Evil Woman.... (dah dah dah dah dah dah)

So I was reading the other night and came across an entry for an indigenous people of Honduras known as the Jicaque or Xicaque.  The thing that caught my eye was the following item, courtesy Encyclopedia Britannica:

Their religion centres around two benevolent male deities and an evil female deity; offerings are made only to the evil goddess, in order to avoid ill fortune.

You know me, I had to snicker.  Damn evil women, anyway!  But this wouldn't be the first time EB told me something I couldn't back up, so I went in search of.  What I am about to impart comes from one or more of many sources:

- First, I found that in their pre-conquest state, they didn't do the "beans and tortillas" thing.  In fact, it is said that after several centuries of being exposed to tortillas, they still don't have the hang of making them.  In the old days, they hunted exotic birds for their meat.

- One source claims they have adopted Roman Catholicism; another said they've pieced together some Catholic and some native stuff; another said that by 1890 they had rejected Catholicism, forbid priests on their property, and abandoned all religious ritual.

- They had no word for shaman, and evidently did not believe in the practice of medicine- the commenter notes the high mortality rate they had was evidence of this.  By more modern times, the dead (wrapped in bark, wearing the clothes they died in) were buried with a cross at the foot of the grave, and an old clay pot, turned upside down with a hole in the bottom at the head- so that the deceased "could breathe".

-Oh, yeah, the Evil Goddess thing.  This took me a bit of delving into ancient tomes (older than me, even!), but I came up with an answer.  You start with the main benevolent boy god, named Kastariyus.  K lives in some kind of heaven where he peers down at earth through "a narrow slatted window".  The source doesn't mention whether it was a before-or-after conquest thing, but K has apparently evolved some similarities (in their mind) to Christ Jesus.  Also never found out what was so benevolent about him.

- The other boy god was called Hivaro.  He lived "in a similar place" to K, but in a different area.  He was apparently younger yet than K, but further details are lacking.


- And the main event- the Goddess Tsii.  She was the eternal boogeyman, blamed for death, many diseases, and a whole lot of other nasty stuff. She and her band of devil-ettes lived in rocks, and when one was dying, they were said to be "in the grip of Tsii".  She is tall, dresses like the natives, but has burning red eyes, and scares them so spitless that the researcher said you would have sworn his two testifiers had actually saw her.

So whatever it is they offer her, it is in order to keep misfortune from happening to them.  The benevolent boy gods get no love, which you would think MIGHT just occur to someone down there.

So what?  I dunno.  It seems pretty odd that most primitive religions featured a benevolent earth goddess, and raging male gods who rape them and let their daughters get abducted causing 6 months of winter.  These guys have a raging female god and two guy gods basically saying, "Shhh!  She'll find us!"  Maybe they shouldn't have asked her to make tortillas...

Martin World News

ITEM:  We just started working on canopy tops for a new customer.  They warned me that they were going to be big, and long.  But they didn't warn me they would contain...

....Tom Brady footballs!!!!


ITEM:  A few days ago, Egypt celebrated the opening of a Suez Canal reboot, and the plan was to string national flags throughout Cairo, as you can see...

But, not being Egyptian, you might not see the problem here.  You see, they went to a cheap foreign supplier for their flags, and well, they left something off...

...see, the Egyptian flag has the "Eagle of Saladin" on it.  Without it you have...

... a city full of the flags of YEMEN.  I wonder how you write "made in China" in Arabic?

(Answer: صنع في الصين)



ITEM:  My source at the Epoch Times put up an article on 20 "code words" the net users in China (speaking of which) use to sneak things past the censors- and I found it pretty amusing.  Here they are:

1- For the word "freedom", they just chop the top thingies off the pictograph, which leaves you with "eye-field".

2- To "March through the streets in a protest", they use the term, "Take a walk".  Example:  "I'm taking a walk to Obama's to show him what I think of my eye-field."

3- For the occasional inconvenient police raid, they say the gov'mint is "checking the water meter."

4- the Domestic Security Dept., which watches all the dissidents, is known as the "National treasure".

