GQ, Phil Robertson and his "Shocking" response.

Before I get started I'd like to thank a few folks/organizations for pulling me out of my silence. I have been avoiding politics and anything PC for a while now and have literally let my blog sort of die out.
Well after the news came out of the “ Duck Commander” Phil Robertson, being “suspended indefinitely” for answering a question that we all know, at least anyone who watches the show would reasonably assume, would be his answer. But before I wade into that mess let me thank the appropriate sources.
Thanks to my wife who first pointed it out to me yesterday. This is my only sincere thanks


Thank you to all the national media for making it go viral. Thank you to AE for making it such a big deal, because with out you most of us wouldn't even know who he is, but a special thanks to GQ magazine for asking such a daring and thought provoking question from a well known conservative Christian of whom, I am sure, you believed would give you anything but blunt and to the point answer.


Now that the preliminaries are over; why is everyone in such an uproar over what he said? What did he say that would really shock anyone? Was it his use of the words, vagina and anus? Was it because he said that he can't understand the appeal? Perhaps it was because he used the dreaded “sin” word? Or was it because he followed suit with a translation of what the book of Romans says? What part of it was so shocking?


First he is a conservative, fundamentalist, Christian. According to what he believes the Bible calls homosexuality a sin in both the OT and the NT. I am not going to write it all out for you because most of you who have even the slightest bit of knowledge of the bible already know this. So if this has been what he has been taught, since he was saved in the 60's, what did you really think his answer would be?
My guess is that someone at GQ wanted to either get some free publicity or they are angered that such a family friendly show, that unabashedly uses the name of Jesus in their prayers, is so popular with literally millions. Not sure it can be said about their magazine.


Second I am hard pressed to believe that it was the words anus or vagina. I heard some say that he was crude in using those words, why? Is that not what they are called? When I speak to my teenagers about sex I use the appropriate terminology so why shouldn’t he? Seems to me that this is less crude then the words some people use to describe body parts.


Thirdly, It can't be because he doesn't understand the appeal. Why should he? He is a straight male. I am a straight male, and though I have family members that are gay and I love them all, I don't understand the appeal. I see men as nothing more that other hairy hominids and I generally don't find them attractive. In the same vein I would also suggest to you that I don't expect a gay man to see what appeal a woman has to me. It is no more in his nature, to be attracted to women, then it is in mine to get warm fuzzies for other men.


As far as him calling it a sin and then listing off some things that the book of Romans says, go look at my first point.


Next I would like to address the idea of “hate speech.”


Let me give you a very point blank explanation of “hate speech.” I started working on a construction crew, back a few years ago when my kids were little, and ,as my custom was, I went by my middle name rather than my than my first. I soon found out that all the guys on this crew were members of the KKK., in Florida, and had come north looking for work. Long story short, when they found out what my real name was I was verbally assaulted. The kindest words used was “sand nigger” because of my Cuban heritage, and I was threatened with bodily harm. Worse yet they destroyed my work and then told the boss ( he was not one of them) that I did sloppy work and was incompetent,as a result I was fired. That is hate.
If they had just left it as comments or expressing their opinion of me, then that would be free speech, but they took it further they didn't just express their hatred they took action and that's the difference.
Last I had heard Mr. Robertson has not threatened anyone he simply gave his OPINION based on his religious views AFTER HE WAS ASKED. Again what did you think he would say?


The last point is the suggestion that he was implying that blacks were more happy under the Jim Crow laws. This is not what he said. He said that he grew up on a farm,as did everyone he knew, and he worked side by side with blacks. He said that the folks he knew seemed to be happy and that they were God fearing loving people. He never said that prejudice never happened or that those laws were good, what he said was that he had never SEEN any of it.
Growing up in Maine I didn't see any of it either. It doesn't mean it didn't happen, It just means I didn't see it. Does that make me a bigot?


The bottom line is this. Phil Robertson said what he believed when he was asked. He has that right. AE has the right to fire or suspend him if he doesn't meet with whatever standards they have set up. GQ has the right to ask such profound questions, but lets stop with all the hysterics over a conservative Christian speaking what he believes to be true when we all know that this would be his answer in the first place.

The Simple Truth is That He lied.

Do you remember these phrases? “I am not a crook” or “ I did not have sexual relations with that woman” how about “ read my lips no new taxes.” Do you remember these words? For those of you who are not old enough to remember the first one is attributed to President Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal that forced him into resigning from office rather than face impeachment. The second was President Bill Clinton trying hard to deflect reports of him having oral sex with an intern in the oval office which wound up with him committing perjury and getting articles of impeachment drawn up against him. The only thing that saved him was a lack of democrat votes. The last is from President George Bush the elder who famously said that during one of his campaign speeches. He won the election but reneged on his promise and was defeated soundly in his next election.


Fast forward to today. We once again have a sitting president who has lied to the American people. His words, repeated over and over again, concerning the ACA “ if you like your plan you can keep your plan. Period” These words are what sold a large part of the American population to elect him as president and reelect him four years later. Now the truth has finally hit home. He lied.


I have watched and listened as his various spokespersons have been out there trying to spin it that he didn't actually lie ,that he either misspoke or we just didn't understand what it was that he was saying. Really? Funny thing I watched a whole bunch of his speeches and it seemed pretty clear to me. I didn't hear about any caveats or qualifiers. I only heard him say (I and 330 million other Americans) “if you like your plan you can keep it.” Not sure what part of that sentence, repeated over and over, that I didn't understand.


Of course the newest spin is to blame it on the insurance companies.


I actually heard the following on the radio.


The president said you could keep your plan as long as it doesn't change and the president didn't tell them that they had to change their policies....


Thank you for clearing that up for me.


So what exactly was the point of the ACA if not to force insurance companies to change their plans to include more coverage, thus ensuing higher costs and causing people to lose the coverage they were told that they could keep? Someone else commented that these were bare bones policies so they had to go. That's not the point. The president said if you like your plan you can keep it. So why aren't they able to keep them?


Another person said that there is no way that the administration could have known that this was going to happen. Hmmm...I am not a brain surgeon and even I knew that this was going to happen. Simple economics would tell you this. If you buy a Yugo you are going to pay a Yugo price. If you buy a BMW you are going to have to pay the BMW price not the Yugo price, and if your forced to by the BMW your still going to have to pay the BMW price. This is not complicated.


Now with people coming out and sharing their individual horror stories on the major news networks and papers, the administration has chosen to try and attack and marginalize these people, accusing them of lying or of not giving out of all the facts. Yet the facts were simple. They had coverage they liked and they were getting the kind of care they needed but because of the new ACA regulations they had to be changed and the people lost the coverage that they had or are being forced into higher costing plans, what part of this is misleading or lacking of truth?


There is also word out there that the Obama administration knew that this was going to happen and even predicted that somewhere close to 65 percent would loose their coverage and yet they continued to preach that no one was going to loose it. The estimated number that I have heard is somewhere between 50 to 129 million people, which is essentially the entire individual market, are going to loose their coverage.


The bottom line is that now that the ACA has rolled out the American people are waking up to the truth. They can't keep their policies and it's going to cost them dearly. Many are trying to figure out how they are going to pay for the extra costs and they are angry. Many things that have happened, prior to this, they mostly ignored because it didn't effect them directly. This time it does and they are voicing their displeasure.


When I was growing up there was always a price for lying and it was always considered a better thing to confess your mistakes and make things right. This is what I have taught to my own children and I hope they will do the same with theirs. So here is my simple minded solution for you Mr. President. Admit that you were wrong, stop this madness and fix it. It's as simple as that. If not, you can expect that your party will be thoroughly trashed, as every republican in the nation will loudly remind everyone just who is to blame. You and the democratic party.

Redundancy and Waste

While the news has been filled with Obama care troubles and the NSA spying on our friends, one subject has seemingly disappeared from the stage, The budget and debt ceiling. A couple of weeks ago you didn't hear much else, yet now it seems to have vanished.


Just in case anyone has forgotten we get to go to the edge of the cliff again in the middle of January and already both sides are suggesting that they aren't going to get much done before then. Lest you have forgotten here is the simplified crux of the problem.


Democrats are unwilling to cut any programs and want to raise taxes. Republicans are refusing to raise any more taxes with out the cuts and the tea party wants Obama care defunded before they will budge on anything. This of course leads to nothing being accomplished.


There are some things that could be done though that might actually work, if we could find any real leadership that is. The first would be ending all the pork projects that get attached to bills, which have nothing to do with running the government and only politically help the person who attached the bill. A fine example was Mitch McConnell being able to get some extra funding for a bridge project in his home state as a way to get him to go along with Harry Reid temporary budget plan and push the battle again down the road.


The second would be getting rid of all the wasteful government run redundancy. I saw a small part of in a visit to a VA hospital in Boston for a simple consult...


When my wife and I arrived we had no idea of where to go but once we did we made a bee line for the desk that was clearly marked “clinic check in.” After waiting for the others that were ahead of me the lady took my card and swiped it through her swiper, for a lack of another term, and then informed me that I had to go to a different desk on the other side of that same area to check in. So off we headed to the other desk. Upon our arrival at that desk there was a gentleman standing there who was looking just a bit on the ticked off side while a woman sat at another desk on a computer. After about 5 minutes of standing there the lady at the computer turned around and informed us that there was no one there to check us in, the woman who does that had just stepped out and she had no idea when said woman would be back and she wasn't able to check us in so we should go to the other desk,the first one that we had been to,and have her check us in. By this time there was about 8 of us standing there waiting to get checked in and all of us told her that they had just sent us here from the desk she was trying to send us back to. She muttered something about “well you should sit down and wait because I don't know how long it's going to be.” Now gentle readers I am not a brain surgeon and I admit that I don't understand all the intricacies of running a government agency, but where I normally go we check ourselves in via a kiosk. If I can do it, with nothing more then a high school education, surely a government employee sitting right there should be able to. Also understand there were multiple “check in desks”all within 50 feet of each other. Not a single one could check us in. The lady sitting there was clearly capable of cruising through Facebook and her personal emails, her screen was facing us so we could see what she was doing, but she was not competent enough to swipe a card and putting a check mark next to our names on the paper.


After about another15 minutes the lady who did know how to swipe a card and check us in finally arrived. The other lady,as it turned out, was a nurse who's sole purpose was to take our vital signs. She also turned out to be the next person I had to see. Once I got to her she told me to stand there and wait ,quite rudely I might add, while she finished what she was doing on the computer. And what was she doing that was of such vital government mandated importance? She was writing an email on her Yahoo account. So I stood there for another 10 minutes while she hunted and pecked her way across the keyboard. To say that I was angry would be a massive understatement.


Finally I was checked in. I was an hour late for my appointment, but I was finally checked in. Twenty minutes later we were ushered into an examination room. The short version is that apparently the doctor never looked at my records. I spent an hour having another examination ,that I had already had,that was in fact the reason that I was there in the first place. Redundancy and stupidity combined. What was supposed to be a simple consult turned into a 4 hour marathon over something that shouldn't have taken more then a half hour.


Here is my point. If the nurse, or any of the other check in spots, had checked us in, they are all on the same system after all, they could have saved us all time and moved on to other vets who needed help. Better yet they could simplify by having one desk with say three people ,who all know how to swipe a card and check us in, thus saving time and money in wasted salaries.
Second if the doctors would actually take a minute to read the files of the veterans before they talk to them, then they would save a lot of time by not doing the same exams over and over (I had the same test and exam 3 times in the last 3 weeks) and they could move more quickly on to other Veterans.


Remember this was just one small area of this particular VA, if I saw the redundancy and wasted time there, just imagine how much of it goes on all over the VA system not to mention the rest of the government.


Just keep I mind,as we approach yet another cliff, that there is a lot of money that could be saved just by taking care of these two things that I have mentioned ,and I am sure that there is more that could be added to the list, but I suspect it will be those of us who are veterans,seniors or poor, that once again will be the targets because , after all, we are such leeches to society.


Just my Simple Minded Opinion.

Tin Foil Hat # who knows...

Late last week, and over the weekend, reports have come out of Germany, France and Spain, amongst others, that show the NSA spying on our allies. The reports are saying that they have been doing this to the tune of millions of phone calls and emails. The white house spokesman, Jay Carney, told reporters that the president knew nothing about it and it was being looked into. Then another report came out saying that he has known about it at least since 2010. Once again the president knows nothing, just like fast and furious and Benghazi....Oh wait 60 minutes showed that he and Hillary DID know about that one apparently only lefties can point out things to other lefties....


In Wyoming there have a couple of towns and schools that have allowed themselves to be used as human guinea pigs letting the feds put RFID chips into their bodies as an experiment to see how well this system can work. Apparently some parents were outraged when they found out that the schools had implanted their kids with them with out their knowledge but most seemed to be OK with it. Those that resisted it were concerned for various reasons, health concerns, constitutional concerns and some were for religious reasons. The author of the article went on to label those people as “kooks.” Now while I don't believe that RFID chips are the mark of the beast, as some extreme religious groups might, I do have to ask; why would anyone want an implant in their bodies that allow the government to know everything you are doing and everywhere you are going? Some argue that you can be tracked via your cell phone, and that true, but you can leave that at home


It has also been reported that with Obama care will come possible forced home visits for certain classes of people, such as mothers under the age of 21 and families of veterans who have had combat tours.
According the Health and Human Services website from the 15^th of August it says that under the ACA government agents can engage in "home health visits" for those in certain “high-risk” categories.
Those categories include,besides the two mentioned above, Families where someone is a tobacco user;
Families where children have low student achievement, developmental delays, or disabilities, and
Families with individuals who are serving or formerly served in the armed forces, including such families that have members of the armed forces who have had multiple deployments outside the United States. Also mentioned were homeschoolers. One person suggested that the wording was so broad and vague that a large swath of the American population could easily be included. Hows that change stuff working for you now? To quote Ronald Reagan “ the scariest words ever uttered are I'm from the government and I'm here to help.”
When Alicia was 12 weeks pregnant, she took herself to a health clinic about a mile from her home in Jackson, Wis., for a prenatal checkup. But what started as a routine visit ended with Beltran eventually handcuffed and shackled in government custody – and at the center of a first-of-its-kind federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a state’s fetal protection law.....
This is scary, she used the doctor patient confidentiality and it was used against her, Ill let the article speak for it's self:
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/24/21117142-shackled-and-pregnant-wis-case-challenges-fetal-protection-law


I recently heard of an atheist group that was challenging a particular cities use of clergy at the scene of crimes or tragedies as being in any way helpful. While I respect atheists rights to believe, or not ,as they so choose here is my own thought for what it's worth. Re-posted from my Face Book page;
Just before the Iraq war officially started we had the CG call a halt to everything,except that which provided our security, to give Marines and sailors a chance to meet with chaplains and attend services of their choice. They had tents, big tents, set up for protestants and Catholics, they had smaller ones for those that were Mormons and Jews and even one for those few Muslims that we had in our unit. There wasn't a tent that was not packed. I was in the protestant tent and I had Marines from my platoon that were Catholic or non church going people in there along with us. They didn't care about PC or even if they were in the right place they simply wanted to make their peace with God, however they perceived God to be, before we went into hell. Later that evening , as we were getting ready to roll out, I watched as Christian chaplains and Rabbis moved among the troops praying with them and giving blessings. It didn't matter to most of us what religion they represented, they simply brought us comfort that God would be with us as we walked through the valley of the shadow of death. If you don't believe in God that is your choice, and I respect that, and as much as I am able I will defend your right to believe as you do, but please stop trying to make the rest of us conform to your beliefs or lack there of. I do not claim Christianity as my religion nor am I Jewish, though my beliefs tend that way, but if I am in distress and in need of comfort I am not going to argue about who talks to me or tries to bring me comfort or prays with me. Do chaplains of all stripes serve a purpose and bring comfort? Yes.





Tin Foil Hat Time

Tinfoil Hat Time

Due to a lack of government funding and partial shut down this will not be nearly as silly or as long and I will have three armed guards, who also are not being paid, watching you....


Number one today under the category of “I wish I was Big Bird” apparently the government was able to find money to continue to fund PBS to the tune of 445 million, while shutting down national monuments and threatening to chop money from seniors and disabled vets. When asked, Big Bird, who was heading south for the winter and is a senior himself thought that it was good that the government had it proprieties straight and that it was by far more important to take care of talking birds and a critter that lives in a garbage can rather then fund those who actually have done something like contribute to society.


Under the category of “2 inches is bigger than you think” a Rhode Island 7^th grader was suspended from school for have a 2 inch plastic toy gun on a key chain. Apparently the keys, that were being held hostage by the toy gun, panicked and called 911 and after some intense negotiations with the SWAT team the gun surrendered and blood shed was averted.....


In a unusual posting the Washington Post apparently gave the president 4 Pinocchio’s, the highest number given for lying, based on a comment that Mr. Obama said, “never in the history of the United States has a non germane (relevant to a subject under consideration) bill ever been attached to debt ceiling talks” According to the post he only missed that by about 1400 starting with Ted Kennedy and Walter Mondale back in 1973. The words ooops comes to mind.
So while Vietnam vets are being arrested and WW2 vets are being barred from their respective monuments a rally was allowed in support of illegal aliens, complete with staging, guards and a wonderful guest appearance by Nancy Pelosi. Imagine that, we can celebrate those who come here illegally and demand that they have rights , all under the guise of free speech, while prohibiting those who fought for those rights from visiting the memorials built in their honor.
A town in New Jersey has decided that pan handlers need to have a permit to pan handle. I am a bit confused; how does someone who doesn’t have any money, hence they are out pan handling, get the money to buy this permit? They have also suggested that should someone be found with out one that they could go to jail...OK so lets get this straight If I don't have a permit and it's a cold January night you are going to arrest me and put me in a place that warm and that I can get fed...prepare for full jails....
A judge in Ohio has declared a man legally dead....even though the man was standing right in front of him...apparently this man wandered off back in 2005 and was declared legally dead by the same judge. Shortly after being declared dead he returned from the other side but the judge refused to acknowledge his presence in effect telling him he was still dead, the ghost defamation league has filed a formal complaint stating that the man in no way represents the ghostly community and should be restored to life......
Schools in NH and CT have decided that playing tag and using baseballs, footballs,etc are just way to dangerous for kids and could promote violence so these activities will no longer be allowed. When asked the children were basically non committal as they were busy playing Assassins Creed and Grand Theft Auto....

A Short letter to congress

Dear congress, I realize the chances of any of you reading this is slim but perhaps the folks at the NSA could relay this message to you.....


First the simple statement; You are toying with my life. Not just my life, but the life of my family, and many other disabled veterans. It's interesting to note that you have made sure the military is still getting paid,wouldn't want a bunch of unhappy, still active, combat veterans on your hands, which is well and good, and that those furloughed will get back pay, which is also well and good, but you are refusing to honor your commitment to all of us disabled veterans. From what I understand the house voted to continue funding the VA but the senate refused to even consider it. Mind telling me why?


Those of us who are disabled veterans already paid the price for serving the country and protecting your sorry backsides, yet while we will likely not get paid, and our hospitals and clinics get shut down, you will still be receiving your pay and benefits. This is wrong on so many levels.


Sadly I get it. You are so worried about how you will look to your constituents or to the radical factions in your parties that you are willing to sell me and mine down the river just to save face. You talk up a storm and try to be all sympathetic while the cameras are rolling or when you are with a friendly crowd but the bottom line is that you are all hiding behind a mask of sympathy while the truth is that none of you really give a care, you have your agenda and your pride and to hell with anything that will get in the way.


And why should you care? You're still getting paid. You will still be able to keep a roof over your head and food on the table, even if this goes on for months, and the worst pain that you are likely to see is perhaps not getting re elected ,but that's OK too because you will just move on to some lobbying group or write your memoirs. Bottom line is that if you do nothing it isn't going to hurt you.


For those of us who live in the real world, those of us who live from pay check to paycheck, your reality is not even remotely close to ours. This is going to hurt ,and hurt bad ,but I suppose that’s what you want; Cause pain and then blame the other side. Great, meanwhile we suffer.


Simply put; If we don't get paid, we won't be keeping a roof over our heads or food on the table. We will literally become a homeless veteran family and likely it won't just be us, it will hit thousands of families. You see my wife and I balanced our budget, unlike congress, and have determined that we are about to reach our limit. Unlike you though, we can't negotiate for more funding, we can't just opt out to not pay our debts. I can't go to the bank and ask them to lend me more money so that I can pay them what I already owe. By stopping our pay you are telling all of us that our sacrifice and the sacrifices of all disabled veterans is worthless to you. We only matter as a political tool. Just remember most of us vote, and if I am sleeping in a card board box eating only what I can find out of a trash bin. I won't forget and I will make damn sure no one else will either.


This is reality; this is no game.

Tinfoil Hat after the weekend edition 2

As most of you know there was a shooting in DC that involved the capital police and home land security. Apparently a woman rammed into one of the barricades near the white house and after nearly running over the capitol police she was shot and killed in her car. She was un-armed and her one year old was in the car with her. DHS has tried to justify this stating that she had some serious mental problems and that she believed that Mr. Obama was controlling her mind through radio waves. Seems to me that a number of the shootings recently have involved people who thought they were under some sort of mind control, the last one being the Navy yard shooter. I am usually skeptical about anything mind control like but it can it all be just a coincidence?


A.Rod is suing MLB and Bud Selig. Why? Because, according to his lawyers, they have been on a witch hunt to smear his name and it has cost him millions in contracts. OK so the fact that he has been caught twice using performance enhancing drugs and he has encouraged others to do the same has nothing to do with it? It couldn't possibly be his arrogance and selfishness that did him in? At least Manny Ramirez had class enough to quit....


In war news Afghanistan is going to be having elections soon! Running for president this time around is a man who is considered to be a warlord and he was the mentor to OBL. Just wonderful, we bomb the crap out of the Taliban and we supposedly have the bad guys on the run and in the course of trying to stabilize Afghanistan they are going to allow one of the original Taliban to run for president... I have a better solution; why don't we just send them all our congress people and president? They aren't doing anything right now anyhow....


In an incredible show of compassion for America's disabled vets, Harry Reid refused to even entertain the bill, which was passed in the house, that would have continued to fund the VA and all it's services to veterans. Of course he made damn sure to pass the bill that would allow active military to stay paid, wouldn't want active combat vets to be angry after all, and then he made sure that government employees are going to get at least back pay when this all over, but for those of us who sacrificed our minds, bodies and souls, all we're going to get is a foot up our backsides...


A high school girl recently found out that her t-shirt promoted violence. And what was on this frightening shirt? It was a picture of a hunter ,with an American flag in the back ground, and the words “NRA protecting Americas traditions since 1871” The only way that shirt could have promoted violence was if she had taken it off and started snapping people with it....but not to be out done we have the story of two 7 year old’s who were suspended from school for pointing their pencils at each other and making “ machine gun noises.” Now I understand the fear of pencils, lead poisoning and all that, but these were two boys, at least one of whom has a father that is a Marine, doing what it is that boys do, making noises and imitating their dads. We used to put them in rubber bands and shoot them at each other....


Ted Cruz reportedly said that the GOP was going to win...win what exactly? If it's about Obama care then perhaps you didn't get the memo? It went into effect the very same day that you shut down the government....that explains it then, with the government shut down you couldn't get to your email...you have lost this particular battle sir, for the moment, but you are in danger of loosing the entire war and destroying all of us at the same time..pick your time and your battle but this is neither...


In Saudi Arabia, 4 men were sentenced to 10 years in prison and up to 2,000 lashes, for dancing naked on top of their car. I will be the first to admit that this would have been a very traumatizing thing to see, from what I understand the car was impounded and is seeking counseling, but it seems to me that, compared to say water boarding that this is a bit on the extreme side....
DOJ is refusing to let a book be published that exposes all the screw ups in the “Fast and Furious” operation that resulted in guns disappearing into the hands of Mexican drug lords and has resulted in many deaths including border patrol agents. The reason they give? “Because it would have a negative impact on morale” Really? Who's morale? Eric Holder the mastermind of this stupidity or the president who refuses to do anything about it? Seems to me that there is an extreme conflict of interest here....

Tinfoil Hat 2

Tinfoil Hat Time.


On Monday it was reported that various police departments around the country will be receiving,via government surplus, bomb proof, armored vehicles to help them “execute warrants and to fight crime.”When I went to Iraq we only had soft shelled hummers with sand bags at the bottom to protect us in a country where the bad guys planted roadside bombs everywhere. Exactly how many road side bombs or IED's are they really expecting to find? But I suppose the truth is is that they wanted an accessory that would match their tactical helmets and flak jackets and nothing says accessories like an armored vehicle.


On a bit of a lighter note, apparently McDonalds and Burger King are in a battle to see who can provide the healthiest form of junk food. It would seem that both of them have some sort of salad option and BK has introduced some sort of healthy french fry. A healthy french fry? I'm sorry but healthy and french fry just doesn't quite sing. Oh for the days of fast junk food where as soon as you looked at it your arteries would start to harden, salad... bah humbug...


Under the heading of “It's a part of American history and perhaps you should go read it.” The Virginia Flaggers Heritage group of Richmond, flew a rather large Confederate battle flag about 10 miles out side the city of Richmond over the weekend. Apparently there were some who criticized the group suggesting that the Confederate battle flag was nothing more than a symbol of bigotry and racism. The Flaggers, response to the criticism was that this is a part of our heritage and many of our ancestors fought and died under this BATTLE FLAG. This is a part of American history. Time to grow up and deal with it. Strange how no one tells the former confederate states that they should get rid of their individual state flags and unit flags that were there right beside the confederate battle flag.


On Tuesday the Energy Department hailed the Solyndra loan program a success. They went bankrupt. Not sure how that gets defined as a success but then we are talking a government agency associated with a fed that seems to think 17 trillion in the hole is a successful way to govern......


Normally I would say that the only dumb question is the one not asked.....Fox News had a question at the head of an article asking this; “Why won't Obama negotiate with republicans?” This can't be a serious question. ACA is his signature piece of legislation, if he compromises he is admitting to it having problems and he would rather sink the country then admit that there might be some issues, wouldn't want him to loose face or anything...


An 8 year old Florida boy was suspended from school for a day for the most heinous of violent crimes that I have ever heard of ( the words “violent crime” was used by school officials) he had the nerve, while playing cops and robbers with his friends, to point his finger at his friend and say bang! I understand that there was much trauma from this event, though the student were only really disturbed because he didn't use both his finger and thumb to make the proper gun.


Not to be out done; another school suspended several 7^th grade boys from school for using air soft guns. Did I mention that they were in their own front yard and not at school? They were waiting for the bus to come when the violence and mayhem ensued. Allegedly, the criminals, who have been suspended for the entire year, were actually shooting at targets that they had set up beside their house while waiting for the bus to come. Not sure if it was the bus driver or a passer by who reported the crime to school officials but the boys were immediately expelled from school for the year. Did I mention they were on their own property? Apparently the school administrator believes that his jurisdiction includes private property....I'll keep you updated as I hear more about it.


WW2 vets weren't slowed down by the government shutdown. Men who faced death in the line of duty didn't even bat an eye as they went to see the memorial dedicated to them. In probably one of the brighter moments of this mess, the park police allegedly helped remove the barricades and did not interfere.


Under the heading of “There are many things I would like to say but this is a family friendly article.”
While 800,000 government employees are put on to un-paid leave, veterans and senior citizens ,as well as others, may find themselves with no paycheck at the end of the month. But according to the 27^th amendment congress is still going to get paid. This situation, for those of you who are familiar with this term, is total FUBAR. They are the problem, not those of us who literally broke our asses protecting them. I can't even begin to come up with something amusing to say except if they are not careful the last laugh may be on them.


Postal Service defaults on 5.6 billion....another fine example of government spending....


Lawyers for the surviving Boston bomber have filed suit over his living conditions. Apparently he doesn't have any interaction with other prisoners and is not allowed to pray with other Muslims. Could it possibly have something to do with him “continuously trying to incite violent jihad.” according to prosecutors? The other complaint is that he is only let out to see his lawyers so I have a wonderful idea; lets bring in the victims of the bombing and let them interact with him for a while....in a locked room...with no windows or witnesses.....


Under the heading of “A picture says a thousand words” A picture circulating the internet shows the bottom half of a guard at the Lincoln Memorial and behind him, between his legs, is Lincoln on his seat. The title of this photo is “Obama’s America” no more needs to be said.


So today, in light of the budget disaster going on with congress, Mr. Obama hit the campaign trail. Apparently his staff has failed to notify him of his re election last November or to inform him he needs to lead now instead of running away every time Mr. Bohener looks at him cross eyed. If you want to win this fight Mr. President you really need to show up in the ring....

Tinfoil Hat Time: The after the weekend edition.

Tinfoil Hat Time: The after the weekend edition.


Mr. Obama during a speech on Thursday apparently blamed Fox News for the problems implementing Obama care. I am so confused; I thought that this administration didn't take Fox News very seriously? Didn't they even suggest that Fox didn't even really do news? It couldn't possibly be 20,000 pages of undecipherable regulations that even the originators of the law find confusing?


Along that same note he also stated that there was no evidence that the ACA was hurting businesses. Really? Setting aside those that I know who have small businesses who can't afford to hire because of the ACA, Investors Business Daily came out with a report on over 300 companies that have either laid off people or cut them back to part time employees. This report does not take into account medical institutions who have had to do the same, not to mention all the unions that are declaring that this is going to ruin both the 40 hour work week and the foundations of the middle class. When the unions, which at one time supported this are now against it, and major hospitals that once backed it are having to lay off or early retire 3000 employees it might be worth a second look before you implement it. Perhaps if they had read it in the first place we wouldn't be having this conversation....


Under the heading of “here we go again”, the republicans, in the house, passed another budget bill this time with an amendment delaying Obama care for a year....sigh....apparently they didn't get the memo that Harry Reid is going to kill it , again, in the senate and even if, by some miracle of the blessed virgin, it was to actually get through the senate, Mr. Obama has said that he will veto it. How about pass a budget and then fight over Obama care or, and I think this is a much better idea,just let Obama Care happen. If democrats are right and this is the greatest thing since apple pie then come the 1^st of January we should all be dealing with unicorns and rainbows and there will be great rejoicing in the streets and dems will win from now until eternity comes. If it isn't ,and the proverbial bat guano goes into massive rotation, then the republicans will be able to say “I told you so” and the dems can count on loosing elections for the foreseeable future. So in the words of Dirty Harry, and this is to both parties, “do you feel lucky?”


Under the category of “money not well spent” according to a Denver news report 600 grand was spent in an affluent neighbor hood to plant trees. This was federal money and didn't cost the wealthy folks a penny. Also senator Tom Coburn put out a list of federally funded programs that are wasteful such as “social media for apples,Wine tasting and a youtube clip for handling watermelons.” I am impressed. Nothing like knowing that apples are getting their own social media while grandma can't afford to buy them....


Under the category of “wait a minute you are against this idea..”
On Friday Eric Holder announced that the Obama administration was going to allow 45 million in funding for armed guards at schools. I keep waiting for the punch line....are these the same people who made fun of the NRA for suggesting that very thing.


Over the weekend a professor ,in Kansas, was suspended for a twitter basically chastising the head of the NRA and telling him that some day it could be him or his family mourning a shooting death. He made no threats so I am not sure how this is deserving of suspension. We either have a first amendment right to free speech or we don't. One question; where are those that would agree with him? Shouldn't the ACLU be screaming about his rights of free speech? How could it be that this redneck, gun loving, bible reading hick is the only one speaking up for his rights even when I disagree with him....


Under the category of “be careful who you date” Apparently some members of the NSA have been using their positions to spy on their lovers...I'm not even sure how to make fun of this one...hi I'm the perverted spy that your mother warned you about.....


The UN has decided that they are 95% certain that humans are responsible for climate change, suggesting that the earths temp has gone up approx. 1 degree Fahrenheit since 1950. Now I remember back in the 70's when we were being told that we were going to have another ice age by the 90's if we didn't clean up our act. Then it was global warming. The polar caps were melting, and Bermuda was going to sink under the rising waters, and their would be more fierce hurricanes...hasn't happened so now they have changed it to climate change, which is a fancy PC term meaning “ they have no idea what they are talking about they just want to tax you more” Anyone who lives in the North East understands that when you go from a parka to shorts and then back to a parka, all in a 12 hour period, THAT'S climate change. I think I'll just stick to the “Farmers Almanac” and my horoscope....



So that’s all for now. See you after we become the United Socialist States of America......

Tinfoil Hat Time

Today I am going to be starting a new type of blog. It will be called “My Tin Foil Hat” and will focus mostly on what I personally see as absurd or even down right humorous in politics. If it's nothing more than a dumb headline I plan to try and point out the humor or the silliness in it. I am not saying that any of it will be factual, I will simply be using what is provided by the MSM and other sources to mock what I see as being the massive amounts of insanity coming from DC and other black holes in the universe. Should you have something you want to share but don't have the time contact me and I will share it if it's legit. Be fore warned I am a libertarian that makes everyone fair game no matter the party or religious association. Let the games begin.


To start this I would like to congratulate Lois Lerner on her retirement from the IRS. I have to applaud her in just how well she understands the 5th amendment ,while ignoring the rest, and I rejoice in the knowledge that tea party taxes, as well as everyone else', will be paying her retirement. Well played Lois, well played indeed...


Under the category of "wasting our time" republicans in the house once again voted to defund Obama care only this time putting it in the temporary budget bill, knowing full well that the senate would kill it. Ted Cruz took up the challenge  in the senate and filibustered for 21 hours talking about Duck Dynasty and Dr. Seuss and swapping trivia with other senators. Now every time I watch Duck Dynasty I am going to see Cruz in a beard.....


John Kerry ,under the direction of President Obama, signed the UN arms treaty. So does that mean we are going to now stop supplying guns to drug cartels and rebels all over the world? Oh wait , it's not meant for the United States, unless your a law abiding American citizen, it's supposed to be for rogue nations who supply guns to terrorists....oh wait, never mind.......


The FDA spent over 182 thousand tax payer dollars to have a study done to “better understand social media” For about half of that I would been more than happy to explain it to them. OK so it's not funny but it is pathetic.


And in the “you got to be kidding” category. The FBI has determined that the Navy Yard killer was delusional. Really? I am so glad that we pay them as much as we do so that they can determine what all the rest of us already know.


The EPA has admitted that their new CO2 regulations,that will essentially prevent any new coal powered plants from ever being built, will have no effects on CO2 emissions or global warming. All righty then...


Apparently, at least according to a university of Maryland professor, it's legal to kill children in Florida ,referring to the Martin/Zimmerman case. So if I understand correctly a security guard, killing someone in a fight, while in fear of his own life constitutes open season on kids? Kind of strange how the killing of one person in Florida gets the top spot while 23 get killed in Chicago in two days. Oh yea I forgot it's not politically correct to point out minority against minority crime unless reverends Al and Jessie say it's OK.


Not to be out done that same professor also stated that there was a link between us rabid gun owners, gun manufactures, and pot smokers. “Radical factions of gun owners, gun manufactures, and marijuana users are challenging the very fabric of our nation...”
Apparently this man has never been around pot smokers. When you smoke pot, I wouldn't know this from any kind of personal experience ,just in case big brother is reading this, the only thing your “rabid” for is junk food. Given a choice between a Whoopie pie and a gun they are going to take the Whoopie pie.


And last, under the category of “you are just out of your freaking mind” A new drug here in the US called “Krokodil” has a nasty habit of making your skin green and scaly and eventually fall off around the injection sight. It's made up of a combination of Codeine and either, gas,turpentine,oil or alcohol. One question; why in the !#@$ would you want to inject anything in your system that contains gas? I am sure pot and a whoopie pie has to be a better way to go...


So there you have the first edition of silliness at it's finest. It may not be the funniest thing you read today but perhaps it will make you think about the absurdity out there.

Attacking Syria? Why?

So apparently I have been asleep at the switch for the last couple of years. Imagine my surprise when I finally found out just how dangerous Syria is to the US. I could never have imagined how a country so far away from us could be such a threat to our national sovereignty. I'm guessing that they are massing off the east coast, getting ready to invade? No? Then why are we bothering to get involved in their civil war? Why are we siding with Al-Qaida? I thought they were the bad guys. Oh ,I get it ,they are only the bad guys when it's convenient!

By the way, a thought kind of occurred to me, where is the actual proof of chemical attack by the Assad regime? Yes, we have pictures of bodies, but we don't know who did it. We have rebels ,who are trying to overthrow him, make the claim that he has done this but no actual proof that he is the one responsible. Now I understand that they have a panicked cell phone call from a commander demanding to know who did the attacking but still we have nothing but assumptions. It might have been the rebels trying to force our hand. It may be nothing more than a big set up. I am not saying that the man is some sort of saint but it seems to me that if you are going to risk starting WW3 you ought to have a bit more then he said, she said, going on.

It also seems to me that we are being just a bit on the arrogant side as well. Our leaders seem to be under some delusion that if we strike them that they, and their allies, won't strike back at us and our allies. Syria along with Iran, Iraq and I believe Lebanon, have already stated that they will attack Israel if we strike Syria. Russia and China, who are staunch supporters of the Syrian government are warning of dire consequences if we do this. I am not suggesting that we back down from any one but I am saying we don't need to get involved in another war there or anywhere else for that matter and this may get very ugly and out of control very quickly.

It's amazing to me that an administration that was so hard on Bush and his administrations lack of real proof on chemical weapons in Iraq is so eager to jump all over this. Saddam Hussein had used chemical weapons on his own people and the Iranians during their long war and the proof was out there but we did nothing about it until he threatened the middle east oil supply. What makes this attack so much different? Is it because Assad isn't an ally?

It's also amazing to me just how quiet the American public is. I remember hundreds of thousands of protesters marching and protesting in the US and around the world. I remember seeing pictures of Bush and Cheney with Hitler mustaches and slogans that went something to the effect, they lie and people die. Where are the protesters? Where is code pink? We have the potential of entering into one of the nastiest wars since Vietnam and I hear nothing but crickets.

Well ,I have spoken my piece ,and while I am saddened by the deaths of the Syrian people, I have an extreme hatred of war, I don't think it's our place to police the entire world and I believe that this one has the possibility of biting us back.

Peace Out.

No More

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This Is What America Could Be

“What we have here , in this neighborhood, is what America could be. Those words were said to me almost 30 years ago by an elderly black man in Detroit while he and I drank a beer on his front porch, talked and watched the neighbors pass by. I was there for a room mates wedding, as his best man, and this was the first time, away from a military base, that I witnessed such a diverse group of families all living near each other. He pointed to the house across the street and said to me; there lives an elderly woman ,that at the time of her moving here, had never met anyone who was black because the whole area was white. But as things changed she went with the flow and was now a good friend to him and his family. He then proceeded to point out various houses and people and tell me how all of them, ethnically speaking, were different and yet all of them had adjusted and everyone looked out for each other. He then repeated what he had said earlier about how all of America could be this way if we all chose it to be like this. This was a man old enough to have had grand parents that were slaves and yet he didn't focus on that instead he looked for the good.

This past weekend ,during an annual gathering in the north country, I was reminded of the truth of that once again. As I said in an earlier post I have a very diverse group of friends. For many of them, it goes way beyond friendship to being family.

Between rain drops and down pours, high winds and cold, we managed to have a couple of bon fires, lots of food and beverage. Some of the kids were even crazy enough to get into the water even though the air temperature was about 60-65. We had a good time.

But it's really the people involved that made this a good time.

This group consisted of black, white and Hispanic. We are a group from three states and two countries. We are a group of people who are liberal, conservative and libertarian. We have folks that are Christian, others that are close to being atheists, and some of us who practice Reform Judaism. We are a group who has everything from small children to elderly and handicapped. We are from Brooklyn, From the coast of Maine, Vermont and Ontario. We discussed everything from politics to religion and conspiracy theories. We laughed ,we joked, and we remembered days and times gone by. We talked about issues that the politically correct would say we couldn't and yet there was no anger no finger pointing or accusations, why? Because what we have is love and respect.

It's not that we agree on everything,we don't by any stretch, but we don't spend our time arguing over it we instead listen to each others perspective and views and generally speak to each other in a civilized manner. Notice I didn't suggest we don't do a bit of teasing and having some fun with it but we don't do it in a bitter and angry sort of way.

That is part of my reason for not understanding some of the so called “leaders” out there on either sides of the aisle, who scream and rant and rage, particularly when it comes to race. I am never quite sure what it is they hope to accomplish by making racially loaded comments. I could sit here and name names, but most of you already know the people I am talking about. So why is it then, if the average American can have friends and family that are from all races and walks of life, that people like these “leaders” are even listened to any more? They don't seem to understand that the real problem is the breakdown of the family and this is an issue facing all communities whether it's in the inner cities or in rural towns. This is not an issue that is just facing one race, it's affecting all races. This progressive idea of marginalizing men as being an unimportant part of the family structure has led to fathers skipping out on their responsibilities. At one time being a teen age mom would have been a scandal, now they make reality shows out of it and pay these girls to keep at it. Parents are not taking the responsibility for their kids and disciplining them when they need it, instead listening to those other so called experts who suggest that disciplining your children will do them more harm then good and then wondering why their kids are doing just about anything they wish and they are making the parents afraid. To make it worse we have Hollywood glorifying all of it.

You want to end all of this? Quit talking and start acting. Teach your children responsibility for their own actions and respect for others. Teach them love and not hate. They are your children if you don't stand up and do it who will? The government isn't going to do it and Holly wood glorifies all that is wrong so it all rests on you and me.

My children don't hate and neither do the children of my friends. We have all taught our children love and respect for others and themselves and we demonstrate that when we all get together. It can happen if you try and,as the elderly gentleman said to me all those years ago, this is what America could be.

The Story Of Uncle Iggy

This is a story about uncle Iggy. This is also a true and scary story of how uncle Iggy became a zombie. This is also a story on how uncle Iggy got away from being a zombie only to be attacked from a different direction by those who made him a zombie in the first place. So fill up your coffee mug get comfortable make sure you have your teddy bear and a warm blankie to keep you safe and I will present to you a modern day medical horror story.

A brief note: To the government agencies who are likely spying : Greetings! To the rest of you who are reading this I am not even beginning to tell you to stop taking meds or to ignore your doctor. I am giving you the story of uncle Iggy's decisions. Secondly while I may sound a bit tough on the doctors, the problem is not so much them, it's the fact that there are too few to go around and so they have to do things much quicker than they might actually like, having said that there is still no reason to be rude to a patient. End of Note.

Chapter One: In the beginning.......Isn't that a lovely way to start a story? Sounds almost biblical.....

There was a quiet humble man named Iggy, OK that’s not quite true because Iggy is a Marine and there is nothing humble about a Marine in full plumage. Iggy is a family man with a wonderful wife,gorgeous, intelligent, ( yes she is reading this) and crazy enough to put up with uncle Iggy. He has three children, one who is grown and gone and two at home that fearfully remember the days of him being a zombie. Some clarification, his wife was working in those days so the two youngest ate a lot of tuna and mac, NOT because he tried to eat them ,or anything quite that weird. They all lived happily ever after.....oops getting ahead of myself.....they all lived in Vermont just before the turn of the century,( I have always wanted to write that phrase), and all was well until Iggy got the bright idea to go back into the Marines. In all fairness that was prompted by a sudden lack of employment and a certain need to eat and see to it that the family had clothes and what not because ,as liberal as Vermont is, they still don't let you wander around naked, though if you do it in the winter they might just let it go just for the entertainment factor. So at the advanced age of mid thirties Iggy put on his nations uniform once again and took his family off to a new adventure in foreign lands such as California and North Carolina and all was well for a while.

Chapter Two: The attacks of 9/1/1

Leaving all humor for the moment, the attacks literally and figuratively rocked the world. Uncle Iggy's work load, as a platoon Sgt., tripled and as a result he became very sick, spent quite a bit of time in the hospital, and started the first of many medications. Things were not good. The government made sure that he was just well enough to send off to war and, just to make sure that he was really well protected, gave him various vaccinations, none of which had been actually approved by the FDA, and some of which he had had as a child, and sent him off to play in the biggest kitty litter box in the world. Spring break 2003 was about to start! They failed to mention that the “vaccinations” had side effects and possible complications. Uncle Iggy was not aware of any of this at the time he just knew that he hadn’t felt well since they had given them to him but being a good new zombie he didn't question it until several years later.

Chapter Three: War is hell but drugs are great!

Uncle Iggy, as you can Imagine, came back from war a very different man. Setting aside injuries and illness, he had to spend his time remembering all that he had seen and experienced and deal with a population of people who treated him like he was from Mars. In all fairness those who really mattered still treated him well, but having returned back to Vermont it really wasn't in his best interest to tell anyone that he had gone to war because the good and peaceful anti war demonstrators had already demonstrated just how much they loved military people by attacking national guard troops in uniform and ripping up flags. He didn't sleep much because of the rather intense nightmares and there really being no one that he could talk to that would understand. So uncle Iggy, as many veterans do, checked into the VA healthcare system and the zombification started in earnest. After going through a battery of physical and mental exams it was determined that what he needed was lots of drugs and that would take him to happy land where there were rainbows and unicorns. I know this to be a real place because the gummy bears told me so. Iggy, being rather tired and in pain, also being curious about unicorns and talking gummy bears,complied.

He had so many medications going at the same time that to this day he can't remember them all. He had meds for pain, for arthritis, to help him sleep, for stress, (there were several of those) and for various side effects that came along with the all drugs. It was total Zombie time. Uncle Iggy doesn't really remember a lot about went on at that time because he was so highly medicated but he did manage to pack on 50 lbs and his children got to learn about various combos of mac and tuna. His wife will tell you that his days were basically simple; He would get up have some coffee take his meds and by 10 am would be sound asleep on the couch. He would wake up just before she had to go to work and kind of muddle through the rest of the afternoon and almost be human just about the time to take another dose and go to bed. Now granted he wasn't a true zombie in that he didn't go out and eat brains, he didn't even know where his own were never mind having the ambition to go looking for any others, but his life was just about as close as you could come to it with out Will Smith showing up at the door to try and cure him.

Chapter Four: The wife intervenes and there is less zombie.

Uncle Iggys' children were finally saved by their mother. She somehow got through to that muddled, zombified mind that the children needed to eat something more than tuna and mac and that he needed to get off the meds and try something different. He listened. Out went the drugs, in came herbs and other more holistic remedies, and the zombification process stopped. I would love to tell you that the nightmares had all gone away along with the pain and illnesses, but life is rarely that kind to people, and so you have to make a serious choice, either live with what your dealt or live as a zombie, granted the zombie world did have unicorns and rainbows, but instead he chose to deal with it. Unknown to Uncle Iggy or his wife was that the next wave of zombification was about to begin

Chapter Five: The disease zombification.

Fast forward a few years and we find uncle Iggy getting better. He still has his aches and pains and still has to deal with the nightmares, though less frequently, and from time to time his magical mystery disease lays him out for a bit but over all he is doing better. He has tried to stay away from the VA as much as possible, opting instead for local witch doctors if at all possible while still going to the VA whenever absolutely needed. I am guessing that they don't really like that when you do this and that they must keep track of your absence because, in the words of uncle Iggy, “ when you do go to see them they seem to go out of their collective way to find something wrong with you, beyond what is already there.” The proof? New diseases coming out of literally no where. About 2 years ago uncle Iggy went in for his annual visit to the VA, it used to be every few months then six months and now it's usually about a year, got to love that government health care ( you knew I was going to say that somewhere) and in the course of things they did blood work on him. This was not a “fasting” batch of blood work, no this was right after a meal and after a rather interesting weekend of bonfires, food and beverage. Yet when it was done, even after he had told them of his maniacal weekend, they still listed it as fasting. Amazingly enough the blood sugar level was normal but they decided that there was something troubling about the liver enzymes and suggested that perhaps there was some kind of liver disease going on and that they needed to do more tests. Panic ensued ,the unicorns ran away and the rainbows faded. This is where the new attempt at zombification began.

Chapter Six: What the bleep is going on?

So now uncle Iggy is concerned. Who wouldn't be? You can't live with out your liver and so ,as you can imagine, he worried. For several weeks he got to sit and stew over what might be wrong and his views of worse case scenarios made the movie 2012 look like a quiet stroll on a Sunday afternoon. Finally the time for the new round of testing arrives, an MRI, but before they can begin he has to have his blood pressure taken and more blood work. His blood pressure is through the roof so much so that they decide that the one med he is taking for “hypertension” is not enough and he needs to take another one along with it. Uncle Iggy is damn near in panic mode at this point because he is watching his body fall apart. If you had told him that his ears were going to fall off next he wouldn't have been surprised.

They ran the next set of tests on the liver and send him home and when the new med arrived, for the blood pressure, he eagerly took it thinking that the doc prescribed it and so therefore it must be necessary. Please keep in mind, dear reader, that uncle Iggy has no desire to die and wants to live to see his great ,great grandchildren so with that in mind he started taking the medication. It was a mistake but he didn't figure that out until just recently. Going back to the liver issue for just a moment, it turned out that uncle Iggy has a much larger liver than the average person and that it was perfectly fine, the enzymes were nothing more than a result of it's unusual size.

Chapter Seven: Another attempt.

Uncle Iggy was in trouble. Unbeknownst to him the newest zombie attack attempt had already started but he didn't see the warning signs. I suppose his first clue should have been the severe urge to wander around aimlessly and eat people brains but he seemed to miss that part and the part that showed he was gaining a lot of weight back that he had previously lost. Enter another blood test. This time it was for a arthritis clinic so there was no fasting needed however they treated it as such and out of no where suddenly uncle Iggy was now a diabetic because the blood glucose reading was high. Now just imagine if Uncle Iggy had a wife who was any less beautiful and intelligent, yes she is reading this, and who didn't have a memory that a computer would envy. He had forgotten the fact that they had eaten lunch just before that set of tests and might have been suckered in completely. As it was he was concerned enough so that when the new med came to try to lower the blood sugar he took it. It caused him severe headaches. That’s when his beautiful, intelligent wife remembered that they had eaten before the test so rather then going back to the VA for a med for the headaches he stopped taking the med and went herbal again. Meanwhile the weight gain was continuing.

Chapter Eight. It's all my fault?

Uncle Iggy wound up moving to another state and had to go to a new VA and was assigned a new doctor. O gentle reader please understand this is an example of government run health care at it's finest, while they may share information they don't actually READ the information. So rather then ask Iggy what had changed that might be the cause of the a fore mentioned weight gain, or checking to see if perhaps the medication might be having an adverse reaction, he immediately decided that Uncle Iggy must be sucking down copious amounts of Twinkies and Mountain Dew, which admittedly has it's appeal, though Uncle Iggy is more of an ice cream kind of guy, but if he had been doing that he would have literally been seeing the rainbows and unicorns mentioned earlier from a caffeine and sugar overdose. And so the doctor proceeded to chew Iggy out for gaining weight and suggested that if he wanted to get off of meds that he needed to change his ways and he wanted more blood work to be done to prove that uncle Iggy was indeed diabetic. He also upped the dosage in the newest med. So basically without checking all factors the doctor assumed and suggested that all the gain was nothing more than his fault. Upon leaving Uncle Iggy was furious. It not good to tick off uncle Iggy not to mention his wife.

Chapter Nine: Vindication

Upon arriving at their illustrious mansion uncle Iggy and his intelligent ( did I mention she is beautiful as well?) wife started to research the meds that he was on and low and behold they can cause weight gain and cause a rise in your blood sugar levels! Even better, when mixed with the diabetic medicine they wanted to give to him, it would cause all sorts of other adverse effects such as massive headaches! Now to me this is an amazing thing that two low educated people who are not being paid to research these things can find this information in short order, while the paid professionals can't or won't. So uncle Iggy stopped taking that medication as well and not only has he lost some of the weight that he had gained, it's only been a few weeks after all,the lab results came back and showed that there was nothing wrong with the blood sugar levels or enzymes or anything else of a blood work type nature. Vindication.

There is a moral behind this story, and it is rather simple: question everything. Don't assume that because you are dealing with a doctor, especially one being paid by the government, that they have your best interest in mind or that they know everything. Many of them do, many of them are good and honest people but it seems that the VA ( government run) has a highly disproportionate amount of doctors that treat you like you are nothing but a number and just try to hurry you through so they can get to the next patient. Second thing though, especially if your a doctor, make sure your patient doesn't write blogs, especially if you intend to insult them or belittle them in any way with out checking all the facts, because we will tell and loudly.

The end has come, my point has been made...

Off and on over the last 6 months or so I have considered dis-continuing to write "Simple Minded" and have finally decided that this will be my last post. My reasoning for it is as simple as I have tried to make this blog. First and foremost the points that I have been trying to make, our government becoming corrupted and seriously violating or ignoring the Constitution, has been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.  You would have to be living under a rock or on another planet to not see it ,yet it would seem, that most Americans are OK with all of this, not necessarily those of you who read this, but it would seem that with a serious apathetic     and sheep like attitude the vast majority of Americans simply don't care or they believe the lie that we have to sacrifice our freedom for safety ,which has been the siren call of all dictators for centuries. So as such I feel that I am wasting my time in the effort to wake people up. Obviously most of you who read this humble blog are on the same page with me or you wouldn't bother, unless your the NSA that is, and there are not many of you still reading, so I will leave you to other patriots who perhaps have more knowledge than myself with the same amount of passion.
My second reason is that I want to focus more on spiritual matters in my other blog " His Quiet Voice" because even though I like politics, as I have said before, my argument has been made for me by the government and there is little more that I could add, but also because it has been burning me out to the point of missing the things of the spirit which are by far of more importance.
Simply put; I can do little to nothing to stop the corruption that is going on in this world and in our government. There is no president , king,  or politician that can, or will even try, to stop it until the time of the Messiah has come and God has set His kingdom up on this earth. So His kingdom is where I will put my hope and trust and leave the politics to others.
Shalom.

Treason and Mr. Snowden

It is amazing to me how things in politics can change in such a short period of time. Not long ago the focus was all on the fact of the government spying on us in various ways or using agencies to screen or target various groups depending on their political affiliation. Today we seem to have forgotten that the government is the actual bad guy doing the spying on us and are now focused on the messenger.

Mr. Snowden is no saint, of that I am quite sure, but he is no criminal either. He told the truth to the American people; we are indeed being spied on by our own government. That’s the message plain and simple. What was his crime? What makes him any different then others who have been saying the same things for years, including myself, other then he had actual written proof?

Consider that the very people who are accusing him of treason are the same people who frequently violate the constitution that they are sworn to uphold and protect and refuse to play by the same rules that they lay out for the rest of us. So what is their real problem? They got caught with their trousers down and by getting caught they are afraid of losing some of the power they have been slowly grabbing over the past 15 years or so.

Now that they have charged him with treason lets consider what it actually means to commit treason. Websters dictionary describes it as such: The offense of attempting by overt acts to overthrow the government of the state to which the offender owes allegiance or to kill or personally injure the sovereign or the sovereign's family also the betrayal of trust as in treachery.

The “ Concise Encyclopedia” says this: Offense of attempting to overthrow the government of one's country or of assisting its enemies in war. In the U.S., the framers of the Constitution defined treason narrowly—as the levying of war against the U.S. or the giving of aid and comfort to its enemies—in order to lessen the possibility that those in power might falsely or loosely charge their political opponents with treason.

So this brings up a whole host of questions. What country was he trying to overthrow? What sovereign was he trying to kill? What enemies of the the US was he assisting? If you answer the third question logically you can only assume,based on this definition, that we are the enemies in question because we were the ones that were informed. I suppose it could be argued that he aided the Brits, well OK it was a British news paper, but he told them none the less, yet last I knew we are allies and we haven't been at war with them since the war of 1812, maybe I missed the enemy memo.

What did he say that would actually surprise our enemies? They had to have known this was going on already, the only way the couldn't have would have been to be using nothing more than smoke signals and beating drums. Yet last time I looked if you wanted to know something you didn't have to go any further than CNN. Just before I was deployed to Kuwait and then to Iraq, after being told that we couldn't tell anyone, CNN reported that 7,000 Marines were leaving Camp LeJeune heading for Kuwait. When I called a very dear friend of mine to say good bye they already knew. In the electronic age you cannot anything for very long.

It has been said by some that he should return to the US to face the charges, that he should make his case in court. Do you honestly think that it would happen? Do you really think he wouldn't just disappear? He is an American citizen in an America that now allows it's own citizens to be indefinitely detained, by the military, without any charges ever being filed ,where American citizens can be killed with impunity based on the presidents judgment with out charges or trial. Where the federal government will use the power that it has to investigate you if you openly speak against the president and his policies. If he is smart he will stay away as long as he can.

So what did he say that really surprised anyone? Nothing. As I said before; in this electronic age with global communications there is no way you can hide things for long. Many people having been trying to tell Americans that this has been going on for years and most have either ignored it, thought we were nothing but tin foil hat types, or have embraced it.

The only thing that happened is that they got caught. They are embarrassed and Mr. Snowden has become the latest scape goat. Rather than focus on the message they have distracted everyone with the messenger.

Summer Tin Foil Hat Time

Start tin foil transmission. Various quotes come from AP, CNN,FOX, and The Washington Post and my own screwed up mind. I don't take any credit for the reports just my own.
Politicians must love the summer. With summer officially only two days away many of the news items that have been running amok in the press will likely go away as we all head out to do our favorite things, I call them the three “B's” you know beer ,BBQ , and beach. The hard fought battles and scandals of the winter and spring will go away and upon your return to the political world it will begin the election 2014 season. Gone will be the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi, gone will be the IRS targeting conservative groups. Missing will be the AG office snooping on the press as well NSA spying on all of us. Missing in action will be all those commentaries from people in DC who support spying on us in violation of the 4^th pesky amendment. Summer and holidays have a way of cauterizing our political wounds and making us forgetful as we doze in the warmth.
So as you head off to your vacations, if you can afford one any how, just remember some of us tin foil hat types will be here trying to keep things in order for you so upon your return you can be reminded of what is real, not the illusion of whats real.
In the mean time here are just a few thoughts to start your summer with.
How many of you remember the whole sequestration issue? I know its been months now and we Americans have a really short memory but it seems to me that if there is such a budget crisis,as we have been lead to believe, then there is something dreadfully wrong here. The president and his family are going to spend up wards of 100 million dollars to go to Africa for a week or so. Excuse me? They can spend all that money on “vacation” while Walter Reed has to furlough people with out pay.
“President Obama’s trip this month to Africa, with the first family tagging along, is projected to cost taxpayers as much as $100 million, sparking criticism as the federal government scrimps along during sequester-related budget cuts.”
“Among the related costs will be fighter jets; hundreds of Secret Service agents; a Navy ship with a full trauma center; and military cargo planes to bring 56 vehicles including 14 limousines and three trucks loaded with sheets of bullet proof glass to cover the windows of the hotels where the first family will stay.
The details were reported by The Washington Post, based on a confidential planning document.”
So while they are enjoying Africa on your dime and with a supposed budget crisis going on:

“Thousands of civilian workers at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center -- the country’s top facility for wounded combat soldiers -- are facing furloughs this summer, as a result of sequester and other federal budget problems, according to the Defense Department.

Roughly 2,400 workers at the suburban Washington facility were recently notified by letter that the department needs them to take off as many as 11 days without pay this summer to help with “extraordinary and serious budgets challenges.” Fox News
If that doesn't set sparks flying from your tinfoil hat maybe this might. Again ,remember the sequester, but also consider that this agency targeted political groups that are conservative and while you might hate conservative groups consider if they target them they may come after yours when the political winds finally change as they historically do.

“The Internal Revenue Service is about to pay $70 million in employee bonuses despite an Obama administration directive to cancel discretionary bonuses because of automatic spending cuts enacted this year, according to a GOP senator.

Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa says his office has learned that the IRS is executing an agreement with the employees' union on Wednesday to pay the bonuses. Grassley says the bonuses should be canceled under an April directive from the White House budget office.”
The timing of all this is wonderful waiting until tax day is done and most people minds are focused on summer vacations and aren't really paying attention.
And last, at least for today, in the “violate the constitution”section we have worded proof that our elected officials from the president on down really don't believe in the constitution that they are sworn to uphold.

“The center lives. Bipartisanship is not dead, as Democratic and Republican congressional leaders rally around the National Security Agency's big data grab. With the exception of op-ed writers, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Pauls — Rand and Ron — Washington's establishment is standing together with the administration. In this scrum, party is secondary, at least on Capitol Hill. In a show of unity virtually unseen since 9/11, the congressional leadership has come out unanimously in support of the status quo, while deflecting allegations that The Guardian's news story was actually news.”

Now I agree with them on one part of it; it's really not news. Many have known about it for years and have warned long and loud about it. Now it's in your face and can't be ignored. It is also no real news that those whom we have elected don't really care about it as long as they can keep their power.

So just keep in mind as you go out to enjoy the summer months that your government is thinking about you and quite literally watching you, and while you can't get into a federal preserve or do a White House tour because of the sequestration or because you can't afford a vacation just think of the president and his family while they are enjoying Africa on your dime.

End of tin foil transmission.

Lessons from an old Marine

Here is the simplified version of what is going on in DC via an illustration from and old Marine I once served under.

An old Sgt.Major that I had back in the dark ages described honesty and integrity like this; Honesty and integrity means that I can drop my wallet full of cash and credit cards along with my ID on the parade deck and after a weekend of liberty either finding it where I dropped it with everything still in it or finding it in the duty office where some Marine brought it to after finding it on the deck. Either way all the money, credit cards and ID are still in it and no harm has been done. Simply put honesty and integrity is doing what is right even when no one is looking or even if what is right is not popular.

With all that’s been going on in the government, they would have picked up his wallet, took all the money, traced his credit history with his credit cards, used his ID to look him up on Google and Face Book to see what he was saying on line. Then check his social security number for tax evasion or to see if he had health insurance and fine him if not. If he had dropped a cell phone as well they would be looking at his text messages and who he was talking to. In the end his only crime would prove to be that he dropped his wallet and phone. They would tell him, if they were caught that is, that it was for his security and safety and he had nothing to hide so why be concerned. This is the complete opposite of honesty and integrity.

This is a very simplistic way to look at the ongoing problems in Washington but sometimes simply put is whats needed when we hear little more than talking points or political speech.

This isn't a partisan issue. There have been both democrats and republicans who seem to have little to no problem with the NSA, FBI, CIA (pick your agency) spying on American citizens. We have a president who says he “welcomes the debate” what debate? This has been done with out our knowledge or consent and is in clear violation of the 4^th amendment. There is no debate to be had.

Honesty and integrity; doing whats right when no one is looking. The government has failed and now we are all looking.

Verizon Users vs the Government.

So all of you who use Verizon feeling pretty good right now? Perhaps you don't know yet? The National Security Agency, the NSA for short, has all of your phone records! That puts you in the company of Fox News and the AP! Doesn't that just give you warm fuzzies?! Especially for those of you who love this current administration. I know that Bush and company started all this madness with the “Patriot Act” but I thought your man and his administration was going to be “ the most transparent administration ever.” I thought that he was going to get rid of all the evil done under the republicans and restore our freedoms and liberties and improve our standing in the world. Did I miss the memo changing things? When was it that we became the Soviet Union?

Here is a question for you to ponder. If they have gotten to Verizon, this is for those of us who don't use their services, what makes you think that they don't have the records of all our carriers? They had them from just about all the carriers back during the Bush era ,thanks to provisions made in the Patriot Act, so why wouldn't Obama and company do the same?

I suppose though that this is just another one of those times where it doesn't really matter to most Americans. You have nothing to hide and you should always expect that your personal information to be public, forget about that pesky 4^th amendment that foolishly says”The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” Of course they didn't have cell phones in those days,the founding fathers could never have imagined such things but just like modern guns, which they couldn't have imagined either,we should expect our liberties to be curtailed for the good of all, but hey this is all perfectly acceptable under the Patriot Act and has been going on for years according to Senators Fienstein and Chambliss the top Democrat and Republican on the Senate Select Committee On Intelligence. They insist that only the Metadata is being collected ,not the actual conversations, and can't be used unless FISA approves. This coming from the same people who tried to tell us that the TSA couldn't keep records of people going through the scanners. Right, we know how that turned out.

Look I am a simple minded person, hence the name of this blog, I get it that there are bad guys out there planning evil things but the idea of the 4^th amendment is that you target very specific people and things not everyone and everything. This isn't about democrat vs republican because both parties are complicit in allowing this to go on, this is about your fundamental rights being violated by a government that is way out of control and one that frequently,in the last 13 years or so, does so quite openly and blatantly.

Maybe I'm the one that’s out of touch with reality. Perhaps everyone really doesn't mind the government monitoring everything that they do constantly, I do but I suppose I am too simple Minded to understand why others are OK with it.