As ye sow...........................

"Bush said it was "a shameful act" for someone to have leaked details to the media. " (From Yahoo News)

I guess it's a matter of perspective. I view it as a patriotic act. This remark relates to his authorization of wiretapping and other spying activities without oversight or confirmation by any other branch of govenment.

"I am doing what you expect me to do,"...............................(From Yahoo News)

Obviously he wasn't speaking to at least 50% of the American public.............the 50%, or so who DIDN'T vote for him. I count myself in that vast group. I admit to a fatalistic view of how things would play out following his election. I knew in my heart that bad things would happen. Bad things of historic proportions. Sadly, my expectations have been fulfilled. Do his clandestine activities rise to the level of impeachability? If so, what would that mean? America has a history of acting without fully considering the consequences(see: Iraq/Saddam). We're not alone in this geopolitical hubris. No politician or government can grasp the nuanced complexity of the international geopolitical landscape, and yet all try to.
Sorry, I realize this is scattershot. I'm asking a lot of questions and not necessarily rendering coherent opinions. Kind of illustrative of my take on the state of the nation at this juncture.
Ankh

Minority Report

Excellent previous post Ne'er. Welcome back and congrats for having survived the gauntlet. What was your favorite beer?
I trust we've all seen the eponymous movie and remember the premise. It is my opinion that the U.S. Government currently operates under those same principles vis-a-vis terrorists and terrorism. These pre-emptive operating principles are at legal and ethical odds with the precepts on which this country was founded.
With a few notable exceptions, European governments are much more mature in their handling of situations involving terrorists and terrorism. I believe that terrorist entities, be they dictatorial governments or individuals must be allowed to declare themselves to some demonstrable degree before we bring force to bear. Would I be willing to place myself or my loved ones in harm's way for this cause?..................................That's a qualified "NO". No, but I accept and can live with a degree of unpredictability in life. In a war with no boundaries, we are all combatants. If we are willing, as a country to countenance our young men and women being IED fodder, then we should, by extension be willing to risk domestic violence in order to allow our enemies to declare themselves. We had no legitimate casus belli for invading Iraq. The degree to which we are risk averse in this arena is untenable. We want clean wars. Surgical strikes. Ignorable covert ops. These are all basically oxymorons.
Ankh

stuff

Despite my weak grasp of personalities, I just wanted to mention a hilarious interview I saw last(Sleepless in Craley)night. The talk show belongs to the guy who used to play the boss on The Drew Carey Show. He was interviewing Maureen Dowd, the columnist. Brilliant repartee on subjects ranging from Dubya to feminism to male orgasms.
I like Maureen Dowd, but it struck me as I watched her................she's basically Ann(she whose name must not be spoken)Coulter's Democratic mentor.
Are we slow for news and opinions, or is it just the Christmas Rush?
Ankh

Three-peat? I don't think so!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry y'all;
I'm a little late with this. Seems Jeb "Florida is your's bro' ;^)" Bush is considering a run for the White House. Thankfully not this next term. Don't have a pulse on how rank and file Republicans feel about the prospect, but they should feel scared............very scared about what their party has to offer them. With a rogue's gallery including Santorum and Frist, and a cheering section manned by Pat Robertson, they look to be in for a rocky ride for the next few years. Can the Dems get their feces compacted and in chronological order enough to capitalize on this opportunity? I despair. Whither go we?
Ankh

The slings and arrows...............observations.

"It's not the large things that send a man to the madhouse, "Charles Bukowski has written. "No, it's the continuing series of small tragedies . . . a shoelace that snaps, with no time left."

I was recently reading a synopsis of a book about Abraham Lincoln's melancholic tendencies and came across the preceding quote. Perfectly encapsulates how life wears us down.
God is in the details.
The Devil is in the details.
Don't sweat the petty stuff.
Pay attention to the details and the big things will take care of themselves.

"The notes, I can play. They are easy. But the spaces between the notes, ah, that's where the artistry resides." Artur Schnabel, pianist/composer.