5- I'm surprised the thugs, er, residents of Baltimore haven't come up with this one:  Someone who dies in jail under suspicious circumstances is "playing hide and seek".

6- Imperial Capital- Beijing, of course...

7- Scale the wall- evade the internet censors.

8- Corrupt officials who seem to be "naked" of assets, but who are actually shipping ill-gotten funds overseas to relatives, are called "naked officials".

9-  This is the China Central Television building...

...a building so ugly that the term for it is: "the big boxer shorts".

10- And our good friend Kim Jong Un....

... is lovingly known as Kim Fatty-3.

I'm going to save the rest of these for the next installment.  More fun waits ahead!


ITEM: Public health is a nice thing, but... Part One:


The mayor of Sellia, Italy (tucked in the arch of the Boot), faced with decades of rapid population decline and an aging populace remaining, has decreed- it is now illegal to get sick and die.  Well, not quite, but pretty much:

Using a carrot-and-stick approach, he's promising tax breaks for locals who avail themselves of health services, but penalties for people who choose not to do so. "Those who don't take preventive measures, and jeopardise their own health and that of our village, will have to pay more taxes," he tells the agency. His directive, uploaded to the local council's website, says falling ill within the village is "banned". (From BBC)


Surprised Obama didn't think of that... wait, that might have accomplished something useful...

ITEM:  Public health is a nice thing, but... Part Two:


This is one of those "It would never fly in the US of A things:

Government workers in the province of Edirne usually start their shifts at 08:30, but anyone signing up to the new Our Cure is Sport scheme will be allowed to clock in an hour later, the Haber 7 website reports. Workers will be helped to find a sport that suits them, and will have access to a dietician, the report says. So far 70 people have asked to take part. But as the Daily Sabah points out, it isn't clear whether people will be monitored to make sure they really are using the hour to work out, and not to sleep in.

ITEM:  Government illogic:  The nation of Papua New Guinea is close to banning all guns.  The logic behind this is amazing:

Prime Minister Peter O'Neill says officials are drawing up legislation that would outlaw firearms, and he thinks they should be removed from both civilians and the police. "My thinking is that we should ban firearms completely in the country," he is quoted as saying in The Post Courier. "You don't need firearms to control law and order in the country. It is about respect of the community, respect of the policemen and women."


So that's the problem in Chicago and DC- not enough respect.  And why don't they give respect to cops in Chicago and DC?

Oh, yeah, they're gangstas.

ITEM:  For those who want the article to back it up, feel free to read here.  But basically the story explains where that "97% of scientists believe climate change" Came from.  Seems it started with a survey by 2 U of Illinois researchers in 2009.  Let's run the actual survey numbers:

- 10,257 surveys sent by a professional survey service to scientists.
- 3,146 actually answered.
- Then they filtered out all except those scientists who had had at least two articles on climate change published in peer-reviewed magazines.  That cut the list to 77.
- 75 of these believe in man-made climate change.  75 of 77= 97%.

Liars, damn liars, and statisticians have nothing on climate agenda scientists, Mr. Twain.

ITEM:  Finally, the latest spam e-mail (now that the "French revolution" has finally abated):

This one is the latest spin on "I'm dying of cancer and want to give you my money to give to charity".  Here we have a Mrs. Susan Morgan who uses a Japanese Yahoo account to send a letter addressed as coming from Cote d'Ivorie, and says in the first line (after starting with the salutation "DEAREST ONE OF GOD") "I am the above named person from Kuwait."  So first, she's confused to where she is.

Next is her sickness:  "my Doctor told me i have seriously sickness which is cancer problem.  The one that disturbs me most is my stroke sickness."  So she's confused to what she has.

Then, she brings the Bible out after you.  "The Bible made us to understand that blessed is the hand that giveth. I took this decision because Exodus 14 VS 14 says that the Lord will fight my case and I shall hold my peace. "  Or something like that.  Her idea of holding her peace is, apparently getting someone else to make her "anonymous donation".  So her theology is a bit confused as well.  Nice try, though.

Finally, I think she doesn't want her dead husband's in-laws to know what she's about.  "I don’t need any telephone communication in this regard because of my health hence the presence of my husband’s relatives is around me always I don't want them to know about this development."  But I'm not really sure.

