HOW MANY DOGS DOES IT TAKE?

I found this on the net. Cats don't DO lightbulbs. LOL

Golden Retriever: The sun is shining, the day is young, we've got our whole lives ahead of us, and you're inside worrying about a stupid burned out bulb?

Border Collie: Just one. And then I'll replace any wiring that's not up to code.

Dachshund: You know I can't reach that stupid lamp!

Rottweiler: Make me.

Boxer: Who cares? I can still play with my squeaky toys in the dark.

Lab: Oh, me, me!!!!! Pleeeeeeeeeze let me change the light bulb! Can I? Can I? Huh? Huh? Huh? Can I? Pleeeeeeeeeze, please, please, please! (About that Labrador. As my BIL's lab Dutch started pushing ten he was still happy to go hunting. He just wasn't all that happy about retrieving. Especially on really cold mornings. He developed a talent for finding the shortest route to the duck or goose. And after a certain point it was "you shot it; you go get it."

German Shepherd: I'll change it as soon as I've led these people from the dark, check to make sure I haven't missed any, and make just one more perimeter patrol to see that no one has tried to take advantage of the situation.

Jack Russell Terrier: I'll just pop it in while I'm bouncing off the walls and furniture.

Old English Sheep Dog: Light bulb? I'm sorry, but I don't see a light bulb?

Cocker Spaniel: Why change it? I can still pee on the carpet in the dark.

Chihuahua: Yoquiero Taco Bulb.

Pointer: I see it, there it is, there it is, right there ...

Greyhound: It isn't moving. Who cares?

Australian Shepherd: First, I'll put all the light bulbs in a little circle ...

Poodle: I'll just blow in the Border Collie's ear and he'll do it. By the time he finishes rewiring the house, my nails will be dry.

The Cat's Answer:
"Dogs do not change light bulbs. People change light bulbs. So, the real question is: How long will it be before I can expect some light, some dinner, and a massage?"

ALL OF WHICH PROVES, ONCE AGAIN, THAT WHILE DOGS HAVE MASTERS, CATS HAVE STAFF.

PET PEEVE

This is an example of one of my favorite pet peeves. (although in this case everything on the website makes it painfully obvious where this group is coming from) The continual use of the word Christian as if it describes an individual denomination not the big tent that it really is. That tent that covers groups from Old Order Amish to Unitarian Universalists. We've got Methodists, Presbyterians, nearly a dozen flavors of Baptists, Roman Catholics, other Catholics, Eastern Orthodox and groups that call themselves non denominational. Whatever that really means. It seems to mean just about anything the "pastor" of that particular group says it means.

You name it we got it. There are I don't know how many variations on Bible translations.

So, when you're using your faith as an excuse to do whatever it is that bigots do and claiming that you're protected by your "freedom of religion" let us know what flavor of the month your are. It'll save us all a lot of time.

KITTENS

He's nothing much but fur
And two round eyes of blue,...
He has a giant purr
And a midget mew.

He darts and pats the air,
He starts and cocks his ear,
When there is nothing there
For him to see and hear.

He runs around in rings,
But why we cannot tell;
With sideways leaps he springs
At things invisible -

Then half-way through a leap
His startled eyeballs close,
And he drops off to sleep

With one paw on his nose.

Got this shot and the poem off Crazy Cat Ladies. I watched Midge do the same things. And she still gets the rips. She's a big girl now, but she still seems to hear and see things that we don't. She is a little noiser when she goes ripping through the house. 

TOO BAD LIARS PANTS DON'T REALLY CATCH FIRE

Or you wouldn't be able to smell the roasting turkeys over the aroma of the toasted behinds of the bless me if I know what to call them. Teapublican idgets? Hopeless dittoheads? Although to be honest I'm not sure the great RL has picked this up yet.

Back in the W era plans were made to shift our embassy TO the Vatican to buildings next to our embassy to Italy. Buildings were purchased. Refurbishing started. The buildings have their own entrance on a different street and the move is scheduled to be completed by sometime in 2015. Pay special attention to the word "to." No country actually has an embassy within Vatican City. At about one square mile there isn't space. So all the embassies are in the city of Rome. That being the case the right wing has exploded with claims that the president is closing the embassy, not moving it. 

However the wingnuts finally twigged to events that have been unfolding for several years and you can imagine the outcry. Including a blog entry from someone known as Father Z. If he really is a priest I can't imagine that lying is at the top of the list of "good things I did today." Better head for that confessional ASAP. That's the only actual link to the nutcases I'm putting in besides the Think Progress link I have no desire to pump up their click numbers for their ads. I'm certainly not checking Wing Nuts Daily, oops they're officially knows as World Net Daily but I like my title better.

To be honest I'm waiting for somebody to accuse the president of being a Devil Worshiper. At his point I think that's the only thing he HASN'T been accused of. Add it to the litany of Marxist, Socialist, Communist, Atheist, Muslim,. Fascist, Nazi and gay. I not only feel sorry for this president but for whoever comes next. The atmosphere is so polluted with anger, lies and hate I'm not sure how we can even begin to clear it.

Oddly enough, this dovetails with my dragging my copy of Old Testament Wisdom off the shelf and actually reading it. I'm on the chapter of Proverbs. I'm not sure how the old sages would cope with our modern communications system. Truth may still be Truth but thanks to the internet the lies have circled the planet seven times before Truth even gets out the door.

HERE'S TO THE LADIES

From a picture on Facebook. You’ll look at reindeer in a whole new light. And the only one who really needs her name changed is Rudolph. LOL

“According to the Alaska Department of fish and Game, while both male and female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year, male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, usually late November to mid December. Female reindeer however retain their antlers until after they give birth n the spring. Therefore, according to every historical rendition depicting Santa’s reindeer, every single one of them, from Rudolph to Blitzen…..had to be a female. We should have known this….Only women would be able to drag a fat man in a red velvet suit all around the world in one night, and not get lost.”

So when we raise our eggnogs and Irish Coffees in salute of Holiday Cheer ‘here’s to the ladies the saviors of Christmas.”

I ONLY MAKE $172,000 A YEAR

The laments of a millionaire member of the house from the state of Georgia. After all there are lobbyists out there that are making a half million a year. "I'm under paid."

Frankly I don't know whether to laugh or cry. He apparently spent one hundred and twenty six days on the floor of the house in the last year. That works out to more than $1,300.00 per day. And to pick up on what that gal who works for McDonalds and hasn't gotten a raise in years. Basically is was "quit your bitchin'. You knew what the pay was when you took the job." Well, Rep. Gingrey. You knew what the pay was before you ran for the job. Either shut up or step aside and let someone else take your seat. Hopefully someone who will work for the people who pay your bills.

IMAGINE THE RIGHT'S RELIGION IF YOU CAN STOMACH IT

Imagine their religion, imagine it if you can. 

I grew up attending a Methodist church so liberal (or disconnected, I’m not sure which) we didn’t do Lent. We didn’t do advent. And to be honest the verses chosen for the readings did make any sense at all. Perhaps I’m attracted to silent meeting for worship Quakers because I can count on one hand the sermons that I didn’t want to sleep through. Deep breathing and the frequent repetition of “Om’” helps a lot.

Liturgy? What the heck is liturgy? I stumbled over the idea of liturgy reading In This House of Brede of all places. I can’t help smiling over the whoop ti do over the so called War on Christmas. Christmas? Christ’s Mass? Protestants getting hot under the collar over a piece of Papist liturgy.

Rumor has it that the emperor Constantine had some input in placing the celebration of Christ’s birth around the time of the Solstice since it coincided with the celebration of the  God Mithra. And the Solstice has been a time of celebration of the return of the sun for generations.

Working around that date the retelling of the story of Jesus ministry became the liturgy. Until Gutenberg  printed the first Bible they were handwritten and rare. Even if the members of a congregation could find a Bible they probably couldn’t read it. And it was a reinforcement for those who were recent converts. Willing or otherwise. Every year the story is retold from Advent to Pentecost.

Easter has to coincide with Passover and the stories told about what came after. I’m willing to bet that priest’s celebrating what was then the Twelve Days of Christmas knew darn well that it wasn’t Jesus birthday. The date wasn’t what was important.

Many of my Puritan ancestors didn’t celebrate Christmas. There were two sacraments. Baptism and communion. The rest was Popish folderol. My Quaker ancestors didn’t either. Every day was sacred, filled with the spirit. They didn’t distinguish one day from the other.

Check out websites on the net. The same denominations most of these fundies belong to still equate the Catholic church with Babylon and the Pope with Antichrist. That’s what makes all the sound and fury signifying nothing such a mystery for me. 

FIFTEEN THINGS JESUS DIDN'T SAY

but a lot of folks think He did. Maybe except the tax exempt status. They didn't have those 501 (c) 3's in the Roman Empire.  Got this off the net. There some other good entries too.

15 things Jesus Didn’t Say:

“For God was so disgusted with the world and you that he gave his one and only Son.”

“I have come to bring you a new religion.”

“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have correct theology.”

“If anyone would come after me, let him disparage all other religions and their followers.”

“If you love me, you will regularly attend a church of your choice… within reason.”

“Blessed are the tithers for they shall be called the children of God.”

“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in Heaven after the earth goes up in flames and destroyed.”

“You have heard it said, ‘Love your neighbor,’ which means the people with whom you attend church and      relate to in your Christian sub-culture.”

“In my Father’s house there are a limited number of rooms. But no worries, there is plenty of room in Hell.”

“The kingdom of God has come!… Well, not exactly. I mean, not completely. Let’s face it, the really-real  kingdom comes after we die. Hang in there. It won’t be long.”

“And you will know the truth and the truth will make you superior to all the other simpletons who never  learned Greek or Hebrew.”

“You are the light of the world… well… in a sinful-filthy-scum kind of way.”

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you a checklist of things to do and not do  in order to remain in God’s favor.”

“For God so loved the world… you know like theoretically… as in, God loves the big ‘W’-world. But when  it come to you specifically, that are quite a few things that would need to change for God to actually and  specifically love… or even like… YOU.”

“He appeared to his disciples over a period of 40 days and spoke about how to incorporate his life and  teaching as a 501(c)3, and go into all the earth to build mega-churches in his name.”


- Jim Palmer. Notes from (Over) the Edge

DREAMS OR NIGHTMARES

This weekend is the fiftieth anniversary of death of a president. If you were in grade school or older on November 22 you’ll know who I’m talking about. If you weren’t you’re probably wondering what all the hub bub is about. I’ve never really thought of myself as part of a declining generation before, but that death in Dallas marked the beginning of a series of events that almost defined a generation.

Montgomery, Dallas, Birmingham, Selma, Memphis, Kent State, Watts, Los Angeles, Vietnam. History landed in our living rooms every time we turned on the evening news. The Summer of Love turned into decades of destruction that haunt us like hungry ghosts. Good laws had unintended consequences. The voting rights act allows minorities to vote. Gerrymandering state houses work to make sure they get to vote for as few candidates as possible.

Integrating the suburbs meant that those with money and mobility could leave the cities with their crowded streets and poverty behind. The city became the place where you worked, played, bought drugs and headed home to the house, minivan and 2.5 kids. Safe in gated communities we could ignore the blasted neighborhoods with too few jobs, crumbling schools and damn few local role models. Public spaces are turned into “free speech” zones or strip malls where there’s no “public” space at all.

Vietnam taught the military and the elected hired help two important lessons. Pay somebody else to do the dirty work and keep the media as far away from the action as possible. The mid seventies to the early nineties were years of death, torture and displacement for hundreds of thousands of people living in Central and South America as the US channeled aid, equipment and millions of tax dollars into the pockets of brutal dictators who claimed they were fighting “subversives” and our war on drugs. Turns out the war on drugs was a great way to channel off the books military aid into those countries.

The Great Communicator challenged Gorbachev to “tear down this wall” in Berlin while our proxies were blowing up fields, shanties, tenements and refugees in El Salvador and Guatamala; it almost never made the evening news. It sure as hell didn’t make it into the local papers.

When we finally chose to do our own dirty work in the Middle East the military made damn sure that the correspondents weren’t allowed to go nosing around on their own. And some of the ones who did try ended up being murdered by the extremists on the other side. Now technology makes it possible for a technician in a control room in the continental US to push a button and kill without ever seeing the ones who die. No more Ed Murrows hitching rides on British bombers and filing reports on the missions.

Voters put a Black man in the White House in 2008 and we pretended that this proved we were living in a post racial society while every new day proves that the divides are deeper and deadlier than ever.

Who knows. Maybe this generation has to pass before we can finally heal the divisions and finally make at least part of the dream Jack Kennedy described for us when he took office half a century ago.

SHE TOOK A RING FROM HER FINGER

Mom and I stayed up last night and watched the documentary Four Days in November on TCM. As the story unfolded I recognized something that I was probably too young to realize fifty years ago. How much we owed Jackie Kennedy. By Monday she was done crying, at least for a few hours. Veiled in black and straight as a blade she led that procession from the Capitol to the Cathedral.

He wasn't perfect. Neither was she. He had flaws that probably would have kept him from running in our "we have to know every last secret of your life" era. And what does it say about us?

Their marriage had bent, but it hadn't broken. Air Force One was waiting. The casket was still open when she took off her wedding ring. Then the casket was closed and the journey back to Washington and a waiting country began. The ring was returned to her later but the image caught and held. When senator Mike Mansfield delivered the eulogy under the Capitol Rotunda on Sunday November 24 it became a refrain.

There was a sound of laughter; in a moment, it was no more. And so she took a ring from her finger and placed it in his hands.

There was a wit in a man neither young nor old, but a wit full of an old man's wisdom and of a child's wisdom, and then, in a moment it was no more. And so she took a ring from her finger and placed it in his hands.

There was a man marked with the scars of his love of country, a body active with the surge of a life far, far from spent and, in a moment, it was no more. And so she took a ring from her finger and placed it in his hands.

There was a father with a little boy, a little girl and a joy of each in the other. In a moment it was no more, and so she took a ring from her finger and placed it in his hands.

