Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream...

Hi Karen!!!!!

Wow, Karen – you HAVE been busy! Let’s see: what’s new in New Mexico? Sorry to say not too much. Boys are doing well in college and I am taking some cooking classes at night at Univ New Mex. One of the instructor/cooks asked me to help her in the fall – a lot of work but flattering nonetheless that she asked.

My days are never easy but are getting better. It’s been seven months and never a day goes by when I don’t think of Linda. I’m looking to go to Chicago in October try to track down her cousin. They were pretty close and I haven’t heard from him in about a year. I was planning on spending some time with OC and maybe another friend in the windy city while I am there.

What has anyone else been up to?

Love, abq

Its a reunion of sorts. I just checked in to see what was happening. Very nice to read that Karen and Richard are gaining their sea legs.

During early July, my oldest daughter and I spent two nights in Boston and looked at four colleges (my head was spinning) and immediately following that, our family spent about two weeks in Michigan. It was all very relaxing (except the Boston part). I am very excited to have abqjohn visit this October.

My January 20 countdown clock continues to melt away the hours as I sometimes look up at it from my desk at work. The odd thing about this is the fact that I would like time to stand still for some things, but January 20, 2009 can not come fast enough for me.

I had an irreparable parting of the ways with Ira after Obama won the primaries. He and I had both worked together to get supplies to New Orleanians who were forced to relocate to Texas.

I have not been as active in the blogosphere, but I continue read as much as I can about those issues which effect all of us. I occasionally e-mail articles and links that I hope others find as interesting, clever, informative or humorous as I do.

Right now, I am sitting on my porch and before I linked to DCP, I thought to myself, "Let's see what's going on at the mother ship" - no joke. In this crazy world of opinions and links, DCP will be a solid base filled with commentary and comments that will help me to gain a better understanding of the world that surrounds us.

I don't know what anybody else thinks, but in my view, Obama's trip really was an incredible success. Any thoughts?

This story only starts to get really interesting at the third paragraph.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20080725/sc_livescience/bodylanguagewhatmccainandobamareveal

80 year old, retired Methodist minister among those hauled away.

Iowans try to arrest Rove, end up in jail

Anti-war protestors try to confront long-time Bush advisor

http://www.radioiowa.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=5BE55AD6-D812-0713-D147340096DE7A1F&cache_refresh=1

Nice to see these posts! Thanks for link, oncall--I am really hoping to get some voters to pay attention to how the candidates actually behave, as compared to what comes out of their mouths.

I agree that Obama's trip was a success, and he has managed to keep moving and to keep the campaign moving as well--all good.

I've been in touch with some of our friends who were HRC supporters and for the most part they are strongly supporting Obama, which is a very good thing. I see more unity this time around, and a greater awareness of the stakes at hand.

But, oncall, the BIG question is--WHICH COLLEGE DID SHE LIKE?

Well, I'm now on Day 1 of my four week forced vacation - with no guarantee that I will have a full time position when these four weeks are over.

Yesterday was tough, and today is a day for decompression. On Monday, I'll attempt to reassemble the pieces and see if I can begin a move in a completely different direction.

Oh Matt, I am so sorry. But I can suggest a new direction: north. or east. or west. don't go south though.

I'm tired, you guys. Don't really have much to say.

abq...I know it's been a long, tough road so far, but it's awesome that you've found the cooking classes to look forward to.

OC...I heard about the disagreement and I'm sorry for both you and Ira. Falling outs are never good or fun. But I hope things calm down later.

I, too, am curious which school she leaned toward--though it's just nosyness. Afterall, I have no clue about any of those MA colleges.

Matt--I'm so sorry as well! I hope something good happens REALLY quickly!

Karen--Richard...at least you laughed while bailing out the boat. What a set of crazy circumstances!

Oncall and Karen--I agree. The trip was a success though I'm fuming that the Pentagon wouldn't allow Obama to see the troops in Germany but now the media and McCain is claiming that Obama chose not to see them.

I'm sick of the media. And then to hear sirus and xm were allowed to combine...

Also, my sister and I agreed. We don't feel there is a oil/gas/energy crisis due to environmental reasons. The crisis is due to the oil companies seeing REGULATION in January and trying to get every last penny that they can now.

Holy crap! I use to think she was a lefty-liberal! (And I thought I was moderate.) Now we're sharing the same thoughts! Not so scary...just right!

Impeachment vids

sparrow

At first I welcomed the Sirius-XM merger, because the combined company had the potential to offer more channels and content.

Now I am not so sure - when the 200+ channels get combined, some will be dropped, and what gets dropped has much to do with the ideologies of Sirius's top brass (since Sirius is the one buying XM out). And Sirius is the more conservative of the two.

The sad thing is that with Clear Channel turning terrestrial radio into the sorry joke that it is today (not just the talk show stations, but the homogenized music stations too), I either keep paying Sirius or carry an iPod in my car.