It's the spaces between life's notes that frequently trip me up. On rare occasions, I handle them with great virtuosity and I cherish those times. But more often than not, I come up empty handed and fulfill the "stupid male" stereotype I hear touted at work all the time by my more harpy-ish female coworkers.
I'm in a rather black frame at the moment. Must..............ride...............bike...........MORE!
Peace, out,
Ankh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House is not amused by The Onion, a newspaper that often spoofs the Bush administration, and has asked it to stop using the presidential seal on its Web site.
The seal was still on the Web site www.theonion.com on Tuesday at the spot where
President George W. Bush's weekly radio address is parodied.
With headlines like "Bush To Appoint Someone To Be In Charge Of Country" and "Bush Subconsciously Sizes Up Spain For Invasion," The Onion is popular with readers looking for a little laughter with their politics.
White House spokesman Trent Duffy said people who work in the executive mansion do have a sense of humor, but not when it comes to breaking regulations.
"When any official sign or seal is being used inappropriately the party is notified," Duffy said.
"You cannot pick and choose where to enforce that rule. It's important that the seal or any White House insignia not be used inappropriately," he said.
Duffy said while he does not personally read The Onion, he admitted knowing others in the White House who do. "Like everyone else, we like a good laugh."
Scott Dikkers, editor-in-chief of the satirical newspaper, said its lawyer disagrees with the White House assessment.
"I've been seeing the presidential seal used in comedy programs most of my life and to my knowledge none of them have been asked not to use it by the White House," Dikkers said.
"I would advise them to look for that other guy Osama (bin Laden) ... rather than comedians. I don't think we pose much of a threat," Dikkers said.

Hey all;
The last line says it all. I'm gonna be decidedly impolitic.......................FUCK 'EM IF THEY CAN'T TAKE A JOKE! When did the White House insignia become a sacred object? Can you say, First Amendment?!
Ankh

Winning Powerball Family in Seclusion

Sounds like the guy has his head screwed on straight. If my wife and I woulda won? mmmmm, it would really be hard not to go apeshit on buying a few bikes and electronic doo-dads. Other then that, I'd have fun making sure all my relatives were taken care of.

Wilma winds intensify to 175 mph as it becomes possibly worst storm ever

Newsday.com: Wilma winds intensify to 175 mph as it becomes possibly worst storm ever

Those who forget history........................

Nothing too coherent here, just some ruminations. A coworker's daughter(freshman-HS) interviewed me last evening concerning my memories of the Iran/Contra Affair. In preparation, I read a synopsis on http://wikipedia and followed links where my curiosity led. Oh, what a tangled web we weave.............................:^(
Then, later, I happened on a documentary about the Vietnam War. More specifically, the Nixon Vietnamization policy that resulted in incursions into Laos and Cambodia, the carpet bombing of Cambodia which indiscriminately killed hundreds of thousands of Cambodian civilians, our perverse support of the Khmer Rouge which allowed them to kill over a million more of their countrymen/women/children.
Emma Lazarus' words(http://thenewcolossus) at Liberty's feet are obscured by the blood spilt in our efforts to proselytize "democracy" to the world. In general, I am not proud to be an American.
Ankh

Sanctimonium co-opting U2's good name

Santorum's press secretary, Robert Traynham, said Thursday that the decision by the Senate's third-ranking Republican to hold a fundraiser during Sunday's Philadelphia show is based on his "deep respect and admiration for Bono and their work together over the last few years to fight the global spread of
HIV' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> HIV-AIDS
Hey Gen'lmen;
How galling it must be(as an artist) to have anyone, for any reason co-opt your artistic endeavor for political gain. But to have it be someone of Sanctimonium's ilk would make me want to vomit. The axiom, "politics make strange bedfellows" is particularly apropos here. If he hasn't actually said it, Sanctimonium surely believes HIV is god's(notice the lower case, because only a "small g" god would behave in such a manner) divine retribution against gays. The devil is in the details..........................and in the deals we make to effect change in the world around us.
Ankh

Thoughts and outrage III

"The down side of capitalism" or "strange bedfellows".
When did we lose control of our government? As a business savvy entity, WalMart is a ferocious negotiator. It uses its huge bargaining power as a tool to force its vendors to lower prices. Now, it makes sense that the U.S. government which represents 20% of the GNP of the U.S. economy should be in a killer position to negotiate best prices when making deals with subcontractors. Yet, when the last Medicare bill was passed, the government somehow caved to the drug lobby, rather than dictating the terms government drug purchasing policy. Consequently, we pay billions more dollars for prescription drugs than we might.
Or look at the companies which are subcontracting to the government to provide services in the Persian Gulf, and yes, now New Orleans(and soon Galveston). These contracts were awarded through no competition bids...........................go fuck yourself Mr. Cheney;^)
Now to the oil refiners who suddenly discovered several years ago that they could increase profits by depressing production. They have been steadily decreasing production even as demand has risen. Recently, the government stepped in to stop the closure of a refinery. Actual oil reserves and OPEC machinations have little effect on the daily price of petroleum products in the U.S.
In many critical ways, our government no longer supports us.
Ankh

