectually qualified to question her on the finer points of Constitutional law.
"Most of us in the Senate used to be lawyers," said Sen. Specter, "and you can't expect a simple ambulance chaser to understand the kind of weighty issues that come before the Supreme Court.""

This deals with her pre-hearing preparation.

"(2005-10-18) -- Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers, making the rounds among influential Senators yesterday, refused to answer questions about her views on the landmark abortion case, Roe v. Wade (1973), citing her right to privacy as found in the 1965 Griswold v. Connecticut Supreme Court ruling that served as the key precedent for the Roe decision."

Todd popped a zit over at Mr. Pterodactyl's, apparently without the assistance of a licensed dermatologist. If that nuclear whitehead was anything like some of mine, the mirror, sink, and walls have just experienced the horrors of perhaps the most fearsome of WMD's, the Intercontinental Pus Missile. Oh, the humanity! Is Iowa still there? Perhaps, with the development of his next subterranean missile silo, he could target Iran or North Korea. (I still pustulate that merely the threat of some of my zits pointed eastward caused the Soviet Union to collapse. Reagan's SDI really stood for Steve's Dermatological Interdiction.)

If my understanding of his post is correct, he feels that the insoluble nature of opposing metaphysical viewpoints makes it of little value in a cultural debate concerning ethics or law. To me, this necessarily means that one viewpoint, with its incumbent baggage, is anointed to ascendancy at the expense of any others. What power has the authority to choose? It is popular in our generation to ascribe 'the separation of church and state' clause ruled by the Supreme Court to be 'contained' in the Constitutional 1st Amendment as the metaphysical headlock of choice. A collateral result, however, has been the destruction of the levee system that was solidly built by the Constitution's framers, leaving the states, the people, and the executive and legislative branches increasingly overwhelmed in the swirling floodwaters of ever rising statist court oversight. (We should never shake this image: The mustachioed Ruth Buzzi Ginzberg, dominatrix, adorned with whip and tight black leather... It is not a pretty sight.) The baggage, when opened, was found to be manufactured by the Pandora Corporation.

Yes, continuing the metaphysical debate is important, even in science. I can agree that science itself is neutral concerning metaphysics. It is limited in its scope. Science may be neutral, but scientists aren't. I might even argue that politics is neutral...

Next person who clicks over to my blog will be the 10,000th.

Here, because I can't even keep my own blog going, much less contribute to this one.

Steve promises a reply. Perhaps I will move back in for the purpose.

Found this link over at Ann Althouse:

The Complete List | TIME Magazine - ALL-TIME 100 Novels

I find I've read 11 of these, and only 3 of those because they were assigned in school.

What!

World War II Airman Found Frozen in Glacier

October 18, 2005 - It was a plane crash back in 1942 that wasn't discovered until 1947. Now, hikers made a frozen discovery in connection with a World War II plane crash.

Hikers found the frozen body of an airman while scaling Mount Mendel Glacier in the Sequoia National Park. Now, the military is working to find out who this airman is and whether he was ever reported missing.

It's believed the airman has been frozen in the glacier for decades until a pair of climbers got much more than ever imagined on a hike.

Two glacier climbers, 13,000 feet above the national park floor on Mount Mendel, made the incredible discovery.

"They were hiking, ice climbing ... it's a pretty popular ice climbing route in K.C. and what they noticed was the head and shoulder and a part of an arm of a person at the base of the glacier that had melted out over the course of this summer," explained Alexandra Picavet, from the National Park Service.

National Park Service representatives believe the serviceman was likely part of a crew aboard an AT-7 navigational training plane that crashed on November 18, 1942.

What?

'Bud Pong' pulled; brewer shocked beer used in game

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Anheuser-Busch (BUD) will discontinue a national promotion called "Bud Pong," a drinking game the company says is supposed to be played with water.

However, participants in the game — played with a ping pong ball and plastic cups — often were drinking beer as they lost points, according to a front-page story Sunday in The New York Times.

...

Anheuser-Busch says the game's instructions called for water to be consumed during play, not beer, which is the company's main product.

Well obviously this is what you get from a brewery in St. Louis. Aw, cripes.

“Don’t Forget Where You Came From.”