ABQ

Good luck with getting together with Linda's cousin. I am for anything that helps you preserve Linda's memories. Also, enjoy your time with oncall. In any case, Chicago is a great city!

oncall

Keep in touch with us more often!

Karen

Thanks for your updates! Best wishes with whatever future that unfolds for you.

Christy and I may consider building a Roman style villa next to your eventual destination. Consider this an advance warning :)

Ally: There is room for one!

Karen and Sparrow, My daughter really liked Tufts. I was impressed with it as well. It seems like a good fit for her as she has a strong interest in International Relations/Studies. The odd thing about her interest in that field is that she doesn't like to study foreign languages (she doesn't seem to grasp the irony of that, and that it may hinder her success in that field of study). It will be difficult for her to get accepted as Tufts seems to have very high admission criteria. My daughter had spent some time at Harvard (her dream school) last year while participating in the model U.N.

My wife and I hope that our daughter gives University of Illinois (our alma mater) serious consideration. The total cost difference between the schools in Boston and U of I are staggering.

Oncall said:

Karen and Sparrow, My daughter really liked Tufts. I was impressed with it as well. It seems like a good fit for her as she has a strong interest in International Relations/Studies. The odd thing about her interest in that field is that she doesn't like to study foreign languages (she doesn't seem to grasp the irony of that, and that it may hinder her success in that field of study).

~~~

Oncall,

That cracks me UP!!! That's just like my daughter who went to a certain school known for it's "Study abroad program..." who HATES to learn foreign languages. At the time she applied, she was thinking about journalism...and she hates celebrity entertainment (journalism) and she hates political journalism.

So she switched from journalism to 'exploratory' and then decided she wanted to major in a combined art, creative writing, computer/art/publishing type degree. And that school didn't offer any advanced computer classes.

And so she ended up leaving that school...and hating the 'Republican' state it's in.

At any rate, they sound like 'like-minds' as far as the foreign language and international study aspect.

Can someone please explain to me how Iraq is won now? I'm really quite serious. I'd like the truth. Is this because they're trying to help McCain be able to change his position?

Opinion
Analysis: US now winning Iraq war that seemed lost

~~

Also, I heard the news the other day and the talking heads were saying something like..."Barack is bragging about Bush admin taking HIS position on Iraq and Iran...And yet they're saying that McCain = Bush... The Bush admin has been doing this for years..."

It just really pissed me off.

OnCall

I agree Obama's trip was an incredible success, jealous and xenophobic comments notwithstanding, and I think he'll be an incredible president. If he doesn't win by a landslide, our electoral system and media are more corrupt than we have even realized. With McCain in there I would anticipate bank runs, military suicides, environmental catastrophes and no good solutions in sight. Neocons would work him like a puppet. Obama would inherit problems as well, but is sane, intelligent and thoughtful. The world can see this, as they could with Gore and Kerry. The world is pretty civilized, and we need to follow. We have not been setting much of an example.

Sparrow,

I read that opinion piece yesterday too. As I see it, Iraq has reached a point of a low simmer, and for many that is as good as a "win". After reading that piece, I tried to find the most recent posting from Riverbend (Baghdad Burning). She has not posted since October, 2007 and now lives in Syria. So it is hard to know the truth. Yet, one of my patient's (a retired Marine) sons is a Marine Captain in Iraq and I am told that things have significantly improved and he expects his son to be sent to Afghanistan in the next few weeks. Nobody knows for sure what will happen when the US forces leave. We can only hope that it remains peaceful and that the Iraqis solve their political mess.

If you read Fiasco by Thomas Ricks, you will remember that Ricks had high praise for Petraeus' strategy of getting the US soldiers into the communities.

I am not even sure what a "win" has meant throughout this whole debacle.

Campaign contributions from oil industry executives to Sen. John McCain rose dramatically in the last half of June, after the senator from Arizona made a high-profile split with environmentalists and reversed his opposition to the federal ban on offshore drilling.

Oil and gas industry executives and employees donated $1.1 million to McCain last month -- three-quarters of which came after his June 16 speech calling for an end to the ban -- compared with $116,000 in March, $283,000 in April and $208,000 in May.

zenbowl's diary :: ::
If you're too lazy to do the math, here it is:

John McCain: total oil money in three and a half months=$882,000

John McCain: total oil money in two weeks=$825,000

He was able to raise a quarter year's worth of money in two weeks. And you can bet your bottom dollar that money kept rolling in this month.

And where did he go immediately after his brave call for more drilling? To get paid:

McCain delivered the speech before heading to Texas for a series of fundraisers with energy industry executives, and the day after the speech he raised $1.3 million at a private luncheon and reception at the San Antonio Country Club, according to local news accounts.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/7/27/91149/8991/657/557670

Here is an interesting interview about the surge's "success."

http://therealnews.com/t/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=1942

slugbug

Kill Big Oil.

