Birthers and other stuff

Not much baseball practice, too much rain and cold. Nothing in the garden, muddy ground makes clods not planting hills.


We had global warming for a few days and then, alas, alas, it fled like Obama when he is expected to do the Presidential thing and make a decision.

And April isn't even here yet, but:

April is the cruelest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
- - - T. S. Eliot "The Waste Land"

I have been mildly depressed, I think, from just watching the news. The Repubs and the Demos are arguing over the budget. Less than 1% cut??? Pulezzeeeeeeee.

And we discover, again, that the Left doesn't mind us expending our blood and treasure for "humanitarian" reasons.

I hate to tell them but people die. Some die after a long and happy life, others not so much. And since God has not given me the power to fix the world's problems, I try to be selective and advise our leaders to respond only to things that are in our National Interest.

Does Libya as a country fit? I don't think so.

But Libya's oil is in our national interest. Why? Because even though 98% of Libya’s oil has gone to Europe, if it is lost then Europe will move its purchasing power to Saudi Arabia and other places where we get oil and the price will just keep spiraling up.

That’s pretty basic stuff, eh?

But Obama doesn’t get it. Or else he does and doesn’t care. I have long been trying to figure out if Obama is evil and has a plan to destroy the country or if he is just incompetent and is letting the country be destroyed.

Of course it doesn’t make any difference. The country is being destroyed.

And the Repubs, those guys we elected to get us started drilling for oil here and cut the budget are arguing with the Democrats over less than chump change.

As I tell Senator Alexander and Corker’s staff people…. “Tell him to get off his behind and start doing something.”

Not that they will.

The hot water saga continues……

I discovered that the downstairs unit was leaking into the drain pain and from there thru a drain to under the house. No big deal.

Only the unit is in a closet under the stairs along with the cold air return on the downstairs heat/ac and there is no extra room. So I go looking for a 40 gallon unit that is no bigger than 45” tall and 22” in diameter. Not a lot of choices but Sears has one with reasonable specs. So I order same, pick it up in my trusty but elderly Ford Ranger, bring it home, unload it and notice that the box says that the height is 3.89’.

That’s 46.68 inches. 1.68 inches higher than will fit.

Hmmmmm. Go back and check the specs of the model ordered on the website. Sure enough, they say 44”. Dig around in the closet and figure out that I can move the drain pan three inches out from the sloped ceiling and it will then fit. But that means I will have to drill a new drain hold and move the drain…. Back under the floor to see what that will do. Discover that this will put the drain over a heat/ac duct so I will have to move it and extend the drain with an elbow… grumble grumble..

At this point decide to open the top of the box and measure the water heater…. And it measures 44”.

So the box was wrong. Thought maybe it meant box dimensions. Nope. They are 48 x 25….

All is well that ends well.

See? That would make a great reality TV show.

Mike L sent me this.

The Pharmacist's Monday Morning


Upon arriving home, a husband was met at the door by his sobbing wife. Tearfully she explained, "It's the druggist. He insulted me terribly this morning on the phone. I had to call multiple times before he would even answer the phone."

Immediately, the husband drove downtown to confront the druggist and demand an apology.


Before he could say more than a word or two, the druggist told him, "Now, just a minute, listen to my side of it. This morning the alarm failed to go off, so I was late getting up. I went without breakfast and hurried out to the car, just to realize that I'd locked the house with both house and car keys inside and had to break a window to get my keys.

"Then, driving a little too fast, I got a speeding ticket. Later, when I was about three blocks from the store, I had a flat tire."


"When I finally got to the store a bunch of people was waiting for me to open up. I got the store opened and started waiting on these people, all the time the darn phone was ringing off the hook."

He continued, "Then I had to break a roll of nickels against the cash register drawer to make change, and they spilled all over the floor. I had to get down on my hands and knees to pick up the nickels and the phone was still ringing. When I came up I cracked my head on the open cash drawer, which made me stagger back against a showcase with a bunch of perfume bottles on it. Half of them hit the floor and broke."


"Meanwhile, the phone is still ringing with no let up, and I finally got back to answer it. It was your wife. She wanted to know how to use a rectal thermometer.

And believe me mister, as God is my witness, all I did was tell her.”

Birthers and other stuff.

I love some of the stuff The Donald says. I mean bad hair do and all he is a treat to listen to because what he says has a bit of truth in it.

Like, why don’t we charge for being someone’s policeman?? You and I pay for protection with our taxes. Why should we be protecting the people of Iraq, Afghanistan and Iraq for free?

I mean look, we’re so far gone down the bankruptcy slide that we talking about cutting Medicare and Social Security. Who comes first? Our citizens or the world’s citizens??

Simplistic? Maybe the problem is that we have taken some simple concepts and made them complex. Maybe the problem we have now is the same problems the Catholic Church brought to its members for years when Mass was said in Latin to people who didn’t know Latin. Why? Because it was the Priests who would tell everyone what was meant. The masses were too dumb to understand complex issues.