Picture time

Just sittin' on this here log, man...

Not a bad shot for as far off as he was...

These were taken the day we saw an otter cross California Road at the swamp.  The swamp water was looking a bit... solidified... and he decided to find something a bit less stagnant.

On top of a dead raccoon, Scrappy found a dead fish.

Geese actually got threatening with a couple of approaching ducks.  A-holes...

Scrappy spent some time rousting the froggies at the alumni pond.  Missed this guy, though...

Big hawk coming in for a landing.

The little bluebird of happiness was watching over us.  Saw a cedar waxwing as we crossed the hedgerow, too.

A pigeon in an ostrich costume, by Laurie

Anything's camo out here, eh, Mr. Squirrel?

And the Indigo Bunting takes a stroll

Saturday was the "Insane Inflated 5K" at the Plex.  There were inflated "obstacles" on ALL of the dozen and a half soccer fields...

"Alright, it's hot and there are people everywhere... let's go home and nap!"

My dog... the only living being that ever slept in odder positions is my daughter.

"Do you mind?  I have a rep to uphold!!!"

Green eyed boofus, goofy Boofus...

Sunday message: The flip side

Last week I talked about how sin, by separating us from God's will, can cause the Spirit within us to go silent.   This week, I just heard a sermon that dovetailed with this, as far as the why of it.  David Jeremiah explained how the Holy Spirit- the Paraclete- is by name and nature our encourager.  Thus it makes sense that when sin causes the Spirit indwelling you to shut up for a time (until you are again willing to listen), it would be natural that you might find yourself... depressed, as I was.  Short sermon, eh?


Not really.  Because just like there are more layers to depression, and sometimes it is the physiological as well as (or instead of) the spiritual, the other end of things also has a few additional layers.

What I am trying to get at is, do we look to the Holy Spirit for our encouragement?  Do we see that as His purpose?

John 14, Jesus speaking:  16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper,[f] to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be[g] in you.

The word here called helper is also translated comforter, advocate, or counselor.  It is the word parakletos, which means, "to come alongside".  Do you see the Spirit as any of those things, or just as a divine "addendum" to the conscience?  Do you come to Him when you need help, whether in praying (I do that a lot) or in some physical need (not so much)?  Do you turn to Him to bring you out of a depression, or even just to help you read the evening news without going nuts?  Do you turn to Him as an advocate, taking advantage of Romans 8:

In the same way, the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we should. But the Spirit himself intercedes with groans too deep for words, and the one who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, for the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to God's will. Rom 8:26-27


Do you come to Him for advice, or just expect Him to line things up so that you can't help but do the right thing?  How do you approach the Spirit, and does it make a difference?

Consider this:  the effect, as I said, on my life of the Spirit's silence was a depression and a discouragement with the world.  But is it only a personal thing.  Regard this passage:

2 Thessalonians 2:  3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness[b] is revealed, the son of destruction,[c] 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.


"He who now restrains it."  Look at the world.  We who are Christians can agree that things are falling apart so much more rapidly in our lifetimes.  Now, follow me on a logic path.

First, if we allow sin to cloud the Spirit in us, depression and discouragement follow.

Second, the apocalypse will follow once the Spirit is removed from earth.

Then is the current falling away, the "rebellion", due to a LOT of us silencing the Spirit?

Do we as a Christian body silence the Spirit by our attitude to Him, draining the Church of encouragement, causing a partial "moving out of the way" of the Spirit?  I don't know.  But I've rarely seen a "it's just me" problem that actually ended with "just me".  Perhaps we all need to examine whether we are allowing the Spirit to be all He wants to be for us.

The $100 Dollar Rampage.

So I wake up from a nap about 3PM yesterday when KC calls and asks if I want to go get a brew.  I said sure, and off we went.  He asks where I wanted to go.  I said, "If you ask me, we'll prolly end up at some old man's bar."  We decided to hit O'Reillys.  It's a cool place built into the wall of our downtown baseball stadium, and we've been there before.