Too bad cars are being made to depend ever more on Big Oil than ever before!

Of course, the Democrats' anti-car orthodoxy doesn't help things either.

Good to see so many of the original "Our Gang" here and posting. Do remember to do that from time to time as we all think of you and wonder what's going on with you.

Karen, your life sounds like it is going to be so much fun from here on. The idea of having a haven to go to sounds comforting. I'm so glad you sold your house when you did, I know it was in a good neighborhood, but as you know the housing bubble has popped and millions are in foreclosure.

My only word of advice for you two (as if you need any) is to be sure to Carpe Diem. (Seize
the Day!) You still have many years of adventure ahead of you, and you made some very smart moves.

As far as the adventure in the boat bailing out water and then rowing, it sounds like you handled it okay. It is kind of funny. You haven't slowed down much, but at least alot of the stress and burden is lifted. Be sure to
keep in touch with us, your stories are both fun and funny.

Happy for you.

Good to see you OnCall, and ABQJ. I know you will enjoy your visit with one another.

Ally, I wish I knew half of what you know about the different immigrants and ethnicities and how they are used to fulfill wishes/needs of the Neocons.

Sparrow:

July 27, 2008 9:56 AM
sparrow said:
Can someone please explain to me how Iraq is won now? I'm really quite serious. I'd like the truth. Is this because they're trying to help McCain be able to change his position?

I am very confused by this sudden switch in strategy by the right, and I resent the dickens out of it. I for not one moment believe that all of a sudden, less than three months away from a Presidential election, this administration has all of a sudden tamed the insurgents and called Iraq a victory. I am more than a little upset, too, Sparrow.

I saw Obama on a news clip a couple of days ago when he was in France, and at that time he said that Iran poses a huge threat, and that Europeans agree with him.

WT? Will somebody please explain what is happening to me?

It's looking quite likely we'll start pulling troops out of Iraq and sending them to Afghanistan, and I feel so sorry for those in the military that have already served three and four tours in Iraq. From what I understand, Afghanistan is alot more treacherous because of the mountains. The Russians didn't have much success because they got picked off the mountains as they came up them.

I sincerely hope this does not mean the new administration will implement the draft.

I don't know what to think. I really thought I was hearing Obama say that Iraq was the wrong war, which I agree with, and that he as President will be sending more troops to Afghanistan, which we might need to do to actually catch and or take out Al Qaeda. But I honestly thought that all the sabre rattling at Iran was an excuse to go in and bomb Iran and have Halliburton build it back up. Now Obama says Iran is indeed a grave threat, and that Europe agrees that it is.

The last thing I remember reading about Iran was that they weren't building nuclear weapons, they had nuclear energy plants (which I believe at one time we helped build) but had said they were not thinking about building a bomb.

It was such a strategic mistake to attack Iraq like this President did, on substituted information, and then get in there and not be able to get out, or as they are calling it now, "win".

I don't buy it. HOW ON EARTH could the Iraqis all of a sudden be ready to handle their own government and violence from the different factions, when a year ago all we heard from the right was just that the Iraqi's were not taking responsibility for defending and organizing it's own country (due to civil war of course.)

Please, somebody fill me in! Did we in fact "win" in Iraq enough for Georgie to call it a success and a win? Or is this another Rovian ploy to at least save the right base?

Karen,

While you were away several people I know have gotten laid off their jobs. Groceries are ridiculously high, along with gas and utilities. I suppose now that so many people are losing their homes to foreclosure rents will go up because of supply and demand.

If I could I would move to Europe already. I'm very concerned.

Matt,

Sorry to hear of your involuntary vacation. Hopefully you will still have a job to go back to. Alot of the brokerage houses are having a very hard time keeping afloat, along with several banks. My bank is doing okay for now.

My son with a college degree and ten years of experience in his field just lost his job out of the blue. He had never been reprimanded or written up about anything, and some of the workers he worked with said he was the best manager that co. had seen in twenty years. Seems new management came in and the new boss had a buddy that needed a job. It's all part and parcel of the whole situation. It's like a house of cards, starting to go down.....

I was going to bi+ch about being up here where there isn't as much to do, but living is affordable. I think I won't do that, giving it some consideration. My life is perfect except I don't get to see my kids as often as I would like.

I still have my job, and I am happy there, this area is clean and attractive and I have been able to afford to meet most of my needs. Health care is a no go for me here.

I have been applying for jobs that will provide benefits like health care, but I really enjoy the job I have.

I am trying to remain optimistic, but plain truth is, it's a bit unsettling to see what is happening to our living costs and shady home mortgages that forced people out of their homes.
Can you just imagine being a person who was behind on his mortgage and then got laid off?

I have rented a movie titled "Charlie Wilson's War", based on a true story of how a Congressman helped break Russia during it's war in Afghanistan.

Tom Brokaw on MSNBC this hour (5-6 p.m. CT)with
Barack Obama at an interview in London a couple of days ago on "Meet The Press".

Obama's talking about Iraq, and his position now on Iraq.

Hello TSP!

Yes, I know several folks who have lost jobs or had hours decreased...including my husband. So selling our house and paying off all the debts was a great move to make.

I don't expect everything to suddenly get better, even after the election, and so we have not taken any of our good fortune for granted. We know our lifestyle has changed for a good long while anyway, and we need to keep the changes going: we hope to install a windmill in NS, and to cut back on our footprint here in DC as much as we can.

I'm wondering what other steps each of us is taking to decrease our use of resources, and what each of us is doing to build new types of resources?

Am I the ONLY ONE who heard McCain decry he was going to run a clean and fair campaign? With Obama in Europe this past week after being in Iraq, McCain put Obama down and slammed him hard. So much for mumbling out of both sides of his mouth.

Karen!

Awesome to hear from you! I find the current journey you are on to be absolutely fascinating and inspiring.

We've chatted about my daughter before, so I wanted to share this little story.

She was just in D.C. for the week doing work with the homeless and volunteering at the Boys & Girls Club. She had a great experience, really getting to see how poverty affects people and families, dining in different ethnic restaurants around town, etc. She called the other night and said to my wife after working with some homeless kids, "Mom, I'll never take anything for granted again".

That was right before she lost her wallet with the cash we gave her for the week. She offered to pay us back out of her savings, but then she said, "I lost it in a park where we were talking to homeless people, so I hope one of them found it and felt like they hit the lottery".

She cant wait to go back again in the spring when she travels with her school chorus to sing in the Cherry Blossom festivities.

It was cool to hear her describe her experiences of the city that I grew up in.

Anyway, thanks for letting me share, and continued good wishes on the road ahead.

p.s. it really IS great to see everyone here again @ The Calmune

What a great story, monkey! I hope she was at the boys and girls club in ne dc, which is not far from our old house.

wow. our kids are growing up--DCP began almost four years ago and we had such great parenting talks. now they are taking over!!

oncall said:
This story only starts to get really interesting at the third paragraph.

Read that story to, and thought now why do I recognise that name, wondered what you had been up to Karen.

Hey kangaroo,

I've been up to my ears! Actually, I did that interview on the cell phone while we were sailing in the Gulf of Maine--JUST before the bailing incident!

Life is totally WILD sometimes!

Horrible church shooting today, at a Unitarian congregation in Knoxville:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080727/ap_on_re_us/church_shooting

Apparently the culprit was very fed up with the progressive politics of the Unitarians, but what he exactly blurted out while he fired, it's not known.

My thoughts are with the church members.

TSP--

Yeh, I have no idea how anyone can suddenly buy this 'success' thing. However, I feel that we are maybe too biased or wise to them.

Monkey,

That's a great story.

It really is incredible to know that most of our kids are either grown ups now--or pretty close to it.

Christy--you temporary lurker you...

We miss ya too.

sparrow said:
Christy--you temporary lurker you...

Hell yeah where are you? I got the painting of Scarlet today it is gorgeous. Waiting for Tony to come home to show him, can't wait to hang her.

Roo--go check her blog.

Greg Palast (& media is ignoring it)

In swing-state Colorado, the Republican Secretary of State conducted the biggest purge of voters in history, dumping a fifth of all registrations. Guess their color.

In swing-state Florida, the state is refusing to accept about 85,000 new registrations from voter drives – overwhelming Black voters.

In swing state New Mexico, HALF of the Democrats of Mora, a dirt poor and overwhelmingly Hispanic county, found their registrations disappeared this year, courtesy of a Republican voting contractor.

In swing states Ohio and Nevada, new federal law is knocking out tens of thousands of voters who lost their homes to foreclosure.

slugbug:

"In swing states Ohio and Nevada, new federal law is knocking out tens of thousands of voters who lost their homes to foreclosure."

Oh so THAT'S why the Republicans oppose home ownership...

I hope that the disenfranchised voters get angry enough to do what the voters in Ohio did--don't get mad, get EVEN...

Meanwhile, this cheery news greeted me this morning:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080728/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/veteran_suicide

"Suicide hot line got calls from 22,000 veterans

...According to a recent RAND Corp. study, roughly one in five soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan displays symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, putting them at a higher risk for suicide. Researchers at Portland State University found that male veterans are twice as likely to commit suicide than men who are not veterans.

This month, a former Army medic, Joseph Dwyer, who was shown in a Military Times photograph running through a battle zone carrying an Iraqi boy, died of an accidental overdose after struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder for almost five years."

Nothing we did not already know, but hopefully, stories like this will remind people why the surge did NOT work for most of us on the planet...

slugbug: BRILLIANT cartoon--who did it?

A dot connected..

This is what the US Attorney purge was all about (51+ / 0-)