Kurt Vonnegut's list

LIBERAL CRAP I NEVER WANT TO HEAR AGAIN
Give us this day our daily bread. Oh sure.
Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those wh trespass against us.Nobody better trespass against me. I'll tell you that.
Blessed are the meek.
Blessed are the merciful. You mean we can't use torture?
Blessed are the peacemakers. Jane Fonda?
Love your enemies - Arabs?
Ye cannot serve God and Mammon. The hell I can't! Look at the Reverand Pat Robertson. And He is as happy as a pig in s**t.

The Daily Show

Omigod!;
I finally got to watch the show this A.M. Content was good. The great part was the special guest. Just a little preamble here. We've been cleaning out some stored stuff recently. Among the refuse, a few boxes of my old books. Notable authors include Kurt Vonnegut and Jerzy Kosinski.
Jon's guest was Kurt Vonnegut. I worshipped this man in my adolescence. As Jon said, he opened my forming mind to a whole world of thought I would not otherwise have encountered. Vonnegut loosed his lacerating wit on the current administration and gave a synopsis of the history of democracy in the U.S. that appears to be serving as an abbreviated framework for its nascence in Iraq......to include: after the first 100 years, you have to let your slaves go free. After 150 years, you have to let your women vote. There must be a period of genocide and ethnic cleansing and so on. Wickedly funny stuff rimmed with sadness.
He had a list of "liberal crap" to read which they didn't have time for, which Stewart said would be posted on the website under Vonnegut's name. I plan to check it out.
G'day all,
Ankh

Thoughts and outrage II

Why is it that the only economically painful thing we are willing to do, as a nation, is wage war? We will spend anything to try to prevent the loss of even one life on the battle field. And nothing to try to prevent deaths from predictable disasters.

Contingency plans for dealing with a "Katrina" type disaster were formulated over twenty years ago. Too economically painful. Not politically comfortable, so we suffer what, in hindsight we now know we could have prevented or mitigated.
During the gas crunch of the '70s, we started to realize that we must develop alternate energy sources. But.................................too economically painful. So we suffer the consequences of our continued dependence on a dwindling energy source: pollution, global warming, terrorism.
Locally, I'm an optimist. I'm raising two good kids. I work to make my community better. I have a good marriage and I think I'm basically a good person.
Globally, I'm more pessimistic. There is a widening gap between the "haves" and the "have nots". I'm not totally comfortable being in the "have" camp. Our bad habits and lack of courage will ultimately lead to our demise................................only in generations too far removed for me to contemplate. Complacency is still morally affordable for me, sadly.
Ankh

Thoughts and outrage

I do SOOOOOOOOOO love it when whack jobs trip up. Like Jimmy Swagart caught ho'in around. Pat Robertson obviously forgot the First Commandment;^)
Now on to outrage. The whack job preacher from Kansas who goes around the country with his little cult of homophobic followers has adopted a particularly egregious new tactic. He's been showing up at military funerals to inform the assembled mourners that their loved ones who have died in the line of duty were actually killed as divine retribution for America's tolerance of homosexuality. Now, if we could just get Pat Robertson to redirect his attention to the preacher......................
Ankh

Gaza............whazzup?!

Hey gents;
This is such a complex and fraught situation. Surely we can get a lot of mileage out of it. I'm curious about the U.S. government's support of Isreal from a Christian perspective. It's naive to think our interests are purely geopolitical. I've mistakenly stumbled into discussions about this perspective before with people(read devout Christians) who have an emotio/religious attachment to the situation. Can anyone explain the Christian perspective dispassionately?
Ankh

Minutiae, errata

Just bits and pieces of mental detritus, flotsam and jetsam;
Kansas(atajim: since you and your folks left, the place just ain't the same;^) is the first state to legislate intelligent(small "i" demonstrates my contempt) design into it's school science curriculum. Toto's looking off into thin air and whining. Thinking individuals among us can only hope this will gain as much traction as previous efforts to slip "creation science" into the curriculum in the same state some years ago.
The potential Republican presidential candidate pool is lookin' pretty shallow and murky. Forgive me, I can only come up with two in my sleep deprived state. First and most egregiously, is Senator Rick Sanctimonium, closely followed( a little too;^) by Jeb"Ya owe me one Dubya" Bush. Is Catherine Harris' continued ascendancy in politics any surprise?
S'all fer now,
Ankh