It was often stated that flashbacks were a serious side effect of some of my youthful endeavors during the ‘60's and ‘70's. As true as that may be, it isn’t necessarily a negative occurrence, especially if it helps you remember where you came from.

It is not at all rare that I do vividly recall my thoughts and feelings during my life on the Left– concerning Viet Nam, Watergate, pollution, conservation, animal rights, political correctness, and Eastern mysticism. Not only did I have a stock of rhetorical logic, but also very passionate feelings. It felt so right. I cared. I fasted often, sometimes up to three weeks; I meditated, thought good thoughts, sent out good vibes; I joined and donated to like-minded organizations; I volunteered; I voted for George McGovern; I gave blood as often as I could. I was a special, highly evolved person. (I can remember thinking that a pint of blood I had donated was going to cause a miraculous healing and life change for the recipient.)

And I was humble. I was fond of saying, “The more I know, the more I realize that I don’t know.” In translation, this made me very intelligent, more so than another when he claimed that he knew something. My thoughts and ideas in the abstract, relative universe were superior to another’s from a nonexistent, concrete universe of absolutes. I lived by faith, not by sight. I was a soulful, spiritual man.

These recollections, both of thought and feeling, help me to understand the modern fringe Left’s strident opposition to the Bush, XLIII regime, especially in regard to the action in Iraq. The frustration of losing both houses of Congress and the executive branch, while having only the judicial branch remaining as an instrument of change here, is a difficult cross to bear. This situation has constructed a great obstacle in their ability to ‘make a difference’; to remake the world in their own superior image. Consequently, most of the things happening here in the U.S. are moving back down the human evolutionary scale. Iraq, in forming a new nation upon democratic principles, can only be a failure without the Left’s esoteric direction.

The Cro-Magnons of the Soviet Union overthrew the vanguard of their people. The supposedly enlightened United States has unforgivably elected a Republican House, Senate, and President, so how in the hell could those Neanderthal Iraqis ever expect to form a civilized nation? Why aren’t people using their brains and submitting to the wisdom of the Left? The common man is ignorant and has chosen impudence over utopia. Oh, the children!

I would almost think that, due my ideological and emotional history, my empathy could enable me to have thoughtful, in-depth discussions with some to these of the fringe Left, and perhaps even change a few minds. Not so. The slightest scent of conservatism on my breath labels me as, among many other things, a racist, bigot, sexist, and homophobe. Worse, however, is the fact that I am a Christian, making my words to them but the unintelligible gruntings of an ape.

I can remember where I came from. It’s often quite embarrassing, but I am glad to remember, also, that the door through which I came hit me on the ass on the way out.

I saw a truck pulling out of Janesville's Traxler Park this morning and read on the back, "Geese Police". Upon getting closer it also had written, "Caution: Border Collies on board". Pulling next to him at a stoplight, I saw written on the passenger door, "Get the flock out of here."

I realized that we had geese problems here, especially at this time of year, but enough to spawn a business? He operated out of Whitewater and didn't have the appearance of a starving artist. Canine capitalism.

Much better than just a bumper sticker.

Governor Doyle Signs AB 214, “Aaron’s Law” to Combat “Huffing” Among Wisconsin Teens

"Governor Doyle today signed Assembly Bill 214, “Aaron’s Law,” to combat “huffing” among Wisconsin teens. “Huffing,” is the act of inhaling the fumes of office, school, or household products to induce a high."

"In its immediate aftermath, huffing causes loss of vision and coordination. But over time, huffing causes permanent damage to the nervous system, lungs, kidneys, and other organs. Huffing can also be fatal, even the first time it is done."

I am stunned the Governor Doyle did not veto Assembly Bill 214. Instead, his signing of the bill into law will alienate his support base on the fringe Left. It is obvious that these people have incurred great nervous system damage from their continued huffing (and puffing). Also, according to the law as passed, these huffers will be guilty of "a Class I felony to distribute hazardous substances that are intended for abuse."

Neither Arianna Huffington nor Michael Moore could be reached for comment.

Sometimes you find a single line in another's writing that makes you just wanna slap yer grandmaw.

Doug Giles, in an article entitled 'PETA is full of SHEETA', contains one of those lines.

"Through stealth research, spending tens of dollars (not to mention several acid trips in which they personally interviewed many fish), the wizards at PETA have concluded that fishing hurts the fish."

During my own decade of militant vegetarianism and membership in PETA, I once had a lengthy conversation with an orange and purple snake on a mountain trail in North Georgia. My religious dedication to the cause was renewed.

Sometime after my reintroduction to the human race in Texas, I had the opportunity to return to Georgia for an unrelated matter. I took the time to revisit that mountain trail and look up that snake. Surprisingly, he was no longer of the same coloration. He must've gotten his scales dyed or something. I invited him to lunch and he was very tasty, not the fine flavor of Texas rattler, mind you, but very filling. MMmmm... Monster Thickburger!

Hey, yesterday was Little Brother Sam's birthday!

And I forgot. Well, I didn't so much forget as...ah heck with it. I forgot.

He's 29 now. Let the Countdown to 30 begin!

Yeah, I know. He's closer to 30 than any of us ever will be again.

Anyhoo, in honor of the glorious event, I give you:



I'm the...uh...slightly less nerdy big brother in that picture.

And:



What's uglier - the kid or the couch? Tough call.

There is a Chewbacca...And he's an American!

WASHINGTON — A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, a Wookiee named Chewbacca growled and howled his way through "Star Wars" movies. On Monday, the actor who played him will take the oath to become an American citizen.

British-born Peter Mayhew will be among 441 people from 77 countries who will become naturalized Americans in a ceremony in Arlington, Texas.

This one's for you, Mary Louise.

After completing my night shift, I had received my mandation slip and was required to work the day shift as well. While wheeling a
nursing home resident down to the day room for breakfast, I was having a conversation with a day shift co-worker. I mentioned that my favorite topics of conversation were the two that one was never supposed to talk about-- religion and politics.

The nonogenerian seated in the wheelchair then burst into our conversation. "I love to talk about politcs," she boldly exclaimed. "I'm an F.D.R. Democrat!" So went my formal introduction to Mary Louise and the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Mary Louise and I spent most of our time together on that unit chiding each other over our chosen political positions, both past and present. During meal times, Mary would complain that she was always given margarine instead of real butter. "I'm 92 and they are afraid one pat of butter will do me in!" I explained to her as 'nicely' as I could that the nutritionist was a Republican and saved the butter for the conservative residents. I'm kinda glad we didn't have a concealed carry law at that time, but, still, a 92 year old lunging at you with a butter/margarine knife while threatening to spread your pate d'foie gras on a cracker and shove it up your... er, down your throat can be pretty a pretty scary thing.

One night after coming in to work I was again assigned to Mary's unit on the fourth floor. While receiving the nursing report from the previous shift, I found out that Mary Louise had lapsed onto her death bed and not expected to make it through the night. She was 93. I went down to her room to take her vitals. She had been unresponsive for some time. I leaned down and whispered into her ear, "Mary Louise, this is Steve. I'm supposed to take your vital signs for your chart. But, mostly I wanted to check your pulse to see if Democrats really have a heart." At this, Mary snorted and lifted her right arm to a position that caused me to assume a backhand cuff to my ear was in route. She recovered, but did unfortunately die a few months later.

Although Mary Louise died in 1999, I expect that somehow she still cast a few Democratic votes last November in Milwaukee. And to think... if Kerry/Edwards would have been elected perhaps she would have been raised from the dead through their embryonic stem cell research promises. But I still wouldn't give her any butter!

There you go, Lance, getting me started again...

More than a few psychologists and psychiatrists put some stock in Rorshach ink blot analysis and word association to develop insights into the state of mind of the client 'on their couch'. I'm certain that we laymen do as well. Someone says, "Hello" and we step back and think, "Hmmm, I wonder what he meant by that?"

Jib likens the flap over the Harriet Miers nomination to a proctological exam. Hmmm, I wonder what he meant by that? Does that give us deep insights into Jib's character? Why a proctological exam and not the usual 'root canal'? Or even an IRS audit? It sure makes me wonder about where Jib's head is really at!

Of course, any of you that may know me or have even read much of what I have written most probably will be index-fingering your uvula about now saying, "Look who's talking!" Good point. Okay, okay, I'll pass some more ammunition.

Governor Doyle and several others are seeking compensation from oil companies and individual retailers for gasoline 'price gouging'. Doyle is pressing for a gaspayers bill of rights, GABOR, but refuses to entertain a reasonable taxpayer bill of rights. I associate this situation with Zsa Zsa Gabor pimpslapping a cop and trying to gouge his eyes out on the mean streets of Hollywood a few years back. The governor is Zsa Zsa and we are the cop.

I heard on the local radio station that State Senator Judy Robson (D- B'loit) is considering introducing a bill that would require all cigarettes sold in Wisconsin to be the self-extinguishing kind. Whatever the pros and cons of such a law, I can only associate these safer cigarettes with former U.S. Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders' 'safer bullets' of a few years back.

I associate the Miers nomination controversy with the Philadephia Eagles. Many of the complainants can be likened to Terrell Owens and his antics during this past off season. Now as they struggle along with a lame-duck, but heroic quarterback, they get the crap kicked out of them by the Dallas Cowboys. Could I possibly be associating this game against the Cowpokes with the 2006 elections against the left? (Sorry, Owen,Wendy, and Jed.).....(Not!)

Somebody go tell Jib that when you spare people from something unpleasant but then tell them what you spared them from, you're not really sparing them.

Edward C. Feser writes an interesting article titled, "Metaphysics and Morality", that outlines fundamental problems in modern cultural discourse.

Here's the introduction:

"There is a tendency in recent philosophy to assume that moral reasoning can be carried on more or less in isolation from controversial issues in metaphysics. The assumption is that questions about justice, rights, virtue, and vice can largely be settled independently of questions about, say, the nature of the mind and its relationship to the body, personal identity, or even the existence of God. Liberalism encourages this attitude, since it seeks a conception of justice that is “neutral” between competing religious and philosophical worldviews, and thus assumes that such a conception is out there waiting to be found. The motive for such a view is obvious: metaphysical questions are often so contentious and difficult to settle that it would be nice if we could get on in our practical affairs without having to settle them. It would be nice, that is to say, if we could decide what to believe about matters of right and wrong without having to decide what to believe about questions concerning the nature of ultimate reality. There is one problem with the view, however: it is manifestly false."

It mirrors the early days on Grandpa John's.

Thomas C. Reeves writes an interesting article looking for the next 'hip' (or is it 'hep'?) course of study in our Universities; Appeasement Studies.

ATTN: Racine Horlick grads!

(H.T. Dr.Keith Burgess-Jackson.)

(Is it true that the Horlick school song includes the lyrics--
I'd like to make the world a malt,
and bounce them on my knee.
I know the bombings aren't their fault,
so we can live in harmony.)?

Found this article and was wondering... if one replaced 'New Delhi' with 'Washington, D.C.' and 'rat-catching department' with some of our programs like 'war on poverty' would the story change?

"A story about New Delhi's rat-catchers has been widely reported by news services including ABC and the Independent. They quote the Hindustan Times as source, but I couldn't find the original story myself on their website. It does fall within the bounds of the plausible, though.

New Delhi's government has a rat-catching department that has not caught a single rodent in more than a decade… The Rat Surveillance Department employs 97 rat catchers, who each earn about 3,500 rupees (US$83) a month. But there are no records of any rodents having been caught in the past 10 years.

You may think this a splendid record of success. Obviously the Rat Surveillance Department has done its job so well that rats are now a rarity. Better hang on to the RSD, though, just in case.

Except that rats are actually pretty common in Delhi, and many people set their own traps for them. But then the fact that everyone knows there are rats around is all the more reason to hang on to the RSD.

Of course, it might just be that the RSD does actually catch lots of rats, but its record-keeping is poor and there is no paperwork to show that. In which case, of course, the Department clearly deserves a large increase in budget to put in new systems. Or it might be that Delhi would be no worse off if 97 of its employees were sent home on full pay. Or that if rats are indeed a problem, the whole business should be done by some private company who might actually do what they are paid for. I thought India was good at outsourcing?"

(H.T. Dissecting Leftism.)

Back in the day, perhaps not so long ago or so far away, a high school class was studying and discussing current issues in American society. The specific topic of the hour was the idea of ‘planned obsolescence’. In the end it was generally accepted that the practice of manufacturing products with limited longevity was solely for the purpose of lining, then relining the pockets of the big corporations at the expense of the little consumer. When the first product wore out a new one would have to be purchased to replace the first. It was agreed that this practice was one stimulated by greed in that we had the technology to make products that could last for a lifetime of service, but was not done so only in order to increase profits through replacement sales. The class dismissed for the day feeling that they had discovered and identified an evil that could be rectified through legislation, giving our society a little more social justice at all levels. Their vote had been unanimous. This was something they could do to help make a difference and make America a better nation.

The next class meeting was reserved for a comprehensive test that covered nearly one-third of the semester’s material. It was a very difficult test and all were glad when they had finished. As usual, some thought they had done poorly while others thought they had done well.

The next day as the teacher returned the graded tests, the room was filled with groans and gasps, and various utterances of dismay and disbelief. Every student had received an “F” on this very heavily weighted test. The teacher was peppered with questions as everyone tried to speak at once.

After the class was quieted down, the teacher explained the 100% failure. Every student had gotten at least one question wrong. This was a direct analogy to the production and sale of any item that was not perfect in its service and durability. And, after all, everyone agreed that this was unacceptable practice. The students protested that the cost was too high in time and effort to ‘pass’ these types of tests and that no one would be willing to pay the price to take this course in the first place.

The teacher smiled and handed each student their ‘curved’ grades on another sheet of paper.

ESPN.com: Page 2 : Ten more NFL truths:

9. The 0-4 Green Bay Packers will win the NFC North.

OK, the division might be the worst in the history of the league, but I envision the Packers going 8-4 or 9-3 the rest of the season. The Packers are not as bad as their winless record.
Had the Packers huddled and taken their time before their final fourth-down play against the Carolina Panthers, Brett Favre and the Packers would've finished off their rally and upset the Panthers on Monday night.

The Packers will win their next three -- vs. Saints, at Vikings, at Bengals -- and finish the season on a five-game winning streak -- at Bears, vs. Lions, at Ravens, vs. Bears and vs. Seahawks. In between those strings of victories, they'll grab a win on 'MNF' against the Vikings.

Will the Packers still fire Mike Sherman after he leads them to a division crown? Probably.

Mmmmm.... Alligator... Tastes like chicken.

Fight to the death
The carcass of a 6-foot American alligator is shown protruding from the mid-section of a 13-foot Burmese python on Monday, Sept. 26, in Everglades National Park after the snake apparently tried to swallow the gator whole and literally exploded -- killing both animals. ``Encounters like that are almost never seen in the wild. ... And we here are, it's happened for the fourth time,'' said Frank Mazzotti, a University of Florida wildlife professor. In the other cases, the alligator won or the battle was an apparent draw.
(AP/ Everglades National Park)

(H.T. Commonsense & Wonder.)

French bashing alive and well in parts of America - Yahoo! News:

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Two years after relations between the US and France soured over the Iraq war, French-bashing in America appears alive and well in light of a recent ad campaign by a fast-food chain linking France and cowardice.

The ad by the Subway chain touted a cordon bleu chicken sandwich with the words 'France and chicken, somehow it just goes together'. A photo of a chicken dressed like Napoleon accompanied the advertisement.

My opinion: that's just good writing.

Subway ran the ads in about 10 US states for nearly a month and pulled them in September following an outcry by members of the French expatriate community and other customers offended by the racist undertone.

Racist? French is a race?

Mark Bridenbaker, a spokesman for Subway, which has outlets in France, defended the campaign telling AFP it was aimed at lauding French cuisine.

'The perfect match of French cuisine and the Subway chicken ... that was the intent of this advertising,' he said. 'But once we realized that people were taking offense, we removed everything from stores right away.'

Yeah. Right.

Others, however, say the ads are evidence French bashing has become well-ingrained and perfectly acceptable among a segment of the American population.

I could have told them that.

Obligatory disclaimer: thanks for the help during the Revolution, Pierre.

Tee Bee over at Guide to Midwestern Culture has gotten me started on something. Her short post on technical aphorisms should be continued.

"An optimist sees the cup as half full.
A pessimist sees the cup as half empty.
An engineer sees that you have the wrong-sized cup.
Update: A mechanic is pretty sure somebody's been dipping into the milk, but is waiting for the spec sheet to be sure of the correct dimensions."

So... an eight ounce cup containing four ounces of liquid is as viewed and described by...

Conservatives- "One more step toward socialism and that cup'll be empty."

Liberals- "There is a resource for a new federal program."

Liberals- "There is a resource we can use to soak the rich."

Louis Farrakhan- "It was full, but we found evidence of explosives."

Kanye West- "It's a segregated cup. The white half is full and the black half is empty. That proves that Bush is a racist."

Watermelon Environmentalists- "Don't touch it or you'll destroy the planet."

W.E's again- "Don't touch it. It is the last remaining ecosystem of an endangered paramecium."

W.E's ad nauseum- "It's global warming! Oh, god, you're destroying the rain forest!!"

Cindy Sheehan- "Let's send it to help the Freedom Fighters opposing Bush's occupation of New Orleans."

Michael Moore- "I will make a film out of it because Bush lied."

Al Qaeda- "We will blow up the infidel water with the mother of all bombs."

Osama- "Water... water..."

Badger Blog Alliance- "I wish it were beer."

Packer fans- "I wish it were hemlock."

Brewer fans- "Just like my Brewers; .500."

Dan Rather- "Courage...fake, but accurate."

General Honore- "It is what it is, not what it was. Don't get stuck on stupid."

Chief Justice Roberts, Justice Thomas, Justice Scalia- "We rule that it is indeed four ounces of liquid."

Justice Kennedy- "There is a French law that leads me to rule it thirty-two ounces."

Grandpa John- " "

Tee Bee- "I don't care how much you suck up, Steve. You are still banned from commenting on my blog!"

And your take?

“Uncle Jed!! Uncle Jed!!"

“Jethro, slow down, boy. What’s all the fuss about?”

“I was areadin, in this here paper, The Janesville Geezette. And it was asayin’ they’re fixin’ to build an ethanol plant up yonder in Milton. Lookee here, it says, “The Milton plant will anyooally produce 42 million gallons of ethanol but can safely produce up to 50 million gallons per year,...”“

“Weee-dogies, boy! That’s almost as big as Granny’s still out back in the holler.”

“Uncle Jed, Granny’ll git her shotgun and go blast that dad-burned place to Mayberry!!”

“Now, boy, don’t you fret none. That there ethanol is fer horseless carriages. You know Granny’s is fer medicinal purposes only.”

“Oh, yeah, Uncle Jed, I fergot!”

“And don’t ferget that Cousin Sam is tryin’ to build a Sooper WalMart and Sam’s club rite cheer in Janesville, too.”

“Golly, Uncle Jed, Janesville is gettin’ pret’near as uppity as the Ozarks in Arkansaw!”

“Pret’near, boy, pret’near. Now go down the ceement pond and fetch Ellie Mae and her critters fer dinner. The possum, grits, and collard greens er done cooked.”

“Yes, sir, Uncle Jed. Mmmm, possum.”

“Ellie Mae... Ellie Mae...!!”

It happened again last night. Not just once, but twice.

Less than three minutes in the half, facing first and ten from their own 20 yard line and with three timeouts, the SF 49ers push the ball up the field, hoping to score before the half.

When a fumble gives the ball to Arizona on their own 30, with just over a minute to go and three timeouts, they push the ball up the field, hoping to score before the half. And they do.

Why? Because it's important!

And that's with Tim Rattan and Josh McCown at quarterback for those two teams. Sure, McCown's numbers turned out pretty good for the day, but nobody's mistaking those two kids for Brett Favre.

As I pointed out last week, the Packers made a different choice when they faced a similar situation against TB, and that's what I think their main problem is.

Tonight? We'll see. I'm still predicting a win.

Re: Happy Birthday Jack

For the uninitiated, which means very nearly everybody, "Jack" is Grandpa John.

See Grandpa Steve's post below for clarification.