Thanks for the heads up. This issue is critical. The whole reason it was important to get compliant Bushie US Attorneys in place was because election fraud is one of their responsibilities.

(that was one of the comments)

WHY would they need to cheat?

Check out this interactive graph -

http://www.pollster.com/

They fear a landslide.

Kayakbiker sent me this story from one of my own city's newspapers -

Idaho campaign button features the wrong Larry
Seattle Times Celebrity Gossip

(Image: Larry Craig is erroneously pictured on a Barack Obama campaign button.)

Some Democratic campaign buttons made for distribution in Idaho show an unlikely pair: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and Republican Sen. Larry Craig. But don't expect the staunch Republican to throw his support behind Obama or for the presidential candidate to ask Craig to change his mind and run for Senate again. Apparently the button manufacturer picked a picture of the wrong Idaho Larry. The 3-inch button by Tigereye Design was intended to show Obama beside Larry LaRocco, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate. Craig is not seeking re-election after his arrest in a Minnesota airport restroom sex sting.

I WANT ONE OF THOSE BUTTONS FOR MY COLLECTION!!

Karen

That cartoon was by Kirk Anderson, who draws for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Sorry I didn't credit it. I did at http://www.silencedmajority.blogs.com.

Karen

As for the "surge" - big explosions today in Baghdad and also in Istanbul, Turkey by our friends the Kurds.

More evidence "the surge is working"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/28/AR2008072800953.html?hpid=topnews

Our federal deficit will climb most in 3 years, with White House having to admit cost of war is a factor.

Thanks for your thoughts, Sparrow. I would like to know if we are biased or too smart.

Talk about an October surprise, this year we got a July surprise. I never in a trillion years expected "them" to say that the surge worked, and now the Iraqi government wants us out of Iraq.

It doesn't make any sense (as if much does these days)but some pundits are touting how well the "surge worked and that we won the war".

O.B.T.W. "Charlie Wilson's War" was educational and revealing. Having not been into world matters in those days (the eighties), I didn't know that America helped fund the Afghanistan warriors by providing money for advanced weapons. (I wonder how "I call him Vladimir" felt about that when he looked into Dubya's soul. Not that I'm not glad that we helped the Afghanistans and thus were a catalyst for the fall of Communism in Russia and Berlin.

The end of the movie says "These things did happen, and it changed the world. Then we 'effed' up the end game." - Charlie Wilson

Another McCain At Center Of A Bank Collapse and Government Take-Over?

I was waiting for the shoe to drop

So what is going on? Why did McCain leave the bank's board so suddenly?
Almost exactly 20 years ago -- in the middle of the saving and loan crisis -- federal regulators seized Lincoln Savings and Loan Association of Irvine, California. The takeover took place more than a year after five United States senators had tried to hold-off a government investigation by the Federal Home Loan Bank Board into Lincoln's risky loan practices regarding home loans.
Those five senators included Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and the chairman of Lincoln was Charles Keating -- who was not only a top McCain donor but was Cindy McCain's business partner in a real estate deal in Arizona (as I detailed earlier this year). This scandal -- known as The Keating 5 -- remains an albatross for McCain's political career.
As a result of Lincoln's collapse, American taxpayers lost more than $2 billion on the bailout and more than 21,000 mostly elderly investors lost their life savings as a result of bankruptcy of Lincoln's parent company.
In 1991, the Senate Ethics Committee rebuked McCain, finding that he had "exercised poor judgment in intervening with the regulators." The net effect of the actions of the Keating 5 senators was to prevent federal regulations from intervening a year earlier and limiting the amount of exposure to taxpayers and investors.
Why is this relevant?
Well, 20 years later, we're back in the middle of another banking crisis and federal regulators have already begun seizing insolvent banks, and this advisory ran on the wires over the weekend:
Silver State Bancorp (NASDAQ:SSBX), the holding company for Silver State Bank, announced today that Andrew K. McCain submitted his resignation today as a director on the Boards of Directors of Silver State Bancorp and Silver State Bank, citing personal reasons.Mr. McCain previously served as a director of Choice Bank in Scottsdale, Arizona from 2006 to April 1, 2008 when Choice Bank merged into Silver State Bank. Mr. McCain had been appointed to the Boards of the Company and Silver State Bank in February, 2008 and had served on the Audit Committee.
Andrew is none other than the son of John McCain.
Be mindful that while Silver State Bancorp has not been seized by federal regulators, it isn't hard to conclude that they're near the top of the watch list. Just last week, the investment site The Motley Fool listed Silver State as three bank stocks not to buy right now. Last month, fears were raised in another Motley Fool analysis of underperforming loans that showed Silver State in dire straits, and check out how the stock has done over the past year:
Already this morning, Silver State (SSBX) is down another 10 percent.
So what is going on? Why did McCain leave the bank's board so suddenly?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-nickolas/20-years-later-another-mc_b_115380.html

July 28, 2008
Hatred Said to Motivate Tenn. Shooter
By SHAILA DEWAN

A man who the police say entered a Unitarian church in Knoxville during Sunday services and shot 8 people, killing two, was motivated by a hatred for liberals and homosexuals, Chief Sterling P. Owen IV of the Knoxville Police Department said Monday.

"It appears that what brought him to this horrible event was his lack of being able to obtain a job, his frustration over that, and his stated hatred for the liberal movement," Chief Owen said of the suspect, Jim D. Adkisson, 58. "We have recovered a four-page letter in which he describes his feelings and the reason that he claims he committed these offenses."

Police officials said they had charged Mr. Adkisson, of Powell, Tenn., with first-degree murder.

Amira Parkey, 16, had just uttered her first lines as Miss Hannigan in “Annie, Jr.” when the performance at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church was interrupted by a loud pop, witnesses said.

“We were just, ‘Oh, my God, that’s not part of the play,’ ” Amira said, adding that she saw a man standing near the door of the sanctuary and firing into the room.

It took a beat longer for fear to strike the audience.

- more -

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/28/us/28shooting.html?hp

I find the Tenn shooters hatred for liberals intersting considering one of the alleged reasons he was so pissed is because his food stamps were being taken away... I didn't realize conservatives were so in favor of such "handouts".

Hateus Corpus

monkey

Conservatives love handouts.

Alaska (where oil dividend keeps everyone voting Republican) is a perfect example.

The ironic thing about the TN shooter wanting to shoot Liberals at the UU is that many religious-Republicans just like him talk amongst their own cheering squad about it being ok to shoot a liberal or a gay. Remember in 2004? Swaggart said that he could shoot and kill a gay without anyone knowing and it would be between him and his "Lord Savior."

Thou shalt not kill... one of "us".

sparrow, monkey

As we all know too well, it's thanks to the Reagan-Bush smear machine, and Moon's backing and funding of it, that liberals are now considered subhuman and fair game for murder.

I am seriously considering doing what slugbug has wanted me to do all along - throw away my television. It is Samsung, after all. If the TV goes, so goes my Daewoo DVD player too.

And btw, if you come across a right-winger who really wants to kill gays...

Tell him to pick off his own kind. Like Larry Craig or Mann Coulter.

Elmendorf general dies of gunshot on base
Air Force: Incident under investigation
By JULIA O'MALLEY jo'malley@adn.com
Published: July 28th, 2008 01:18 PMLast Modified: July 28th, 2008 01:19 PM
The commander of the 3rd Wing at Elmendorf Air Force Base died of a gunshot wound in his on-base residence Sunday night, the Air Force said this morning. Few details are being released, but an Air Force spokesman said there was no indication of foul play.
Brig. Gen. Thomas L. Tinsley was declared dead around 10:30 p.m., according to a statement issued by the Air Force early this morning.
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/477369.html

22,000 vets used suicide hotline

22,000 vets seek help in special line's 1st year, 1,221 suicides averted.

http://rawstory.com//news/2008/Suicide_hot_line_got_calls_from_0728.html

It's good to see you all still around...it's been a long road from the "IRC Lifeboat" we were in after the Kerry blog shut down to the sunshine of a new day with Obama...

We did some amazing things 4 years ago during the last election and beyond...could it be that the long nightmare is finally over??...hmmm

I see things in the news every day coming true that we warned about 2,3, even 4 years ago. could it be that the american people are finally catching on to all the big lies from the republican party??...hmmm

I'll be watching over the next few months...should be quite interesting...

doc

hey doc! How does it look this time around in Kansas? Are you actually hearing people talk differently? GREAT to see you here.

Karen...i honestly think the democrats could have run donald duck as their candidate and won...people everywhere (i've spent the last year in missouri...now back in kansas...long story), are so sick of the policies of the last 8 years, that it was inevitable that a dem was going to be president in 08...we are just sooooooo lucky to have such a wonderful, presidential candidate in Obama. as the new moveon.org ad says...hope is infectous :)

Welcome back pcdoc! Missed ya!

doc!!!!! great to see ya man!

You are so correct, basically EVERYTHING we said was gonna happen if Dopey "kept on presidenting" has happened... and worse.

So I laugh a sick little chuckle everytime I hear those on the right talk about how Obama supporters are following blindly, given that they have absolutely ZERO credibility in the area of actually selecting a president based on the facts.

This country has made me ever the cynic, so I am praying that the electorate may have learned their lesson by simply taking a good look around at the results of the last 8 years, but honestly, I am not holding my breath.

Hope Springs Internal

The Evidence Gap
A Call for a Warning System on Artificial Joints
By BARRY MEIER

Dr. Lawrence Dorr, a nationally known orthopedic surgeon in Los Angeles, realized last year that something was very wrong with some of his patients.

Months after routine hip replacements, patients who had expected to live without pain were in agony. “The pain was grabbing me around the back,” said Stephen Csengeri, who is 54, and a lawyer from Torrance, Calif.

Dr. Dorr found he had implanted the same metal hip socket in each patient. Several needed surgery again — a replacement for their replacement.

The doctor first told the device’s manufacturer, Zimmer Holdings, last year about his concerns but nothing happened. Then in April, Dr. Dorr, who was a highly paid consultant for Zimmer, sounded an alarm to colleagues in a professional association and soon heard back from doctors with similar experiences.