Opening item to happen there:  KC is an Indians fan and the first thing we see on TV is the 2 players he complains about the most- Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher- got sent, with $10 million to pay their next years' salary, to Atlanta for a dude hitting .235 playing a position they don't need.  Nothing says love like...

So then we played some pool. amazingly splitting a pair of games (I only play good pool between a beer-and-a-half and 3 beers, and I won during the 3rd one.)  Then KC played against a couple of guys that worked there, which was fun because the one guy was a Tigers fan (whom KC hates) and the other was a New England Patriots fan (whom everybody hates).  After that, we left and I suggested we go get some burgers.  We decided on Wrigley Field Bar and Grill.


We scored a table up front with a dude that KC knows from everywhere called "the Silver Bullet" (he has long silver-gray hair).  They were doing Karaoke and a giveaway from the local ESPN radio station, and locally known celebrity and drunk driver Billy Elvis was hosting.  I ordered a couple cheeseburgers (which the waitress wrote down as one) and KC got what appeared to be a cheese toastie, and ordered us a bucket of Coors Light.  As the night wore on, I got 1) the old feel to go a-singing again, 2) the second cheeseburger which I told the waitress not to worry about and KC told her to go fetch, and 3) the urge for a duck fart shot.  By the time the second cheeseburger was gone, I had my second of three duck farts, my name was in for a song, and KC was waxing philosophical on Big Papi and whoo-hooing songs he'd never heard before.

Yer basic duck fart:  Kaluha, Bailey's and Crown Royal.

The bar was also featuring a group of bikers from Honor Flight, and at one point Billy Elvis pointed to the biggest of them, a guy called Sumo, and said he was about to sing, "I Am Woman, hear me roar."  Sumo laughed and said he didn't know the song.

One of the nice things about Karaokeing in this town, there's a certain down's syndrome gentleman who likes to sing.  He basically turns the songs into spoken word, but everyone sings along and he has a great time.  He did Sherry, and I learned that KC can actually do the falsetto notes quite well.

As the third and final duck fart arrived, the guy just before me came up.  His song was Lou Rawls' You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine.  Before he started, he told me I was too young to remember disco.  Imagine that!  Then he got singing, and let me tell you, he nailed it as no song has been nailed before!  It was tremendous- and then I had to follow him.


I did the Guess Who's No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature, and despite starting a bit early, I did okay.  KC thought it was great and got everybody clapping along.  We left a little afterwards, and one of the singers asked me if I was going to sing again, so either I did pretty good or he was making his exit plans.

So after evading a fellow intoxicant begging cigarettes, we took off for what I thought was home.  Instead, KC decided to stop at his place to grab some more beers to bring over (which sat untouched in two different locations of my place until I got up this morning).  As with many a bachelor pad, it was a bit disheveled, but the thing that amused me were the plethora of empty Pepsi cans I spotted.  One on his couch fold out, one on the floor about five feet in front of it.  One in his bedroom, another one along the wall, and the one I decided to take a picture of, resting on his window sill.

It would be the dark object seemingly being used to hold everything up.

We arrived back at my place around 10:30, when KC turned on MLB.TV and proceeded to fall asleep to the Pirates beating the Dodgers.  I got a little snack and checked FB, and soon found the game was over and KC was watching the "Thanks for watching" screen.

"Hey, dude, the games over, change to another game."

"All in good time..." he muttered, and after about five more minutes he changed the channel.  It was the last I heard from him.  Laurie was home by then, and she says that after I went to bed, she finally woke him up when she accidentally dropped a plastic mug from its shelf, and he meandered on home.

Time Machine week 35

Today is August 7th, 1973, one day after Stevie Wonder was put into a coma when his cousin rear-ended a flatbed truck and the end of it came through the windshield and struck him in the head.  For more details, you can check Stevie's fan site here.  He would spend four days in a coma and two weeks in the hospital.  Apparently there was no truth to the rumors that he was in fact driving.

