Jessica Bruning is ignorant

Last evening I was reading an article from USA Today on my Kindle Fire. The article was about the paper's Swing States Poll. The article quotes one Jessica Bruning of Holstein, Iowa. While I am not a big fan of Romney, it is clear Jessica Bruning of Holstein, Iowa is from a fitting place, she is clearly as dumb as a cow.

What has she learned? That ...Romney "wants to cut taxes for the rich people and raise them for the poor."

"I don't think that's cool," she says. She plans to vote for Obama.

This woman outta take a minute or two to actually read a paper or watch the news. No politician, not Romney, not Obama, has actually said they are going to raise taxes on poor people. Her comment is astoundingly stupid.

Of course Obama, by refusing cooperate with the Republican majority, will drop a monumental tax increase on the poor and middle class by letting the Bush Tax Cuts expire. But Jessica Bruning of Holstein Iowa cannot be bothered with truth. Obama has burdened the entire Nation with billions of new taxes in ObamaCare, but we will just pretend we are Jessica Bruning of Holstein, Iowa and ignore those unpleasant facts.

Jessica Brunng of Holstein, Iowa is like a lot of Americans.  She does not have the time nor inclination to actually follow the political affairs of her nation, but she will take her uniformed ass straight to the polls and vote in November.

If Jessica Bruning of Holstein, Iowa indicated she favored the big-government Democrat policies of the President and intended to vote for him based on that, I can accept her position. Hell, some people actually believe in Scientology and peaceful Muslims. But deciding to vote based on some made-up shit she misheard down at McDonald's -- that is just ignorance on display.

Memory Lane is more like a dark alley strewn with abandoned cars, garbage, pimps and potholes

Yesterday was soul-sucking hot. I suspect it is a mere preview of what I can expect in the afterlife. I hope not, but ...

Anyway, yesterday was about as uncomfortable as any day I can remember. I have spent some hot days in the sun. In my youth I worked summers as a roofer. I spent my days perched high above the ground, usually on industrial sites: repairs, replacements, new stuff.

Let me tell you, you know hot when you spend the day in the sun, sans any shade at all, working in 180 degree hot tar. The sun burns your face, the tar burns through your heavy work boots. But my discomfort was mitigated by muttering a constant mantra of $12 bucks an hour...$12 bucks an hour...Throw in an occasional bonus of overtime plus travel expenses and you have a pretty good summer gig.  A weekly check that topped five hundred bucks is pretty good for a part-time summer job these days (provided you can even find a summer job).  It was unbelievably good money back in the early 1980's.  To measure that kind of wealth in college boy terms, twelve bucks an hour was two cases of beer earned every hour -- and that meant the good stuff, not Kroger Cost Cutter beer, Fallstaf or Carling's Black Label.

It was brutally hard work. The fucking union took $70 a week off the top of my paycheck. Even today, more than three decades later, the idea that more than one-half a day's work went straight into the pockets of the AFL/CIO pisses me off. For ten weeks every summer some Mafioso or Commie Bastard or Democrat stole money from my labors. Some things never change, do they?

I've got this pain...

I was set to talk about wounds and pain and swelling and such. It suddenly occurred to me I am becoming a 70 year old woman, every one-sided conversation we have around here is about what the fuck is wrong with me.  Sorry.

 I am not that old. Yet.

Maybe I have told you a little secret in one of the three thousand plus posts I have cobbled together over the years: I used to be a librarian. Yes, indeed, and let me tell you something,  librarian conventions are not nearly the fun you imagine they are. I was the librarian at a branch library in a very small town (population 2,500). I was the man at the place, in fact,  the only employee.

Anyway, on my last day at the little library I ran I was chomping at the bit to get out.  Mrs. Mays came in late in the afternoon, like she did every day.  I gave her the standard greeting "Good afternoon, Mrs. Mays, how are you?" And as usual she started to tell me. She listed a headache, back pain, whatever. And like many twenty-somethings I lost control and just blurted out "I'm sorry, Mrs. Mays, but that was a rhetorical question". She stared at me for a long moment , gave a mighty harrumph and headed into the stacks.

Alberta, one of my favorite patrons, was in the building, and began to laugh her head off. She came over and in her typical loud fashion exclaimed "I have wanted to tell her that for years".

The day was winding down and I was making sure the place was clean and tidy and ready for the next librarian to take over. The door banged open and Alberta was there. She asked me to come outside. There, in her little wagon she used to haul books back and forth to her house a few blocks away, was a case of beer. For me. She said it was a reward for being such a good friend over the past couple of years, but mostly for "shutting up that Mays bitch".  Alberta added in a stage whisper " I have hated that old lady for thirty years".

When you come by here to see what is going on you are only metaphysically wondering how I am today.  You really don't want to know or care. You just want to be entertained. Or something.

So, I am not going to tell you about that kind of shit. At least not today. 

Have a great weekend.

Hot Town

It is hotter than Hades around these parts. I bet it is at your house too. It is summer, that's what happens in summer -- it gets hot. I bet come January it will be much colder. I could be a weatherman.

We did not do much on the Fourth, as I posted there were no fireworks in my little city. I watched me some John Wayne in Hellfighters and Frank in Von Ryan's Express. For supper I threw some burgers on the grill. I made homemade potato salad, macaroni salad and deviled eggs to round out the meal. Earlier in the day I made some brownies too.

Back to work yesterday, it seemed like the second Monday of the week.

I had some interesting political discussions tis week.  Two different buddies on two different days expressed the same attitude. One is a moderate, the other a staunch Democrat Union guy, a lifer in the Postal Service. Neither wants Obama to take another run at things, and neither is crazy about Romney (that makes three of us). Both think ObamaCare is a horrible idea, there is no way the cost can be contained or the current level of care they both enjoy can be continued. Both are in a strong "through the bums out" mode concerning Congress.

I'm not sure what this means, after all anecdote is not data, and a sampling size of three is not too relevant. But I think the People are fed up. The Democrats and Republicans did not get the signals in 2010 and I think there is Hell to pay for many politicians come November.

Don't look Ethel

I posted a tale of woe a few days ago about how my new running shoes blistered my heels.  Despite wearing them around the house and lacing them properly, I still got a painful blister. I blame it on using the treadmill, even though treadmills usually don't cause me any more trouble than pavement in the neighborhood.  Mostly these shoes are just cut differently from the Asics I usually wear.

Lest you think I am complaining about a tiny little blister on the back of my heel, here is what it looked like yesterday evening:

Click for an even better view. Nothing stirs your appetite like a close-up of an oozing sore.

Do you have any idea how hard it is to take a cell phone picture of the back of your foot? The stuff I do for you...It has formed a bruise/blood blister under the regular blister.

That bump on the left is my anklebone for size reference. Yes, before you point it out I am aware I have skinny ankles. 

By the way, you probably should skip this post if you are squeamish about sores and such.

Happy Independence Day

No fireworks around here. The authorities are afeared the prospect of kiddies waving sparklers will set the county aflame.  No personal nor public boom-boom allowed. I understand, but my mostest favorite holiday won't be the same.

Happy Birthday America

I wonder, wonder

..if the Liberals who are praising Chief Justice John Roberts for his wisdom when he ruled that that it is not the job of the court to protect the people from the consequences of their political choices would be so effusive with their praise if he were to uphold the Defense of Marriage Act under the same grounds?

Tight Laced

I laced 'em as tight as I could stand. But my best was not enough, I guess. My new running shoes made big blisters on the back of both heels. The right one is nickle sized, the left heel blister is about the diameter of a quarter.

When your feetsies are mostly numb that means the sores are generally raw and oozing blood before the pain reaches the brain.

Powerless: a rambling vent that will not make sense to any of you but makes me feel better. Or worse.

After a weekend, I am more pissed about the politics in this nation than ever. I think I may be out of step. I am all for helping out my fellow man. But it is not charity when it is forced by threat of law.

People make bad choices. I have made more than a few myself, believe me. Bad things happen to very good people. We all have a duty to help those who most need it.  For instance, I have no issue with unemployment benefits. I have lost more than one job.  I know that unemployment would have saved my family had I not been lucky enough to land new employment right away.

As much as it pains me, we cannot provide a safety net for everyone.  This realization is what puts me out of step, I guess. Every politician, regardless of party, needs a big sign, lit in changing neon colors, flashing these words above his desk: "That is someone else's money you are spending".

I am lost.  Cannot the powers-that-be see the end result of the progressive game we are playing? ObamCare costs will spiral out of control very quickly as people make bad life choices. The People will call for restraint. Just as the anti-smoking lobby has pinned their attacks on the increased cost to the rest of us in healthcare, the anti-fat, anti-meat anti-whatevers will bring their "I know better than you" attitude into the fray. Soon the Government will not only decree what size soda you can drink, but what you need to eat as well. In a few decades the McDonald's and Burger Kings of today will be relics of a nostalgic bygone age like drive-ins and the general store. And why not, if I am paying for your everyday living expenses I have a right to dictate how you spend that money. Haven't we all decried the food stamp (yes I know debit card) user at the grocery buying steak and name brand stuff while we are counting quarters to buy hot dogs? Aren't we all pissed to see them buying cigarretts and beer with the cash they did not have to use for foodstuff? I will be just as pissed to see you eating Big Macs and large fries while I am buying your Metformin and Lipitor.

Trust me, today it is healthcare, tommorrow it will be long-term care for the elderly. Our grandkids will know only a government that  provides for their every need. The individual you will have to sacrifice for the collective us. Already the battle cry is faint in the distance, but drawing nearer: "the rich do not pay their fair share, who needs all that money, why do they have all of those cars..." How far off are government mandated salaries and wages?

I don't know. When you lose every battle is it realistic to think you can win the war?

Dear Fellow Hoosiers

Joe Donnelly is running to represent Indiana in the U.S. Senate as a candidate for the Democratic Party. He voted for ObamaCare, the largest single tax increase on the middle class and poor of this country in history.

Had Joe Donnelly voted NO, ObamaCare would not have passed.

Let me repeat, Joe Donnelly voted to increase your taxes, reduce your healthcare options, increase your insurance costs and to increase the national debt by more than a trillion dollars. He could have stopped it, but he did not have the courage to stand up to Nancy Pelosi. Joe Donnelly lacked the courage to vote in the best interest of the taxpayers in Indiana.

Remember who to blame come November.

*fixed. I'm an idiot.  New rule, no posting before coffee.

Make that twenty-eight

New readers are an opportunity to regurgitate an old post. Hey, it is summer, you should be used to reruns.

This is an old musing from 2006.

Lucky Man

The shoes hurt my feet. I was a bit aggravated. I had to tell one of my buddies he should not be drinking beer in church. He did not see the problem. I told him the Catholics may not mind, but the Methodists had issues with alcohol in the church. I was half irritated because I wanted one of those beers myself.


I had been in an argument with some other people who wanted to mess with my car. Permanent marker does not come off of windows.


The whole thing was becoming a real pain. I cut myself shaving. The photographer annoyed the shit out of me with the stupid poses. Everyone wanted to talk to me tell me this or that, tell me a story or anecdote from their own experience.


I was pissed because I was standing there waiting. I have little patience now. I had less then. Otter was there. So were some other buddies. Finally the ladies came through the doors, things were finally moving.


I could not help smiling when she came through the door at last. She was beautiful: freckles and all. Her hair, her dress, all looked great. My irritation vanished as the organ switched tunes and the audience stood. Even though this all happened twenty-three years ago, I remember many of the details. The minister seemed to drone about the Galatians or some such. We dated six years before we got married, I guess I do have patience when it comes to certain details. At last the deed was done. We were off to the reception and then the best part -- the honeymoon!


Here I sit, twenty-three years later and I remain married. I am short tempered, I find myself incredibly amusing. My hair is graying and maybe even thinning a bit on top, but I really do not care to investigate. Bifocals are on my nose, my gut has grown. I fart a lot. She sports some gray when she does not keep her hair dyed. Her vision is getting bad too. She cannot decide if she needs longer or shorter arms to read a menu. She thinks she is fat. She complains about getting old. I still think she is beautiful and sexy. Some days I look at her and I am filled with desire. I thank God for her every day -- even those when she pisses me off. I suspect I anger her far more than she does me.


I wanted to post a picture from that day, but my scanner is again on the fritz. Trust me, she was the most beautiful woman in the world standing there in the Methodist Church -- June 30, 1984. I am a lucky man.

Big Government lands a sharp left hook, Freedom is on the ropes

It has been almost a day now since the ObamaCare ruling. The Republic has not been radically transformed. That was started long ago when FDR implemented his socialist agenda that prolonged the Depression. The slide into Big Government was aided and abetted by Democrats and willing Republicans in the following decades. ObamaCare is merely a bigger step down the slope.

One thing is clear to this amateur political watcher. We can no longer apply the sobriquet "Conservative" to Justice Roberts. His decisions in the Arizona and ObamaCare cases put that illusion to rest.

Some pundits are looking for any hint of light in this ruling. Some say Roberts actually helped the limited Government cause by seemingly giving the Big Government types a victory, while limiting Congress powers. It is true the Commerce Clause gambit was repudiated strongly by the Court. And the slap down of the Medicaid expansion limits Congress' powers to tell the States what to do.

In the end, Roberts has made it easier than ever for the Progressive wing to force us into behavior they want and desire. No longer does compelling Americans to act have to be under the purview of "commerce". Now it can be mandated as a tax. And what a strange taxing system is now upheld by the SCOTUS! Congress can mandate you buy something from a private company, and then fine you if you do not. This is now the definition of a tax.

I am certain Pelosi and company are already writing legislation to force you into using green energy. Does anyone doubt we will see a bill introduced in Obama's second term demanding all cars you own must meet certain fuel mileage guidelines or you pay a fine? Hey! The Government has to make up all the money it is losing on the Chevy Volt. Guess what? Justice Roberts has decreed that is a Constitutional tax.

This decision has just allowed Congress to mandate anything they choose, fine you if you do not acquiesce and it is defined as a tax. The Nanny State just got the power to compel us to do what is good for us individually and collectively, based on whatever the politician in place thinks you should do. Don't fool yourself into believing Republican power brokers are not secretly figuring out ways to use this new taxing power as well.

We laughed at the idea of banning sugary drinks in New York. Friends, we have just scratched the surface and Roberts gave the Government a sharp object.

Its a tax

The Court says you have to buy insurance 'cause it is a tax.

It’s an interesting argument, but one that should have Americans worried.  Basically, this is a tax that you have to pay to private companies.  For all of the screaming the Right did over single-payer — and for good, outcome-based reasons — at least the taxes raised to fund it would go directly to government.  The Supreme Court has signed off on what is, in very practical terms, a tax levied by the insurance industry on Americans simply for existing.  It’s an amazing, and fearsome, decision that really should have both Right and Left horrified. --Hot Air

You are now going to pay taxes to private companies.  I don't know. Since it is a tax we can make it go away in November.

Tell me again voting is a waste of time.

And over the classic halls...

Well I did not think the girl
Could be so cruel
And I'm never going back
To my old school
   --Steely Dan

On my way back from a long road trip last evening I found myself pulling off on the exit to my old college town. I had been in the car for hours and I was hungry. I had not eaten since lunch and supper time was long past. It was time for food, any food. I hit McDonald's --America's urinal-- for a pee break and quick bite. I got my food to go and decided to take a quick drive around the campus.

It is reassuring to know that much was the same, just a little different.  New red brick buildings dotted the landscape where stately old houses once stood. Center Hall, the Chapel, Baxter Hall all stood around the Mall as ever. The setting sun sent rays of light through the green of the trees to prodce a psotcard-like setting. The Fraternity house still stood on the hill, no longer part of the Greek system, its charter revoked in a hissy fit of ass coverage. 

I would like to say the buildings somehow looked smaller, that time had dimmed my memories of the place.   I wish I could offer plaitudes and thoughful insight on my youth brought forth by the stately red brick of the campus. I want to be that writer that steps back in time to capture life lessons in retracing my long ago footsteps. I have neither the talent or imagination for that. In my mind they are just buildings where I used to sit and pathways and streets I used to walk.

I have nostalgia, anyone who reads the drivel in the archives can attest to that. But driving past  and through the campus brought forth nothing more than a satisfied "hmmph".  I had a hell of a good time at that place. I got an excellent education to boot. But I have no deisre to go back.  My best days are in front of me, not in the past.

Today politics will take center stage in the news, the blogs, and in conversation. I am sure in the coming days I will opine, rant and lecture. But in the end, the sun will rise on the morrow, my wife and kids will love me.

I can live with that.

Boobs

Proof men can focus on more than one thing at a time.

Honey, get my insulin ready

The wife found a new brownie recipe. So good. So sweet, two of these could be used to kill off Death Row diabetics.

She got this pan that looks like a muffin tin, only with square holes. Get one from WalMart. It was cheap (as in inexpensive).

Take a package of the break apart chocolate chip cookies from the refrigerated section of your local grocery. Put one and one half squares in the bottom of the pan.  Smash down into a thin layer to cover the bottom of the square. Place a full-sized Reese cup upside down on top of the cookie. Stir up a box of brownies according to directions. Spoon brownie batter over the cookie/candy bar. Fill about 3/4 full. Bake at 350 for 18 minutes. Cool and eat. There you have it, an elegant and decadent dessert that is as easy as anything you have ever made.

I would show you a picture, but we ate them all (with help from some friends).

You are welcome

The future is now

Today may be a big news day as the future of ObamaCare should be announced by the SCOTUS today.  Or maybe Thursday. Or maybe another Monday or Thursday.

Ponder this set of ideas. The Government, as envisioned by King Obama, believes it has the power to force you to buy health insurance. Liberals in New York and Massachusetts believe they have the power to dictate the size of soft drink you can order. How big is the next step to forcing you to buy diet soda, or the drink the Nannies-in-charge want you to drink?  How does that Soilent Green taste?

After all, it was just weeks ago my favorite liberal blogger told me there was no way the Government would force a church to offer same sex marriages. Except the progressive types in Europe already are taking that next step.

When you allow a government to define what freedoms you possess, that same Government can take them away. Madison and the Founders knew this.  That is why our Freedoms were described as God-given in the founding documents.

Progressives and Liberals forget the Government derives its power from the people, not the reverse.

Saturday Blues

I have dug Lonnie Brooks since the early 1980's.

Mulch Munching Mammals

Lots of interesting stuff in the news. King Obama has taken a page from Nixon's playbook.  Trying to protect underlings from wrongdoing via Executive Privilege has not worked so well in the past. Where are you Bob Woodward? What did the President know, and when did he know it? Since the news media only investigates Republican administrations I am sure this will all blow over soon. It is a welcome respite for the Obamaites and the state of the economy.

I spent most of the week crisscrossing the State with a side trip or two into Buckeye territory and even into Chicagostan. Here is an example of my travels. I left home late Wednesday morning and drove to the far west central part of the state to Terre Haute and environs. I then drifted north up US 41 towards Attica, Indiana. I picked up Indiana 55 and proceeded north all the way through Crown Point to Merrillville. I spent the night there. I drove into the City on Thursday morning, took a customer to lunch and then drove back to south central Indiana and home.

I have not even described the trips to Cincinatti, Fort Wayne and Anderson I took earlier in the week. My ass wants a divorce from my Ford, I can tell you that.

King Obama says

...illegals are no longer illegal. He is going to allow them to get a work permit. They can have jobs, if they can find them. So now does adding these 800,000 to 1,600,000 or more no-longer-illegals to the workforce count against the unemployment/underemployed rate? Did the jobless number just jump higher?

Shouldn't it?

Already there are four candidates for every open job, how about we add more candidates, especially those willing to work for lower wages.  That is good for the economy (sarcasm).  But it is a boon to business owners and the evil  one percenters already getting richer off of the backs of the oppressed worker class.  I suspect the Unions. the OWS crowd and liberal bloggers will be all over this in four, three, two,...