“I saw one of Zimmer’s engineers at a meeting, and I told her that you should pull this cup because you are crippling patients,” Dr. Dorr said.

Last week, Zimmer announced it was suspending sales of the device, known as the Durom cup, until it trained doctors how best to implant it. The company said a “low” percentage of the 13,000 patients who got the socket would need replacements, but some doctors fear the number could reach into the hundreds.

If those patients lived in other countries where artificial joints were tracked by national databases — including Australia, Britain, Norway and Sweden — many might have been spared that risk. And Zimmer might have suspended sales of the cup months ago.

But the United States lacks such a national database, called a joint registry, that tracks how patients with artificial hips and knees fare. The risk in the United States that a patient will need a replacement procedure because of a flawed product or technique can be double the risk of countries with databases, according to Dr. Henrik Malchau of Massachusetts General Hospital.

- more -

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/29/business/29hip.html

Take me to your leader...first, take ours please!

July 29, 2008
Op-Ed Contributor
Unidentified Flying Threats
By NICK POPE

London

ON the afternoon of Nov. 7, 2006, pilots and airport employees at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago saw a disc-like object hovering over the tarmac for several minutes. Because nothing was tracked on radar, the Federal Aviation Administration did not investigate. Yet radar is not a reliable detector of all aircraft. Stealth planes are designed to be invisible to radar, and many radar systems filter out signals not matching the normal characteristics of aircraft. Did it really make sense to entirely ignore the observations of several witnesses?

A healthy skepticism about extraterrestrial space travelers leads people to disregard U.F.O. sightings without a moment’s thought. But in the United States, this translates into overdependence on radar data and indifference to all kinds of unidentified aircraft — a weakness that could be exploited by terrorists or anyone seeking to engage in espionage against the United States.

The American government has not investigated U.F.O. sightings since 1969, when the Air Force ended Project Blue Book, an effort to scientifically analyze all sightings to see if any posed a threat to national security. Britain and France, in contrast, continue to investigate U.F.O. sightings, because of concerns that some sightings might be attributable to foreign military aircraft breaching their airspace, or to foreign space-based systems of interest to the intelligence community.

Most of the incidents investigated in Britain have been easily explained as misidentifications of stars and planets, aircraft lights, satellites and meteors, but some cases have raised national security or air safety issues.

- more -

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/29/opinion/29pope.html

Karen:

Here's one for the North:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1JZly_jHeQ&feature=related

But why do you advise against going South?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Si759fiEx3c&feature=related

Chuck in Bangkok

One Love:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ie9XzsfxrzA

A Cyrano sighting as well!

Wow, cool to see everyone... Chuck, I just put another quarter in the jukebox, you choose.

Groovy Tuesday

Monkey:

Here's one for "Ruby Tuesday." By the way, my wife's name translates into "Ruby" (Yagut). She also just did her citizenship thing just before I left on this hitch AND will be finishing her Master's in a week or so!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92-RzJrcp-Q

Chuck in Bangkok

Also, Monkey, those Yankees can say what they want, but outside of Dylan and Hendrix, where did they ever push the ball forward on rock-and-roll???

(Ducking and Running)

Chuck in Bangkok

CSN I suppose:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6pphVs8bF0&feature=related

CIH, temporarily stewing in SE Asia again....

Chuck said: "outside of Dylan and Hendrix, where did they ever push the ball forward on rock-and-roll???"

Ummm, from Nawlins, Loozyanna to the heart of Mississippi, that's where!

The Fats Domino Theory

Monkey:

I meant Yankees!

Like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hUy9ePyo6Q&feature=related

Chuck

Monkey:

I am trying to say rock has a southern accent:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhKa8Rn-Hvg&feature=related

Chuck

As long as we have to take the bad with the good we might as well also take the good with the bad

Hi Monkey, Chuck, Ally...!!!! Its great to see you all!

Chuck said:
"As long as we have to take the bad with the good we might as well also take the good with the bad"

I like your thinking Chuck...sometimes we get so conditioned to accepting the bad...we forget to accept, or don't even see the good when it is right in front of our faces.

Chuck knows...

PC:

I seem to remember the sunflower state and squiggly geophysical lines?

On the other issue, I think we always have to try and be positive whatever happens. A friend of mine once told me the key is to try to love life. To me that is taking the good with the bad and trying to push the balance the right way.

Chuck in Bangkok (tax resident in Houston)

Hey, where's vana?

Ahem....

Justice Department indicts Sen. Ted Stevens
The long-serving Alaska senator is up for re-election this year

NBC News
updated 4 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - U.S. officials say the Justice Department has indicted Alaska Senator Ted Stevens on charges related to a long-running investigation of business dealings in Alaska.

Stevens, who has served in the U.S. Senate for 40 years, is up for re-election this year, and Democrats view his seat as one of their top pick-up opportunities.