AVAM

Hey y'all;
Wife and I spent a very enjoyable evening south of the border at the American VisionaryArt Museum near Inner Harbor. Lots of fantastic nonconformist art. The capper appeared in the museum's gift shop. Among other interesting and entertaining things was a picture of Dubya wearing a sandwich board which said, "Will kill for oil". Made me smile. I tried to recreate it using the computer, but am just not savvy enough. Anyone care to give it a try............Geo?
Also, I immensely enjoyed the snippet of the interview show I saw yesterday where James Carville got Robert Novak to self-destruct. Don't particularly love Carville, but I admire his style. Don't particularly hate Novak, but I dislike his pole-up-the-ass conservativism(hope I'm characterizing him right).
Ankh

update: The Education of Shelby Knox

'lo;
I had posted on 30 June 'bout a P.O.V. show on PBS called "The Education of Shelby Knox".
I finally, by chance got to watch it the other night. What a tremendous show. The best part was the superintendant of the school district, who ultimately blocked all the kids' efforts to get Sex Ed. into the school curriculum, was discovered to have been carrying on a torrid affair with a female staff member, complete with graphic emails on the school's computer system. He has since left his post and disappeared.
But the dynamic tension created by the opening of this girl's mind(coming from a conservative Christian, Republican background) is amazing. Y'all must watch if you get a chance.
Ankh

Ne'erdowell carries the blog

Gentlemen;
Are we mice or men?! Ne'erdowell has been carrying the weight here. Speaking for myself, I've been suffering from a lassitude regarding posting on things which stick in my craw. My craw's full to overflowing and emptying it doesn't seem to help. I've taken refuge in concentrating on things which I can do something about, like building stone walls, diddling with my bike and living with my family. Hoping this passes though, 'cause I do likes to bloviate on things worldly;^)
Ankh

A mind opens

Just created my first link(crudely but effectively, I hope). I was just browsing last night and came across this piece. Very arresting, particularly the part where this young woman talks about the type of believers (her) God wants. If a mind can open in that kind of environment, after having been nutured in the way this woman's was, there is some small hope for humankind.
ankh

Free speech

Since 1789, there have been more than 11,000 attempts in Congress to amend the Constitution; only 27 amendments have won ratification. (from the YAHOO newsboard)

The most recent of a spate of attempts to amend the Constitution to prohibit flag burning seems destined to pass. Post 9/11 pressure, and some strategic Republican electoral wins have given this initiative the necessary oomph to prevail over sensible legislative scrutiny that has prevented 10,973 other misguided attempts to change the fabric of our national identity.
Emotion prevails, pundits wail and an impressionable public that never seems to learn from past abuses opens wide and swallows. Let's all stop being whores to manipulative, self-serving pols(to follow the dirty joke vein I'm mining). Let's be nice girls and spit the jizz of spurious, nonvalid legislative efforts right back on their collective laps!
We defend far worse things(IMHO) in the name if First Amendment protection than the act of flag burning. This smacks of cold war, red scare, commie hunting behavior, that we should have outgrown. The flag is a symbol(albeit a powerful one) pure and simple. If someone defaces or destroys it as an act of protest or defiance, I may not appreciate the gesture, but I don't take it as a personal affront. We're wasting far too much valuable time exercising ourselves over things of no consequence.
ankh

Dynasty?! I'm movin' to Canada

This is gonna be short, 'cause I only heard it in passing. I heard the other day that Bush, Sr. wanted to see Jeb elected to the presidency to cement his family's dynasty. Talk about royalist tendencies in the Republican Party, sheesch! That would be the final insult, electing the man who presided over one of the most egregious voter frauds in U.S. history to the presidency:^(
'Scuse me while I hurl.....................................
Hank

Spreading the wealth

From: "hank smeltzer" Date: Tue May 24, 2005 11:54 pm Subject: Thoughts on tropical paradise, social responsibility, my religion, cynicism vs.
goodnightnur... Offline Send Email
hope, skepticism............................"First, let's be fair to cynics. Cynicism is the place ofretreat for smart, critical, dissenting and formerly idealistic proplewho are now trying to protect themselves. They are not niave. Theytend to see things as they are, they know what is wrong, and they aregenerally opposed to what they see. These are not people who view theworld through rose-colored glasses, the ones who tend to trustauthority or who decide to live in denial. They know what is goingon, and at one point, they might even have tried for a time to changeit. But they didn't succeed; things got worse, and they got weary.Their activism, and the commitments and hopes that implied, made themfeel vulnerable. So they retreated to cynicism as a refuge fromcommitment."And later..................."And if you have middle-class economic security(as many cinicsdo), things don't HAVE to change for YOU to remain secure. That isnot intended to sound harsh, just realistic. Cynics are finally freejust to look after themselves."The above is excerpted from the book "God's Politics: Why theRight Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It. A New Vision forFaith and Politics in America", by Jim Wallis, an evangelical,preacher, theologian and faith-based activist.Part of my rededication to serious reading is an effort toclarify my thinking, and my positions on some issues that are veryimportant to who I am and how I relate to the world.In the past, when I haven't been sure of my feelings about athing or idea, I generally try to immerse myself in it. Not by tryingto absorb information just from my orientation to the issue, but byusing sources that make me uncomfortable. I definitely approachedthis book with more than a modicum of discomfort. The passages Iquoted above really struck me. I don't necessarily consider myself acynic.........more of a skeptic. But then, maybe that's justrationalization on my part. The definition sure as shit fits me. Icould never again embrace mainstream Christianity. I am just as sureof the validity of my particular religious philosophy as the author isof his, but I could work with this man. The vast majority of his bookresonated strongly with me. Much of the content regards our moralresponsibility to work to provide an improved standard of living tothe world's poor. I was reading this as we were travelling from theairport at St. Lucia, past squalid housing to our posh resort.Much of the rest of the content involves politics in America, itsdysfunctional relationship with those it is supposed to serve, and itsabuse and fear of communities of faith. This man is very balanced inhis analysis. Despite my initial reticence, his sense andevenhandedness won me over. Not to faith, but to the realization thatI could work with him DESPITE his faith, and accept that if weprevailed, we might both end up in the same place.It's an endless source of frustration to me that my ruminationsnever sound as clean, concise and coherent as Dr. Don's, but then, Igenerally start with much messier premises;^)My next selection is, "The Bottomless Well: The Twilight ofFuel, The Virtue of Waste, And Why We Will Never Run Out of Energy".Friend Don, this is one for you. The first pages alone havefired my thinking a quantum leap past the rudimentary energy exchangeswe've had here and on the blog in that past.More to come. I feel invigorated, frustrated...............gawd,it's a beautiful, fucked-up world.Hank

Moments of clarity

Rewind to the last election.........................the fatal sound bite. Howard Dean screeching and gesticulating to the crowd. I had a moment of clarity. At that moment, I knew that he was a political nonentity. I understood the implications of that out-of-context snippet of video. I mourned the loss. I liked Howard Dean. Would have voted for him without the reservation I harbored for John Kerry.
Fast forward to today. I was watching Charlie Rose interviewing Mike Nichols, the director. Very interesting guy, even when he was talking about stuff that really didn't interest me. Then suddenly, he provided me with another moment of clarity. He was discussing Howard Dean's fall, and in a couple of devastatingly simple sentences, he made me understand why that snippet of video was so damning. What he said was, "the audience wasn't miked". Dean was trying to project over, and was reacting to a raucous crowd. But because the audience's reaction to him wasn't provided(or was deleted), an (all) important piece of contextual information was omitted, and allowed those who wished him ill to effectively neutralize his message and appeal to the voters. Nichols said, "this is a serious thing." Perhaps one of the greatest understatements I've heard in some time. A real life "Wag the Dog", perpetrated on the American public in ths space of about five seconds. In my estimation, perhaps the most pivotal five seconds of the entire campaign.
This scares me,
Hank

Ellen Goodman-conscience clauses

Hey all;
Check out Ellen Goodman's column in the York Sunday News. The upshot is that they( pharmacists who refuse to fill "morning after pill" prescriptions) want to exercise conscience without consequence. Her "slippery slope" arguments are very compelling. By logical extension, the bus driver can refuse to let you off in front of the Planned Parenthood clinic. Interesting..........................hope I never have to decide whether or not to leave my job based on conscience issues.
Hank

Today's cartoon..............

On another subject.....................

Consider;
Your wife, daughter, mother has been raped. Medical science has developed a safe method to assure that there will be no risk of pregnancy from this act. Your family physician perscribes the medicine. When you reach the pharmacy, the pharmacist informs you that, due to his religious convictions he can/will not fill the perscription. Further, he will not refer you to someone else who might.
One of the central tenets of health care is that you do not impose your personal beliefs on those under your care. If you can't do that, you should find another line of work.
In yet another instance of legislative overreaching, lawmakers in Texas, and other states are trying to pass statutes to protect pharmacists who refuse to dispense RU486 and other such "morning after pills" to patients.
I appreciate the strength and depth of others' convictions, but "your right to throw your fist stops at my nose".
Hank

If you can't beat the system, kill the messenger

Gen'lmen;
This isn't a new issue, but recent events have brought it afresh to my attention. What right does someone who's run afoul of, or feel they've been abused by the courts have to kill the judge who's passed sentence? ...............................of course it's a rhetorical question, but that's why we ask these, to stimulate discourse.
White supremicist Matt Hale(yes, he who bloodied York's pedestrian mug by picking us to host one of his hate rallies) has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for trying to contract for the killing of a federal judge. The same federal judge(bizarrely) who was killed by a derranged and unsuccessful complainant in a medical malpractice lawsuit.
Now, disgruntled legislators who got beat at their own game by the courts are spewing inflammatory rhetoric at the bench that further feeds the fires of anarchic zeal. All the usual suspects are featured, Santorum, DeLay. Frist is carefully distancing himself.
I can't quite read through all the smoke where this is leading, but it's really disturbing. Anyone care to pick up the thread?
Hank

Lap dog rediscovers his teeth

Quote for the day.
"I do not want to end up with an American style of politics with us all going out there beating our chests about our faith."
Tony Blair, British Prime Minister.

by the way.........................

Full credit goes to my wife for this question: How many executions did the president sign off on or fail to intervene in in order to "err on the side of preserving life" during his tenure as governor of Texas? Surely, he would acknowledge that the criminal justice system is just as fraught with serious questions of veracity of information as was Terri Schiavo's case. And the stakes are much higher. We're talking state sanctioned murder vs. passive euthanasia.
Henr'

Terri Schiave.......requiescat in pace

"The essence of civilization is that the strong have a duty to protect the weak," Bush said. "In cases where there are serious doubts and questions, the presumption should be in favor of life."
Sounds like another unfunded mandate to me:^( Besides, Michael Schiavo was doing exactly what Dubya said..........protecting the weak(his wife) from the agendas of other unscrupulous parties. It's finally over though. We can all heave a sigh(for whatever reason). Unfortunately, some will be heaving that sigh in order to catch their breath so they can continue to beat this now dead horse. Republicans promise further hearings............it makes my heart heavy.
Hank

Censorship.

We have a Borders Books near where we live and they often have local artist and musicians play from time to time. Recently, they invited a local artist to display some of her art. Unfortunately, some of it offended a few patrons and the manger decided to remove it from the display.

Our local paper had a column on the whole thing, and I tend to agree with the guy writing, but I think the manager at Borders has to make a decision. He needs to decide whether he wants to display art or not display art. Art can be good, bad and/or controversial and in my opinion- good art is controversial once and awhile. That's what makes it art. It makes you think. Perish the thought.

This person got themselves all worked up and wrote in to the paper. Somehow they glossed over one important detail; Borders Books is a private business on private property. They can do whatever they damn well please as long as they don't violate any laws. If you don't like it-vote with your dollars.

Personally? I think the manager at Borders needs to get a set of balls. I saw the picture in question and I thought it was well done but I disagree with some of it's premise. That's my opinion and that's why it's called art.

Quickie.....

Not alot of time this morning........you guys gotta read this blog. Seeya, Johnny Donut needs his sleep.

A Cartoon for your enjoyment

Submitted by Hank and posted by the donut guy.................

Click on cartoon to make biggerer

Tragicomedian Jeb Bush and his schizoid behavior in the Schiavo case

Okay;
I'm way past ready to lay this to rest, but it just keeps getting more and more surreal. Defender of life Jeb Bush tried to ram a bill through the Florida legislature making it illegal to remove a feeding tube from any persistently vegetative patient. Meanwhile, he was backing a neurologist who insisted that Terri Schiavo was not in a persistent vegetative state, but "minimally conscious"(believe me, it's an esoteric distinction). Therefore, said bill would not have protected Schiavo.......................................d'ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Medical decisions and politics: Addenda and corrections

Mornin';
Well, it appears reason has prevailed. How do you stop a line of dominoes from falling? Remove a few and substitute a bookend. The dominoes in this case are politicians who have egregiously abused their power by intervening in this case. The bookend in question is a stalwart federal court judge. The judge has denied the parents' claim. It is unlikely any further appeal could be heard in time to drag this travesty on yet further.
Corrections needed here will only serve to strengthen Michael Sciavo's reputation as being his wife's selfless and unstinting proxy. He did not refuse to abandon her because of religious conviction, he refused to abandon her because of his vow to her to honor her wishes regarding this horrible situation. His resolve was strengthened as a result of a conversation Terri's parents were drawn into some years ago. In order to demonstrate the lengths to which they would go to preserve their daughter's "life" they were asked what they would do in various worst case scenarios. Should she develop a bedsore and infection that threatened a limb, would you have the limb removed to save her life? Of course we would. Then let's follow this line......should she lose all her limbs, and be left with only her torso, and then go on to develop heart disease requiring surgery, would you subject her to open-heart surgery to save her life? Why yes, of course, we love her any would go to any length to preserve her life. Faced with the horror of this maniacal resolve on his in-laws part, Michael Sciavo has spent much of the last several years of his life fighting for his wife's rights. It was not a position he reached quickly or lightly. Initially, he could accept his wife's predicament no more than his in-laws could. He even became a nurse in order to be able to care for her himself. But eventually, he came to the realization and acceptance that she would never recover, and that he must honor her by having the courage of her convictions.
On NPR yesterday, Daniel Schorr tendered a devastating critique of Bush's role in this passion play. Even as he was posturing, putting pen to paper to "save Terri's life", Bush is in the process of supporting legislation that would take away the right to file lawsuits like the kind that earned Michael Sciavo a large award in order to provide for his wife's care-related expenses(note here, I believe targeted tort reform is desparately needed). Bush is also pushing legislation that would limit Medicare/Medicaid, the very programs which have subsidized the lion's share of Terri's medical expenses to date.
Hoping for resolution,
Hank

Medical decisions and politics: addendum

Just an additional observation. Bill Frist is also weighing in on this. He should be doubly ashamed. As a physician, he should know full well and respect Michael Sciavo's privacy.
Shame, shame, shame.

Medical decisions and politics

Evenin';
How much time have you spent with a person in a persistent vegetative state? Terri Sciavo's parents spend quite a bit of time with such a person. Their desire is to keep their daughter alive. But it's not about their desire. It's about her desires(regarding the prospect of ending up in her current situation), and how those desires should be respected and executed on her behalf.
Damn me for starting with an emotional hook? It's part and parcel of situations like this. No one who's personally involved in such a case can be dispassionate about it.
Terri Sciavo is unable to make decisions for herself or to indicate what her feelings are regarding her predicament. Those actions are left to her proxy, in this case her husband. It is his assertion that she told him she would not want to live in her current state. All of the laws necessary to assure that her rights are protected are on the books. No mainstream religion objects to allowing persons in her condition to die. Nor do they object to the withdrawal of nourishment and hydration.
But what of Michael Sciavo's motives? He is Catholic. In the eyes of the church, he is married to her until death. He is in love with another woman. Does he have a vested interested in hastening her death? Short of obvious, egregious abuses of his responsibility to his wife as her health care proxy, questioning his motives is a blatant invasion of his privacy, and must(in fairness) bring into question the motives of the party(s) raising the questions.
Terri Sciavo's mother has appealed to President Bush to intervene. He should tell her he has no right to intervene on her behalf, that it would be an abuse of his power, but there's political specie to be gained here(however abominable an abuse that may be), and he and his party are hungry for capitol. Tom Delay has taken the lead in pursuing this issue. He's taken quite a drubbing over his professional missteps of late and is desperate and grateful for a diversion.
There has been an assertion(most recently by those who defend the Partiot Act) that the Constitution and Bill of Rights does not guarantee us the right to privacy. In general, I would agree with that assertion. But, this venue is a bloody damnable way to test that assertion, and it's being tested for all the wrong reasons.
Hank

Re: Chill baby, chill.......missed opportunities

Folks;
Thirty-some-odd years ago, I was a speaker at one of the first Earth Day gatherings. I've been environmentally conscious ever since. I'm not a tree hugger, or a PETAphile, or any other brand of extremist. I just believe we must practice sustainable use of our life support system, the planet Earth.
We've missed many opportunities to improve our performance in that arena. Cheap(federally subsidized) oil has kept us in thrall of the petroleum economy, and sapped our will to explore and develop viable energy alternatives. The technology to exploit any of the alternatives is directly within our grasp or could be developed with committed investment.
Within the next several years, Iceland will be totally free of dependence on petroleum products. Their's will be a hydrogen based economy. Granted, they are blessed with abundant geothermal resources, but they have made the investment in creating the infrastructure to enable the shift.
Ours is a history of stifling efforts to change the status quo. Once, GM explored totally electric powered travel with their FEV-1. The cars were never sold to the public, only leased. Now all the remaining cars sit in a heavily guarded compound, destined to be piecemealed for recycling. This is but one example of the petroleum-automotive industrial complex's strategy for dealing with technologies that threaten its primacy. The will to exploit the technology wasn't there, the power brokers killed a nascent effort to shift the paradigm of energy consumption in this country. It has become our Achille's Heel, the figurative balls the producing countries have got us by. We are victims of our own greed, short sightedness and inertia.
A variation on the Think Globally, Act Locally axiom comes to mind. Of late, locally, in my immediate daily life, I'm generally an optimist. But in my global perceptions, I'm generally a pessimist. I despair for the future of the earth. I read an article the other day projecting what would happen to the Earth if humanity were to disappear suddenly. The thinking was that within a couple of hundred years, Earth would revert largely to what it was before we were here. I found that oddly comforting. (Un)fortunately, I don't think we'll be leaving any time soon.
Ambivalently yours,
Hank

This is good.

Drill, baby DRILL!!!!!

I'd like to offer a different opinion on the drilling that's gonna happen up in Alaska..................

I say lets get those thumper trucks, drilling rigs, storage facilities, 4 door crew cab pickups and whatever else they need to extract the oil up to Alaska as soon as possible and SUCK THAT BITCH dry as quickly as the equipment will allow. After all the oil is pumped out..........clean up and get the HELL OUTTA THERE.

Sure, we can moan and complain about how all those caribou are gonna get screwed out of their mating habitats and how the environment is going to be all bitched up forever but lets get real.............

-We are gonna be up there getting that oil sometime in the near future, why not now?

-Lots of us drive vehicles that get 10 mpg. and have no plans to switch to more fuel efficient transportation.

-We all love cheap oil. Our economy runs so much better on cheap oil.

-For the foreseeable future, OPEC has got us by the balls, so unless we are willing to either go cold turkey on oil or fly over to the next OPEC meeting and bitch slap some Arabs around..............let's go drilling.

Re: Stating the obvious

Helloooooooooooooooooo;
There are two root issues at work in this problem
#1. Historical. Man wrote the bible. Was it "divinely" inspired? I can't say, but it was filtered through the human mind, and the original text and all its various permutations are tainted by that "original sin". Following that assertion, it makes sense that homosexual unions would be proscribed, because they don't produce more souls for the church, and a religion has to grow to survive.
#2. Economical. If states and the federal government sanction homosexual union, they will have to provide all the same financial protections the rest of us enjoy.
All the rest is just obfuscation designed by the power brokers to deflect the basic human rights argument.
KaCHING,
Hank

Re: PBS's Front Line

Yeah man;
Powerful stuff. Unflinching, which frequently makes me flinch........and squirm. Independent Eye is another good one. I was working on a draft here, and can't find it now. I was mentioning how I turn on BBC World News in the morning when the kids are sleepily getting ready for school. Sometimes their antennae perk up when a soccer story comes on. Otherwise, they mostly just passively absorb it unless I bring their attention to something specific. It's good to hear stuff that's not Americentric(is that a word?). Broaden your mind;^)
Hank

Just a quickie............

Saw this article. This stuff is so weird, it almost seems made up.

Discuss?

I'm proud of myself............

For the past 24 years, I have managed to not watch Dan Rather report his version of the news. That's right- I have never seen Dan Rather report the news.

Did I miss anything? ............I don't think so.

What's the frequency Kenneth?

.............don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out Dan.

Have something to say?????

Have something to say about local or national politics???................

This is the place to say it.

What do you have to do to get on the list of contributors?

Put up a comment on the board and we will make you a team member and you can post your thoughts for all to see.

-George