Maybe it’s time we admit that nation building doesn’t work. Unless you’re willing to absolutely tear a society apart, as we did in Japan and Germany, it won’t work. You can’t bribe them into doing what you want. You have to convince them by proving that your way, which just kicked their butts into next year, is the right way.

Is that insane?

Well, let me tell you that one of the prime symptoms of insanity is for someone to keep doing the same thing and expect a different result. And we’ve been dashing around the world ever since the Soviet Union collapsed looking for someone to save.

Hasn’t worked well. People don’t want saving. Time to let them go out on their own.

The other point The Donald made was the stupidity over Obama’s birth certificate. The guy hasn’t produced one. Some people think that’s important. But anyone who does is attacked as a racist, just as The Donald was on “The View.”

Well, The Donald does have a point. It only took him an hour to get his. Obama has had two plus years. That tells me that he doesn’t want to. Why? Don’t know and don’t care. Do I believe he was born in HI? Yes. All of this is just another way to draw attention and sympathy. Poor me. See how the Birthers treat me…. And I Am The Chosen One!

The only thing is, this isn’t new. Chester Arthur was accused of being born in Canada. Charles Hughes was declared to ineligible because his father was a British immigrant and Goldwater was born in a US territory before Arizona became a state.

At least he could get an original whine.



OnTwitter I am Lesabre1


"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

How to speak Italian

I like this.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

How to correctly hold on in a moving train

Wow!

Hat tip to Bill T!

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

New Teacher

Former Infantry Sergeant having served his time with the Marine Corps took a new job as a school teacher.

Just before the school year started he injured his back. He was required
to wear a plaster cast around the upper part of his body. Fortunately,
the cast fit under his shirt and wasn't even noticeable.

On the first day of class, he found himself assigned to the toughest
students in the school.

The smart aleck punks having already heard the new teacher was a former
Marine were leery of him and decided to see how tough he really was
before trying any pranks.

Walking confidently into the rowdy classroom, the new teacher opened the
window wide and sat down at his desk.

When a strong breeze made his tie flap, he took a stapler and stapled
the tie to his chest.

He had no trouble with discipline that year...

Hat tip to Jimmy M!

That reminds me of when I was an Instructor for a time during my Naval Aviation days. To get the class's attention I would take a small needle, but with some length, and slide it into the border of the chalk board. (Yes, in those days we had chalk.)

On the first day of a new class, after they were seated, I would go to the board and draw a large nail extending from the needle. I would then take my hat and hang it on the needle, which couldn't be seen by the students as it was now completely hidden.

I would then turn and say, "My chalk. My chalkboard. Any questions?"

Kinda set the tone.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

And then there was none

The above is a picture of Blue made several years ago. He loved nothing better than getting in the middle of whatever was being done on the table and then just laying down. Floral arrangements, newspapers, you name it and he was there.


He was a Persian blue of uncertain ancestry. He was one of a litter of nine born in a barn. His mother was large, the presumed daddy larger. So large he was called "Dog."

At Blue's prime he weighed 22 pounds and brooked no nonsense from Southern Belle, our Yorkie. However, he would, when in a good mood, engage in endless games of chase and hide and attack with her. And he sometimes brought field mice to be back door as his contribution to the household's upkeep. At times he would crouch motionless looking out the back door at the bird feeder as if he could somehow escape through the door and have a tasty cardinal or jay.

He enjoyed a good brushing and would lay motionless as he was brushed in a vain attempt at removing tangles from his fur. Ear and head scratching would sometimes be allowed and he made a good companion on drab winter days and cold winter nights.

Twelve years and 4 months into his thirteenth year he died of leukemia and I have buried him besides a favorite tree.

He paid for his keep by being him. I hope someone can say the same about me when my time comes.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

 "Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

Sore muscles, Hot Water, McCarthy was right and Toffee shows off

Your muscles will tell you when you have done too much. And yesterday I did too much.

So the plan to come home from church and start digging in the garden was trashed. My legs feel tight and sore and my arms weigh too much. So I worked on one of the outside security lights, to no avail. Then I decided to go under the house and open the air vents, turn on the deck's water faucet and give everything a look see.

Durn.

The drain from the downstairs water heater's safety pan, which exits under the house, was dripping water. A trip to the water heater confirmed that it was leaking. So the question now is, can I get it replaced before the leak becomes terminal?

Maybe I can sell the idea to the History Channel. "Poker Player's Hot Water Needs." "Maybe a Flash of Drip??"

I hang out on some newspaper forums. They are really the National Enquirer of forums. And while the average threads usually become "You're dumb. No you're dumb," after a few comments, occasionally you see some good writing and solid logic. And of course the always present claim that the Right is a McCarthyite. That is supposed to shut down all discussion.

Actually McCarthy's base claim, that there were communists in the government, was proven. Try reading "Venona, Decoding Soviet Espionage in America," by Hayes and Klehr, Yale University Press.