more...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25916299/

If anyone is worried about the SoCal earthquake - I am fine, don't worry.

Monkey--Vana's on Wheel of Fortune.

Ally--glad to hear you're ok. I just heard about the quake and heard that there wasn't much damage and nobody injured.

pcdoc,

Welcome back! I hope things are looking well for you!

THE COMMANDER IN CHIEF TEST

DiAnne I posted your Eve of Destruction 2.1 Released (on 43rd Anniversary of Original Version) on my site, and have had a query can you help?

John Demetry said...
I can't find this on iTunes. Did you buy it on American iTunes?

Hi Doc from Down Under, great to see you here.

Vana...now there's a name. I hadn't thought of her since 2004. Wow. So many memories.

Kangaroo

Tell the person to go to iTunes "store" and search for

Eve of Destruction 2.1

& it's by McGuire McGuinn Fleetwood & Smallwood.

That should help.

It's because it's a single and the album isn't out yet, I think.

Todd Smallwood's album will be called "American Dream" - not sure about McGuire. Mick Fleetwood and Todd did one a couple of years ago too. & then there is a new movie called "Deja Vu" about Crosby Stills Nash & Young.

Kangaroo
I sent you a pkg yesterday.

Chuck
If you really are in Bangkok, eat some green curry for me!!

Hello from Beantown!

This is from a former student of mine:

Kangaroo
I sent you a pkg yesterday.

Thanks slugbug, much appreciated.

OMG, Doc, what a pleasant surprise. Whoever mentioned Vana, that was too good.

I am having a hard time figuring out why Obama is not running away with it in the polls(?). I heard somebody say it was because the polling is done with people who have land lines for their phone and that the polls don't include people who just use cell. That is interesting, but it is not enough to convince me. I don't feel good that the polling is this close - it makes it too easy for the Republicans to steal another one.

Pelosi Says They Have "Cleaned Up Congress" and that Bush Hasn't Committed A Crime

by scott creighton
http://www.opednews.com
During an interview on "The View," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi dismissed Joy Behar’s question about why she is refusing to hold impeachment hearings by saying “If somebody had a crime that the president had committed, that would be a different story.“ (Newsbusters)

(Replace Pelosi petition)
http://www.petitiononline.com/everyman/petition.html

Pelosi’s blatant disregard for the rule of law when it comes to this administration has been evident from day one. When she first took our constitutional provision of impeachment “off the table,“ she effectively re-wrote the Constitution to suit her own personal agenda. She gave away the only tool to hold the president in check. The founders of this once great nation knew that, without this important restraint, any president could seek an imperial level of control that even King George himself didn’t have. And Pelsoi gave that oversight away.
Or should we say, she sold it.
One-and-a-half years ago, when the call for impeachment really took off, Nancy Pelosi argued that they had to “build the case” so that it was clear to the American people that it wasn’t a partisan attack. One year ago she claimed they “didn’t have the votes.“ Six months ago she claimed there “wasn’t enough time.“ And now, remarkably, Nancy Pelosi, leader of the Democratic Party in the House, is further covering up for the rogue presidency of George W. Bush by claiming on a national television show that Bush and Cheney haven’t committed any crimes.
This just days after some 12 people came before the House Judiciary Committee and brilliantly testified to the numerous obvious crimes committed by the Bush administration.
Pelosi made this remarkable comment because she knows that very few people actually watched the CSPAN coverage of the “non-impeachment” hearing and certainly not that many people watch "The View." So, she was able to misinform millions of "The View’s" audience without regard for the small percentage that would see through her propaganda.
And that is the point; as long as they can keep the majority of Americans in the dark for just a little while longer, then they can ride out the call to investigate this criminal administration, wait for time to pass and people to forget the facts as they re-write the history, and prepare for the next imperial presidency that will again be unincumbered by the rule of law.
Because that is the end result, people. That is why she took impeachment off the table; from the very beginning she was protecting the 1%ers that this criminal administration serves.
She is not the leader of the Opposition Party, but rather, she is a co-conspirator of the most criminal administration in the history of this nation. >>>cont

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Pelosi-Says-They-Have--Cle-by-scott-creighton-080729-630.html

I don't feel good that the polling is this close - it makes it too easy for the Republicans to steal another one.

I don't believe them oncall. Lets face it do you believe cable and media news in America today.

Iraqi Freedom - TV advertisement

Jon Soltz

Iraq War Veteran Chairman,

VoteVets.org

Oncall...

Dude, I've got the same feeling lately you've got... that same, deep in my gut feeling, that somehow, this election is way too close, and that the kings of dirty tricks will somehow, inexplicably, take another one away.

Hump Day Horror Show

Dudes (all):

No one is polling the kids--the students--who have been all Obama since spring 2007. They don't have land lines and they don't do polls.

The pollsters are polling from the same groups they have always polled--likely voters, meaning the same folks as in 2004. Their samples are skewed.

That said, we all witnessed the sheeple mentality that takes over so easily, as large numbers walk straight over the edge of the cliff and are somehow convinced it was all for the best...

Oh and new rant...errr...thread.