Also this day, a creepy unsolved mystery:  CBers in the New Mexico area heard a call from someone purporting to be a 7-year old named Larry.  Larry said he and his father were hunting when their truck tipped over (at least we know Stevie wasn't driving), killing his father.  Larry's calls continued for a few days, changing channels in apparent panic as the signal strength faded.  A search was organized (and according to the stories I read, "organized" is stretching the term), but nothing was ever found.  Eventually it was declared a hoax, and no one ever heard from Larry or his father again.

Stevie, however, recovered from his incident.

Welcome to another round of Time Machine, and this week we have- A top ten inside the shuffle ten; a tight three way battle in the panel picks; another unknown song so unknown I couldn't find it... it's like it's "alien" or something; and a six degrees led off by 1947's Next Great Star!  Who is it?  Give ya a clue- he married Miss Ellie!

MY Miss Ellie???  WTH??!?

So gather 'round, y'all, and we'll get on with this week's gusher of music!

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Our panel this week includes WGRO Buffalo, KOL Seattle, old friend WDGY Minneapolis, KAFY Bakersfield, WWDJ Hackensack, WHB Kansas City, WLLL (because all the good letters were taken) Lynchburg, old friend KPOI Honolulu, WBBM Chicago (which I've never known as anything but all-news), WXKY Sarasota, old friend WIXY Cleveland, and old chum, er, CHUM Toronto.  This daring dozen gave us 21 different songs and 9 number one votes, including Bobby "Boris" Pickett's  Monster Mash (Toronto), The Carpenters' Yesterday Once More (Chicago), Bloodstone's Natural High (Honolulu, of course), Jim Croce's Bad Bad Leroy Brown (KC), and Say Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose by Dawn (Buffalo).  The top four was highlighted by a 30-26-20 finish, that went like this:

With 15 points and the #1 from Hackensack, Diana Ross and Touch Me In The Morning, the national #1.

With... well, you know the points from here, and the #1 from Sarasota, Wings and Live And Let Die, the national #2.

With number ones from Seattle and Cleveland, the national #3, Maureen McGovern's Poseidon Adventure theme, The Morning After.

And at #1.... stay tuned.

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The unknown song I unfortunately chose was actually the #7 on Sarasota this week, it was called Barroom Sweeper, and it was recorded by a southern rock band called Mose Jones.   Actually this was the first incarnation of Mose Jones, and had been signed by Al Kooper and his fledgling Sounds of the South label- the label that would first sign another struggling young band, Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Mose never hit the charts in either incarnation.  A couple years after their first group folded, most of the originals got together, this time under the producing aegis of Buddy Buie of the Atlanta Rhythm Section.  In fact Mose Jones II's song Alien was recorded by ARS, who took it to #29 (it was their last chart hit).

Here is Mose Jones II with a cool tune from their 1978 lp:






----------------------------------------------------

And now, Bottom's Up!

10- Roll Over Beethoven, this time by ELO, leads us off at #48 in it's 13th week.

9- Paul Simon, also in his 13th week, dropping to #49 with Kodachrome.

8- Cher was in her 4th week at #54 with Half-Breed.

7- The Isley Brothers were in their third week at #55 with That Lady.

6- The Edgar Winters Group was in their second week with Free Ride, at #69.

5- Rod Stewart's cover of Twistin' The Night Away was at #70 after 2 weeks.

4- Coven, in a week full of movie themes, has One Tin Soldier (the Legend Of Billy Jack) at 75 in it's sixth week.

3- If you thought Looking Glass (Brandy) was a one-hit wonder, you should listen to their second hit, which was at #77 after five weeks:




2- Joe Walsh holds this spot with his hit Rocky Mountain Way, at #83 in its second week.

And the top bottom, and our only debut this week...

America with... Muskrat Love!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  It was at 89 this week.


______________________________________

And now, presenting the Next New Star of 1947...

....Howard Keel!  Howard got the title for his lead performances in Carousel and Oklahoma!, the first to sing both leads on stage in one day!  He was so popular that he was the first pick for the lead Gene Kelly got in Singin' In The Rain.  Gene sang that 1929 song in the 1952 movie, but it was dutch artist Taco who put in on the charts in 1983 after hitting #1 with Puttin' On The Ritz.  Singin' didn't do near so well- it never charted here, and its high water mark was a #49 peak in Germany.  Now Puttin' On The Ritz was also an old classic, written by Irving Berlin.  Berlin had another pop connection when his God Bless America was recorded by, of all people, Frank Zappa and the Mothers Of Invention!  That was on the lp Uncle Meat, which also had one of its four sides dedicated to variations on a song called King Kong.  And that was the song the Mothers were in the middle of when "some stupid with a flare gun" burned the concert arena in Montreaux down, leading Deep Purple to write and record the song which was at #8 nationally this week- but got no love from the panel- Smoke On The Water.



___________________________________

And now, the shuffle ten!

If you go back to week #9, you'll see the video to our number ten- a band I discovered en route to other things, Fraser and DeBolt, with a song called Them Dance Hall Girls.  If you've forgotten it, refer to my post here.

The Cars pick up their second S10 with the b-side of their first single- I'm In Touch With Your World, the back of Just What I Needed, which hit #27 in 1978.

Gene Pitney finally claims a S10, this week's #8, with 24 Hours From Tulsa, a #3 hit in 1963.

Pablo Cruise's biggest hit, the #6 Love Will Find A Way from 1978, is their second trip into the S10, landing at our seven spot.

Charlie Daniel's Uneasy Rider, which had three votes and 7 points from the panel this week and peaked at #9 in 1973, is our number six.

Our five hole is filled by Utopia's Abandon City, an lp cut from 1977's Oops, Wrong Planet ( the same lp which had the original version of Love Is The Answer, which England Dan and JF Coley would take to #10.) Todd Rundgren et al claim their second S10.

Our number four claims my second all time video hit- aHa! with Take On Me.  The #1 hit in 10 nations, 2nd or 3rd in five more, was number one here as well.

Speaking of England Dan and JF Coley, one of my top ten all time, their Nights Are Forever Without You, is at our #3.  It hit #10 as well in 1976.

And our number two brings up another one of those "how many versions of this song hit the charts?"  And the answer is ten different versions have charted.

Of what song, Chris?

It charted 4 times in 1949:  Burl Ives took it to #21; Vaughn Monroe's orchestra took it to the top, and it was the top song of the year; Bing Crosby took it to #14; and Peggy Lee hit #2 on the "most played by DJs" chart.

What song, Chris?

The Ramrods took an instrumental version to #30 in 1961; Lawrence Welk also instrumentally hit with it, #87 in that same year; the Baja Marimba Band as well, going to #52 in 1966.  The Outlaws took a southern rock version to #31 in 1980...

...ummm, Chris?

And two versions hit the country charts.  Roy Clark took it to #27 in our year of 1973... and the last one...


CHRIS!!!!!


Oh, yeah, our number two on the S10 was also a #2 country hit for Johnny Cash in 1979- Ghost Riders In The Sky.

And now, the number ones...

Survey says...

... the Stories with Brother Louie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This interracial rocker was the week's #5 on Cashbox.

And, shuffle says...

CCR with Bad Moon Rising!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Next week we hit the end of this cycle of years with 1978!  See you then!

And when you come back from vacation, Mondays are still the same

If you ever climbed inside my head on a Monday, you'd know I spend a lot of time telling myself to move onto another subject.  I have this sad tendency about thinking how bad the world is, how the PC police seem determined to suck all the color out of life, what kind of mess these little kids are facing and the things that were so cool when we were kids that they'll miss.  Celebrating Christmas, heck, even Valentine's Day in school.  The special magic of the seasons that adults now claim are offensive to their teeny tiny sensibilities.

Finally something stupid will happen (Like listening to the boss praising us for getting better at punching in on our new system, and saying, "Oh, crap, I forgot to punch in!") and the mood will dissipate.  But then you come home and you read the news.  Today seemed a bit exceptional to me.


For example:  A Navy official told Fox News that punishing a lieutenant commander who used an unauthorized weapon to fire back at the Chattanooga gunman who shot and killed five service members could not be “completely ruled out,” and two high-profile former military officers, including presidential candidate Jim Webb, say the Navy is at least seriously considering charging the man.