It is the story of how the NSA broke the Soviet's diplomatic code and didn't reveal it for years and years as it was an valuable tool. It was finally revealed, long after the collapse of the Soviet Union, when pushed by Senator Moynihan (Democrat) and fleshed out with KGB files from the old Soviet Union. It is full of names, dates, places, lists, etc. It is not a political book, and is somewhat dry reading unless you are interested in facts rather than political positions.

McCarthy's problem was the method he chose, and a desire by the establishment Republicans to not rock the "good ole boy" system. (Kinda reminds us of the present establishment Repubs and the Tea Party, eh?) Plus many Democrats, fearful of being saddled with the fact that this had happened on their watch, defended anyone named or investigated.

But we now know the government was filled with some spies, fellow travelers and useful idiots. Not unlike now, only now they are more open.

As part of my self imposed rest this afternoon I flipped over to TCM just as it was starting to broadcast Woody Allen's "Sleeper."

Allen doesn't score with the premise that he has been frozen for 200 years and is then brought back into a world he knows nothing about. But he does have a few good lines that are more satire than jokes. And it is amazing how much the government of 2173 reminds me of the various things the Left is doing only 38 years later.

Humor has never worked well in science fiction. Saving civilization is serious business, whether from aliens, climate change or Republicans.

There have been attempts, though mostly centered on fantasy rather than scifi. Charles Myers gave us:

Imagination

October 1954

Toffee existed in Marc Pillsworth's imagination but had a habit of becoming real and causing more problems for Pillsworth than she solved. Perhaps she served as the model for "I Dream of Genie."

Myers wrote 15 Toffee stories, most with the same plot line. The humor was more Genie than Groucho.

The kicker in all of this is that under his pen name of Henry Farrell he wrote "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane," the screenplay "Hush...Hush Sweet Charlotte" and many other screen plays and novels. This is somewhat backward in that most authors used their pen names for pulp fiction and their real name for the slicks.

Imagination was founded in 1950 by Ray Palmer who had just started "Other Worlds." With issue #3 it was acquired by William Hamling who had been the editor of "Fantastic Adventures," the companion to "Amazing Stories" while Palmer had been its editor.

In September 1954 Hamling launched:

IT was, to my knowledge, the only scifi/fantasy magazine launched with the intent to feature "saucy" humorous fantasy fiction. Hamling gave up after 3 issues and the last 25 issues were standard space opera.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

Baseball and robots and king sticks

Beezboll practice is too much for old men. Particularly when they want you to pitch batting practice.

Ouch. If it's bad tonight.... in the morning it will be a woweee.

And yes, I've done the hot shower and two Advils bit.

But I do love to watch the kids play. They hustle and slide and hit and pitch and throw.

I can remember doing that. Well, almost remember. Except we didn't have $60 gloves, $30 bats and at least 50 balls. And cleats? Ya gotta be kidding. If we had a ball with its original cover, a pair of tennis shoes and a bat that was only cracked (but taped carefully!) we felt great.

And we never had batting helmets. Didn't need'em. Well, I did hit Joe C in the head with the bat but it was an accident. No matter what his Mother thought. Besides, he walked a bit sideways even before the unfortunate event... err accident.

After we tired of baseball we would often play "King Stick." This consisted of finding a stick of about 30 inches, sharpening the point and slinging it into the ground. Others would come and try knock yours over, or better yet, split it. There were certain rules and protocols that had to be followed. Any violation could result in direct retaliation of the pushing, shoving, fist slinging kind. Helped get us ready for growing up into the Cold War.

I once had a stick made out of an oak shipping crate that I found behind Holmes' funeral home. I worked for hours sharpening it and declared it was empowered with death rays from the casket it had been shipped in all the way from Memphis. Being oak it was super hard and was never defeated. But I lost it over the winter of 1950. Probably wound up as kindling for the Warm Morning stove that heated the house. But by spring we were into kites and tops and no one knew I had been disarmed.

After practice Grandson and I did the MacDonalds trick. A double quarter pounder and a big shake for him and a Big Mac for me and he ate half my fries. Greater love has no Grandfather than to give up half his fries to the boy who eats continually and anything left near him.

Grandfather is still in AARP. It's politics suck but it offers such wonderful fringe benefits. Among them is this list of the 10 worst places to retire. They are, from the awful to the bad:

Illinois, California, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Ohio, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Nevada.

Well, hellooooooo. As Brother Dave Gardner said, "You ever hear of anybody retiring Up North?"

I was surprised to see Nevada in the Top Worst Ten but the article says its real estate market is bad. Worst foreclosure rate in the nation. Uh.... I wonder if the author understands that you want to retire to a place where $200K will buy you 4000 sq feet in a gated community... Probably not.

Sarcasm aside.....

IF UT DOESN'T FIRE AD HAMILTON THERE IS NO JUSTICE!

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2. A robot must obey any orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

And, of course, that comes from Issac Asimov who not only laid out future history for thousands of years, invented ethics for robots.

Now, if we could just adopt them for our politicians.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson