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Thursday, August 30, 2007

The Great Iraqi Swindle

Rolling Stone Magazine has this must read article about the greed of the Iraqi war[Click Here].I strongly suggest that you read it.If you only read one article about the graft and corruption of the for-profit contractors in Iraq,you must read this.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Various

I now totally believe that the war in Iraq is lost.Here's why...because George Bush is a liar.OK,we don't have to call him an out and out liar.Let's just say that he mislead us.Let's just say that he made his decisions under false pretenses.The truth is the same.The war is lost because no one any longer believes him.Iraq could be doing a total 180 turn-around.Democracy could be blooming,the terrorists fleeing,hospitals and schools being built,people feeling free and bursting out with democracy...it doesn't matter...it doesn't matter...it doesn't matter.No one cares how well things are going in Iraq...because 'NO ONE' believes Bush's rhetoric anymore.NO ONE.This should be a lesson to everyone:Don't Lie.


As this article in Newsweek points out,no one is more against polygamy than the modern day Mormons...well..at least on earth.It seems the same does not hold true for Heaven.If a man becomes a widower or divorces his wife,it seems he can get sealed again in the Mormon Temple.

If I know my Latter Day Saint theology good enough,getting sealed for Mormons means that a husband and wife are bound together forever and ever in Heaven.So if a widower gets sealed to another woman...that means two wives in Heaven,correct?

Too bad this loophole doesn't also apply to women.A woman has to get 'unsealed' in order to get sealed a second time{just my luck,I would get sealed to my wife;die before her and wonder and wonder just what was taking her so long...only to have her pop into Heaven on the arm of Derek Jerter!}

I kid because I love.




The Browns play their last pre-season game tomorrow night at 8:00 against The Bears.I like Charlie Fry but think his hinny is in the frying pan. Brady Quinn is going to be the man and take us to the Super Bowl.If not,I am going to have to make brown t-shirts with orange lettering that say on the front,'V.I.C.T.O.R.Y.-This is Cleveland's Battle Cry....'And then this on the back'....Wait 'Til next Year!'





Today is the 2nd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.We should be rejoicing over the rebuilt south,but,alas,we are not.This tragedy is ultimately what George W.Bush is going to be remembered for.God be with all those who are down there in it.And thank God for all of those who have helped.





Yesterday morning's Full Lunar eclipse was totally awesome!





Totally:-)

Well,that's all I can think of at the present.Be good,will ya?!?



Sunday, August 26, 2007

The Comics

This week's comic of the week comes from the August 21, 'Ripley's Believe It Or Not'.The fact that over half of Japan's 20 year olds use wireless internet service is just mind boggling.I don't know anyone who uses this service.America is far behind on this.I have worked in northern California and have seen groves of these giant beautiful trees.Too bad soo many are gone.Rose bushes...all of these berries are related to rose bushes.One great fun strip this week.





The Weather/X-Country/Space And Football

Yes,we have had the weather this week....rainy,major lighting storms,tremendous heat,and once again all over again.



But,it also has been the start of the Fall sports season.Tyler decided to do cross country his senior year.He ran his first race Monday in the pouring down rain at Indian Lake.Tyler is in it for the pure sport of it.And to have fun.His goal is to do better each meet.

Which,so far,he is doing.Today he raced in Celina along Lake St.Mary.And beat his old time.Good job son.









Meanwhile,Adam,who has been playing football since forth grade,finally got to be the varsity starting left guard.Bellefontaine had not beaten Wapakoneta since 2001.On our first offensive possession,Bellefontaine's talented running back,Sean Egler,broke broke through a hole that Adam created and ran 80 yards for a touchdown(Whoot Whoooo!)At half time-we were winning 24-7-the game was postponed until today at 2:00pm because of lighting.Luckily,Tyler's meet was in the same general direction,so we even had time to kill before we got to the 2nd half of Adam's game.



We had just enough time to check out the outside of the Neil Armstrong Space Museum in Wapak.We had neither the time nor money for Nikolas,Robyn and me to actually go inside...but the outside was cool.




Very cool.







The second half of Adam's ball game went pretty much the same as the first.Bellefontaine romped to a 41-14 victory.






Go Chiefs!











Adam,who is number 53 played his heart out and they ran his side most of the time.










All in all,it was a pretty good week.Nikolas supported his brothers by going with us to all the event this weekend.He helped his girlfriend,Mandi,with the band half time props,and Nik was generally on the go most of the time.



Here's hoping the rest of the season will be as fun as this week!Here!Here!


Thursday, August 23, 2007

So Dull I Can't Pay Attention

Today was my 49th birthday...thank you,very much...and boy do I feel dull and old.Amongst the presents Robyn decided to get me was an earring complete with piercing.She said she liked my new short hair cut and that she saw some older men at church with earrings and that she thought that I would look cool wearing one.Am I so pathetically dull that she thinks I need an earring to be cool?!?

I have never-once-mentioned wanting an earring:Never!I never ever even wanted one.What was up with this gift?Worst gift:ever!Sorry cute girl,but all it made me do is feel old and dull(and she said she had been thinking about getting me one for along time!).She is very against me getting a tattoo...now this out of the blue!Does she really think I need an earring to be sexy?!? Jeez Louise!

Secondly,I thought since I was having such a hard time getting on to Mixter's Mix that I would try Haloscan...thinking that would make it easier.D'Uh,no.I couldn't even log on to my own comments without getting booted off MSN!And,little did I know that downloading Haloscan would TOTALLY delete all of the previous comments on my blog!Good bye Haloscan-hello Bogger 101-but,alas,too late.sorry bloggers.

I'm batting o-2 tonight and feeling like shit.Happy birthday to me :-(

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

A Drew Repeat:The Apocalypse Or Revelation

I thought you might re-enjoy this Drew classic:


The Apocalypse,or The Book of Revelation,was originally meant to be a book of hope.It was originally written,probably by St.John(or one of his disciples),in a time of strong prosecution of Christians by the Roman empire(circa. 100 A.D.).The followers of Christ were being burnt alive at the stake,crucified,put inside cast iron images of bulls and roasted,feed to the lions,etc...well,you get the idea.

Suffice it to say,it was allot harder being a Christian back then.And hope was waning.Many followers were questioning what good did it do following the Lord.

The book gave many hopeful answers.It foretold of those persecuted as attaining heaven and becoming warriors of Jesus.It told that in the future all the suffering would be rewarded by the ultimate victory of Christ over the evil of the world.

Imagine how comforting that had to be to people who were suffering death of loved ones for Christ.Could a greater hope been asked for?Hardly.

But recent interpretations of the book have mostly been centered on the symbolic language of the book.People are now using it as prophetic 'End Of The world' literature.

And it well may be.But the trouble with prophecy is that it can only be proven true after the fact.I hear good solid Christians calling the Catholic Church,'The Great Mother Whore Of Rome'.This is probably,not so much because they are convinced that the Catholic Church is evil,but more probably because they can not think what else this prophecy could mean?

Then they twist the rest of the book to fit into this too simple theory.

This really gets my goat.I tell these people that while they very well maybe right,that there is a danger in interpreting The Book of Revelations this way.I tell them that I could give them an interpretation of the book that fits all of their criteria and at the end they will go to me,"No Way."

So,the game begins.

I ask,'What is the number one thing that most people associate with the anti-Christ?'Some say that he will be the head of Rome.'Well,then,'I say,'It can't be the Catholic church.It is not in Rome.Vatican City is it's own private country.Officially,then,it can not be part of Rome.'They say,'Aaah,you are nit-picking.Rome is symbolic.'I say,'Very good,then,we can agree that the book deals in relatively symbolic terms?'They usually then have to say,'Yes,that there is really no other way to decipher the book.'So,I then reply,'So Rome can be seen as the world power of it's day?'They say,'Yes.' 'So when we are talking of Rome,Rome could mean that the anti-Christ will come from the world power of the day?'They say,'Of Course.'I ask,'Who is the world power of today?Whose culture does the rest of the world try to emulate?'They usually shake their heads,not wanting to understand.'Let me put in another way.In how many countries are there McDonald's?In how many countries do people watch M-Tv?Dress in blue jeans and watch Hollywood movies?Well,the whole world.'

But still not getting my point,it usually comes down to the numbers 666.I then ask what the numbers stands for.They say a name.I ask,'Whose name?'They usually don't know.I go[holding up one finger at a time],'Ronald Wilson Reagan.'

This is when they first go,'No way.' But I push on,'Not only does his name add up to 666,but so did his California address.That was until he chanced the last number to an eight .Before then he lived at 666 St. Cloud Road.'

'No way,'they gasp.Then I say how the anti-Christ was supposed to die and come back to life.That happened to president Reagan.On national Tv,Dan Rather pronounced Reagan as dead,only to recant it moments later.

I then go on to say that one head will die off only for another to appear....George Bush[losing re-election],and George Walker Bush.

The people are really going ,'No,no,no,' now.They say that I got all the facts wrong,and refuse to believe me.For a caper,I claim,'And who could the symbol of the dragon be,but China?'

By this time,I have made my point.They don't believe.They say it is just too preposterous to believe.

I go,'Why?Because it is our country?'And they go,'Yes.'Then I say that Christ said that even the true followers would be deceived if it were possible.Why couldn't it be America?

By this time,they are almost ready to fight me.Then I say,'See,I told you that you would say it wasn't possible even tough all the signs are right there.That is the danger in putting too much credit in the 'prophecies' in The Book Of Revelations. Our lives should be based on the love and mercy and teachings of our Lord Jesus,not on a book that was originally meant as a book of hope,but is now being used perhaps wrongly to spread fear.

I truly believe that I don't do much more then rough a few feathers,but perhaps I have also planted a few seeds of love,forgiveness and compassion along the way.

Now,if only I could erase that nagging doubt that I have planted along the way in my own brain about my own country....

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

स्स्स्स्स्श...डॉन't Tell

My community is having somewhat of a battle on of all things,wind turbines.Some landowners/farmers are against them.They say that they are ugly(even uglier then the cell phone towers),inefficient,and unsafe(some are afraid that the towers will fall on their houses)..and most of all,some fear they won't bring them enough $$$.

The other side says that wind turbines-even if they save just a little bit of our natural resources-are a justifiable renewable resource source.This pro-side even claims that the towers are beautiful and something a community should be proud to have.They show the locals to be progressive,modern thinkers.They can even become tourist attractions....And think of the $$$.

Well,being the smart ass that I am,I decided to write a letter to the editor of our local newspaper.I mailed it out today.Tell me what you think....and....do you think they will publish it?


I find it of no small consequence that those that deem our government untrustworthy of winning the war in Iraq,are still able to blindly trust thus said government in the knowledge of giant wind turbines.

These 'Gore' mongers curse man as global warmers,and are therefore willing to pollute our landscapes with their monstrous dragons in the name of 'conservationism' and 'progress'.

Such serpents clash mightily against my goodwill.

Surely,these 'doom slayers' jest when they pronounce these beasts as 'progressive'.They farm out our fields as 'zoos' to mindless consumers whom trounce across our nation in even more mindless energy consumption pursuits of ice cream.

Hear Ye-hear Ye!I say thee NAY to the giant wind turbines!

Rather,I say,our quest should be to kill the demon of mindless consumerism.Printer ink as expensive as printers should be stopped.Razor blades more expensive then the razors themselves,should be outlawed!But are they?!?

Nay!They are not!

Such wasteful Gore mongers should look to their own bellies before they dare place dragons onto my kingdom!

No to wind turbines!Never,I say,thee!Never.




Don Quixote




Well,what do you think?Pretty funny,huh?Huh?


Sunday, August 19, 2007

The Comics

Chip Bok,the Akron Beacon Journal's political cartoonist did this weeks best comic.This hilarious take on the NBA official caught gambling on games he refereed was first published on August,17th.It is darn tootin' funny.That is why it is the comic of the week:-)



Thursday, August 16, 2007

Ten Great Rock Songs That You Probably Never Heard Before

Here are ten great rock & roll songs that you probably never have heard before:But 'YOU' should!Here they are-in no particular order:



1:'Runs Straight Down',by Warren Zevon,off his 'Transverse City' release.A most apocalyptic view of the near future.Just what is entropy,anyway?This 1989 release was green before we even knew what green was .Guest artist David Gilmore makes his guitar scream.I can't crank this one loud enough.


2:'We Got Bigger Problems Now',by The Dead Kennedys.This punk rock song off the 'In God We Trust,INC',LP,is a re working of one of there earlier hits,'California Über Alles'.But this song is by far -way better.It starts with a slow,almost jazzy,bass...nice,easy.You feel like you are in a small club- you almost can hear the glasses clinking-the soft vocal comes on.Oh,yeah...and then it hits you:"Welcome to 1984.Are you ready for the third war?You too can meet the secret police.They'll draft you and they'll jail your niece !"It goes UP from there.There is not a better rock song.


3:'Time',by Phil Keaggy and The Second Chapter Of Acts(How The West Was One).Admit it,you don't like Christian rock.But if you are as burnt out on 'FreeBird' and 'Stairway To Heaven' as I am,then this will be the best live rock jam around.If you never heard Phil play his guitar,then you must listen to this rock guitar legend.It is supposed to have been asked of Jimmy Hendrix who he thought was a great guitar player.Jimmy was supposed to have said,"(That)there's this jammin' kat from Ohio named Phil Keaggy." It is a variation of a urban legend.I don't think Mr.Hendrix really ever said it.But,there is usually some truth behind most myths.You have to hear this song to believe it:-) Don't forget to crank it!


4:'At Least That's What She said',by Wilco.I like the 'Ghost Is Born' vinyl album version the best.If there is one criticism of Wilco's latest Cd,'Sky Blue Sky',it is that it lacks the normal Wilco beautiful noise.'At Least' doesn't do that.According to my parents,via 1970,rock is nothing but noise.Yeah,baby.Yes it is!


5:'Chalice',off Glass Harp's,'Strings Attached',Cd.Yes,I know,another Phil Keaggy song.What can I say...except that the lyrics are almost as good as the guitar work.The rest of the band rocks,too.I get off on this tune.It rules!


6:'Brand New Cadillac'-The Clash-'London Calling'.OK,you may of heard this one...but I doubt it.Pure thrash!"Balls to ya' Big Daddy.She ain't never comin' back!"Just one of four great classic songs that start off the first side of the 'London Calling' LP....but WoW!The six sided 'Sandinista' record would have been the perfect Clash album,except it doesn't have a 'Brand New Cadillac' on it.This song is 'The Clash'.Can you say;CRANK IT!!!!



7:OK,this is really a perfect trifecta...and you have to put it together yourself.All you have to do is get out your copy of 'Queen II',re-record the first two songs on side one('Procession' & 'Father To Son') and tie it together with the last song on side one('The Loser In The End').Not a Freddie Mercury written song in the group.'Procession' is really the intro to 'Father To Son',[which is self explanatory] and 'The Loser In the End' is a song giving advice to Mothers.It not only ties in all together nicely,but also shows off the rock inklings of both Brian May and Roger Taylor.Two songs-three songs.I always like playing them together.One song.Enjoy!



8:'10 A.M. Automatic' is off The Black Keys' 'Rubber Factory' CD.If you want to rock,you can't go wrong with anything Black Keys,but '10 a.m.' is their ultimate jam.If you like some blues with your grinding rock.This song is for you.Asked by Rolling Stone which modern day group he would like to play with,Robert Plant said The Black Keys.


9:'The Ghost Of Tom Joad' by 'Rage Against The Machine'.The easiest way to buy this is off their 'Renegades' covers cd,but it was originally off a M-Tv free cd for Bosnia relief.Yes,it is the old Boss song based on the movie that was based on the John Steinbeck novel,'The Grapes of Wrath'(by the way,one of my favorite books).This version is one of the greatest rock songs ever made!Perfect!Perfect!Perfect!My God,this is a perfect song!Crraaaannnnkk IT!


10:'[Ain't Got No] T-Bone'.This song is off Neil Young's 're-ac-tor' album.Why he does not perform this jem in concert is beyond me.It is loud,aggressive and umpteen minutes long.I like to dance(if what I do qualifies as dancing),run,or just basically get my motor running to this baby.Again:CRANK THIS MOTHER!



These are just 10 songs that 'I' think,though unheard of,will rock your casbah.The volume is on me.Rock out at will,people.Enjoy:-)



Wednesday, August 15, 2007

The News Hole

A shout out to my friend,Mixter.I know that she will especially enjoy this site.I came across this website while browsing Msn.I think you should check it out for yourself.It is from MSNBC.Watch the videos.Good stuff.

Monday, August 13, 2007

'Impeach Bush' Sign-Littering?!?

This could only happen in Ohio.In fact,only in my old stomping grounds.In Kent,Ohio,a man named Kevin Elger placed an 'Impeach Bush' sign on public property and was fined for posting 'an advertisement without a licence'.The judge threw the $150.00 ticket out(rightfully),but now,they are trying to get the man for littering!


Now I know why during the 2004 presidential election someone kept stealing my 'Elect Kerry' signs.They were just trying to clean up the place.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Sky Rocket In Flight

I have had a love affair with the night skies since the Apollo space program.My eighth grade science teacher,Mr.Jivadin,took us to see,'2001-A Space Odyssey',and I was hooked.Ooh,I am just a dabbler,really...I have a small telescope,and watch the news for upcoming events.But,I love a free night time show.This stuff is fun.


And fun can be had this week.Wantta see some shooting stars?The Perseid meteor showers are at their peak tonight through Tuesday night,with Monday the 13th being the best of the best times to see them.You can possibly see up to 60 meteors and hour!Thanks to there being a new moon right when Earth goes through the debris of comet Swift-Tuttle,this could be a good chance in seeing allot of shooting stars!


The best time to see this amazing night time extravaganza is between midnight and 5:00 am.So,good luck watching...and don't forget to make a wish or two!


Mars is also going to be making an appearance,but don't be fooled by the e-mail hoax that is making it's rounds right now.It is false,and based on the 2003 apparition of Mars.The Red planet will still be up there....but as big as the moon?!?Not gonna happen.

But that does not mean that all is lost.For even more space fun,thanks to NASA,you can track the Sky Lab space station or even the space shuttle Endeavour.Now,they are fun to see.To find out how,simply click [here] and follow the instructions.

Finally,on the night of the 28th there is going to be a full lunar eclipse.Be sure not to miss that.

No,no,there is no need to thank me.I am glad to be of service.I don't know how long you have been enjoying viewing the night sky,but me,I have been taking up space for years.

Enjoy:-)

The Comics

This 'Slowpoke' comic from Monday,August ,6th,really pissed me off.As an Akron area native,I have usually been proud of Good-Year.This Comic Of The week just makes me sick.

Thursday, August 09, 2007

The Governor Of Ohio And The Fish From Ohio

Yes,it does pay to have a brother-in-law who is chairman of the Democratic party in Logan County.Good ol' Ben made sure that not only did Robyn and I get an invite to the summer democratic fundraiser,but that we were some of the very first people to greet Ohio Governor,Ted Strickland.[Pictured are me,the Gov,Robyn and Robyn's Mom-MiMi].After hearing the Governor speak,I can honestly say that I not only like him,but also believe in him.He believes in education and is doing something about it.He seems like an honest to goodness good guy.He believes that while Ohio is going through some hard times that we should not forget that Ohio is still a great place to live....I agree.



Yesterday,Robyn made us supper from freshly caught Lake Erie perch.Tyler,Nikolas-along with their grandpa-'Pa'[Robyn's dad],caught them.

Man,were they good.Robyn fried them to perfection.There is no better fish(not even walleye)when cooked right.Robyn served them with fresh corn on the cob(in a garlic butter),freshly made coleslaw(vinegar style).I made black and tans from both Guinness draft(from the 'can'...DO NOT use Guinness Stout)and Sam Adams lager....again..hmmm hmmm good.What a meal.

yes,it has been a very exciting couple of days...but what else is new?

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Bud Selig-Barry Bonds

Let me congratulate Barry Bonds on hitting 755!Good job Barry.Now,on Bud Selig....why am I not surprised the cameras caught him looking the other way?Because,he's been looking the other way(and therefore professional baseball as well) for along time now.Sure,Mark McGuire & and Sammy Sosa weren't doing anything illegal in baseball...just because they were allegedly using substances already banned in the Olympics and football and other places...they weren't banned in baseball...i.e....nothing illegal.And Barry's in house personal trainers..so what..they meant nothing.

Stadiums are full,Tv is good,merchandising is selling.People forgot the strike.Business is good.


Bud,you and the player's union whored out these players.You conveniently looked the other way as they sold their souls so your sport could make $$$$!


Hell,Bud,if you would have done anything else besides 'look the other way' it would have been totally out of character for you.


So,shame on you,Bud,shame.You should be slapping Barry on the back...all the money he's made for you.Oh,that's right-pimps slap their whores on the face..not on the back.How stupid of me.

Sunday, August 05, 2007

The Comics

This weeks comic almost felt like it was meant to be.After all,last week,I almost picked a Cleveland Browns joke as The Comic Of The Week.This August First Tank McNamara was just too topical and funny to resist.





Saturday, August 04, 2007

The Cat Of Death And Various Other News Stories

Concerning my anemia,first the good news,my hemoglobin count is up to 9.3 g/dl from and all time low of 5.2 g/dl when I first found out about it.Since the low healthy average is 13 g/dl,I still have a way to go,but I am moving up the ladder.The doc has me on iron pills twice a day so I think I will continue to hopefully climb.The bad note is that I had to cancel and reschedule two doctor appointments until September because work wouldn't give me the time off to go to them....Oh-well...I will survive.

Unlike the patients that this 'Death Cat's visits.It seems this precocious pussycat named Oscar leaves residents of his nursing home home pretty much alone until an hour or so before their upcoming deaths.This kitty wears no black robe and carries no scythe to reap the dead souls...he just purrs them on to the next world.I don't know if I find this cat comforting or disquieting.A little of both,probably.It would be nice at your hour of ending to have a comforting soul next to you...but this also seems like the legend of the cats that jump up into the baby's crib to lick the milk from the baby's mouth...sort of a soul licker..brrrr.That's just scary.

Speaking of scary.I don't know about you,but at least for a little while,I am going to feel just a tad bit scared going over older well traveled bridges.My heart and prayers go out to the families involved in the terrible bridge collapse in Minneapolis.My heart is aghast to the horror that all these rush hour travelers must have endured...a real nightmare.

Speaking of nightmares,you better not talk in your sleep.Thanks to the lackeys in the Democratic party,even more of our freedoms are gone with the wind.The George Orwell Party is now going to take away even more of our freedoms in order to keep us free.The Senate voted to expand warrantless surveillances on both you and me.But don't worry,this over-extension of the law will only temporarily take away some our civil rights ...you know,like the federal income tax was just supposed to be temporary.The Ministry Of Magic...er...The Bush administration seems firmly under the control of 'He Who Must Not Let The Constitution Get In His Way'.

I have just finished reading,' Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows'(or in keeping with the running joke-'The Plot That Must Not Be Mentioned').I missed on almost all of my predictions...only getting a couple,nearly correct.It was a great book.A fine ending to a very fine series of novels.I know that the books have been criticized for poor character development and weak plots,but that did not stop me from mourning over the few characters that did not make it to the end of the book.I will miss the yearly adventures of the witches,wizards and magically animals that J.K.Rowling brought to the bookshelves every year.

Or I would except for this news story talking about giant man eating badgers sent to Iraq from Great Britain.By golly(!) the wizarding world is real!


But what would I know...I'm only a Muggle.