This is the typical one size fits all reasoning that gets lemonade stands shut down and clerks fired from gas stations for preventing robberies.  You want my opinion?  (Too bad if answer is no)  The only knucklehead needing discipline is the one who established no-gun zones for military personnel.  That reasoning is what had French cops (unarmed) standing with their hands in their pants while the Charlie Hedbo massacre took place.


For example:  "Caitlyn Jenner's 1984 Olympic Torch is sold at auction for $24,000".  You ask me, That was BRUCE's torch.  Bruce doesn't exist anymore.  If Caitlyn is what he/she/it is, then he/she/it should give up all those medals that HE won- because HE doesn't exist anymore.  And whichever way you slice it (don't get any ideas on "it"), it is NOT Caitlyn's torch.


For example:  While I have every sympathy for Brianna Radar, and I think it is commendable that she is warning people of the dangers in misuse of cinnamon after her 4 year old son died from it, I have to say-  Why are there things that ought not to be consumed by 4-year-olds within their reach, and why (since she apparently knew he was "exploring in the kitchen") didn't she either supervise the exploring or end it?  I can remember being four years old.  I had been taught by then what not to get into.  I had been taught not everything belongs in my mouth.  And if I did do something I shouldn't (like using margarine to "slick back my hair"), I swiftly was taught NOT to do it again.

For example:  Just so we're clear, why would the family of 19-year old Michelle Wankoff (appropriate last names, apparently) NOT get help for her when she had already tried to poison the family dog, but instead wait until she beat it to death with a shovel and a claw hammer?  is this more of that "we must be tolerant of her means of expression" thing?


For example:  Kraft having to recall several packs of Singles slices because not all the plastic is coming off, and people are not only NOT bothering to check and see if they've gotten it all off, but they are missing big enough pieces that they are CHOKING on it!  Okay, reality check:  We did a picnic on our vacation, and one of the items in the picnic were deli slices of cheese.  Though I didn't realize it at first, each slice was separated by a 2X2 piece of wax paper.  Yes, I took a big bite.  Yes, I chewed.  No, I did not choke, because I didn't try to swallow my sandwich whole.  I didn't have to take the cheese back to Kroger to have it recalled.  I survived and learned from the experience.  If there's a problem with the wrap, is Kraft liable?  Certainly!  Should a reasonable person be able to catch plastic on their cheese before they choke?  You betcha.  STOP INHALING YOUR FOOD, my children!


For example:  Dems are becoming worried about Hilary's chances in '16, and word is spreading that more qualified opponents, er, options, are needed in the primary race.  Among the names besides Socialist Bernie Sanders (Stay tuned for more here) and the other, non-mentioned candidates (the recently mentioned Mr. Webb, along with Lincoln Chaffee and Martin O'Malley), our beloved VEEP Joe Biden is considering bumbling into the picture.  Beyond showing us what Dan Quayle would be like at his age, Biden would bring a sense of impending entertainment to the White House not seen since the administration of Gerald R. Ford.  And other names in the mix include global warming scientist and internet inventor Al Gore (funded by Al-Jazeera, who enjoys a good joke as much as the next guy), along with courageous Vietnam hero John (I can't believe Iran would lie to me) Kerry.  Oh, and also one Howard Schultz, whose qualifications as CEO of Starbucks CER-tainly mark him as a viable candidate.

And yes, I know I could do an equal if not better job with the 1,347 current GOP candidates, but we'd be here all night.

And, for final example:  Let's go back to that socialist thing, where we find DNC Chairbeing Debbie Whatshername-Schultz getting asked twice- once by loyalist media guy Chris Matthews, and again on Meet The Press- just what the difference is between a Democrat and a Socialist.  Both times, she hmmed and hawed her way out of answering.  Now Matthews prolly don't get the difference either, which is why he asked, but you'd have thought she MIGHT have thought about having a pat answer on an index card before going in front of the serious Sunday journalists.


So what is the difference?  Well, I saw the answer to that among the comments when a friend posted the article to FB:


 The difference is obvious. Socialist are at the very least honest about their ideology. Democrats are only fooling themselves.