There was a husband who asked much and gave much, and out of the giving and the asking wove with a woman what could not be broken in life, and in a moment it was no more. And so she took a ring from her finger and placed it in his hands, and kissed him and closed the lid of a coffin.

A piece of each of us died at that moment. Yet, in death he gave of himself to us. He gave us of a good heart from which the laughter came. He gave us of a profound wit, from which a great leadership emerged. He gave us of a kindness and a strength fused into a human courage to seek peace without fear.

He gave us of his love that we, too, in turn, might give. He gave that we might give of ourselves, that we might give to one another until there would be no room, no room at all, for the bigotry, the hatred, prejudice, and the arrogance which converged in that moment of horror to strike him down.

In leaving us -- these gifts, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, President of the United States, leaves with us. Will we take them, Mr. President? Will we have, now, the sense and the responsibility and the courage to take them?

I pray to God that we shall and under God we will.

NEVER TOO LATE

Proof that it's never too late to get out those blankets and build a fort under the table. Tea and bon bons. Yum.

PRICELESS IMAGINATION

Actually I believe percentage of genetic difference is about three percent between humans and chimps. Probably higher between humans and the other great apes. But, oh that three percent.

There is strong evidence that hominids have always had upright or nearly upright posture. All the better to hang on to that gazelle haunch you just liberated from the leopard while hanging on to the branch you’re using to fight off the hyenas my dear. Seriously though, it has to do with the hole at the base of the skull where the spinal cord attaches to the brain. Ours is positioned a little differently than it is with the great apes. And that position proves that human it belonged to walked upright. 

Said club and haunch held by a hand with a fully opposable thumb. Hands capable of randomly knocking two rocks together to create an early chopper or of creating astonishing beautiful stone tools, spear heads and arrow heads. And the ability to make and use tools crosses all all hominid groups from Erectus to Neanderthal to Homo (supposedly) Sapiens. That's us. Probably the only humans in the history of the planet who believe that a single, lone human can prosper and survive.

Apes vocalize. A lot. Experimenters have taught chimps and at least one gorilla American sign language. Others have learned to manipulate computer based symbols that function as a language. One gorilla even showed evidence of a sense of self. When she was asked who broke something in the lab she blamed it on the human assistant. "I didn't do it" apparently knows no species lines. There’s also evidence of being able to take words they already knew and combining them to describe something totally new to them. As in labeling watermelon “candy drink fruit.”

But no ape, that I know of, can use spoken language the way humans do. They have the brains. They don’t have the physical capacity. Their tongues don’t work the same way ours do. I still think the first complete sentence in any language may have run along the lines of “Grab kids, bad cats back.” Short, but effective.

But, I believe it’s our imagination that sets us apart from the rest of Creation. Chimps prep twigs to use to snag termites. In the lab they can and do pile boxes to get to food that would normally be out of reach. Groups of males fight or hunt. They even use sticks and stones. But, I’ve never heard of a chimp taking a rock (chipped or not) tying it to a stick and using the combined tool.

And that’s what I find endlessly fascinating. How did we come up with all the tools and textiles that we use? I mean, think of all the pieces that have to come together for a bow and arrow. The small, knapped arrow head, the stick to fasten it to, the fletching to make it fly straight, the flexible bigger stick and the length of gut, vine or string used to power the bow. That’s a lot of imagination coming together. And THEN finding uses for that bow besides using it to fire arrows. The bow/drill that can be used to make a fire or to fashion other tools. You have to go from the straight motion of firing the arrow to a totally different, circular motion. 

And what about fire. Other critters are afraid of it. We not only got past our fear and tamed it, we figured out how to break free from having to tend a fire started by a lightning storm to fire on demand. Who figured out that if you rubbed two sticks together fast enough you could get a spark? And what bright boy (or girl) recognized that flint and iron ore struck together made a spark and that you could use that spark to start a fire?

Once we had sheep and goats who figured out you could make thread from the fleece? I mean I can see a bored kid on jackal lookout duty taking some fleece that got caught in a thorny bush and twisting it into a string, even making a string of loops like the base for a crocheted piece. But, who in the heck took a stick or a piece of metal, put a hook on the end and started going back and forth to make cloth. I mean that’s kind of a leap isn't it? Or taking multiple sticks, keeping the loops on one and working the thread with the other?  Who the heck invented knitting? And who recognized that you could cut the fleece (coat) off a sheep and it would grow back? Talk about your renewable resource. 

What about clothes? I mean it’s one thing to clean up a hide and wrap parts of it around yourself. It’s another set of actions entirely to cut pieces out of those hides (after you've invented tanning of course) and put them back together with lengths of string or gut. After you've invented a knife to cut the little slits for the “thread” and needles to carry it and basically create a second skin to keep your own hide warm and protected. 

The list is endless and totally fascinating. Realizing that the wild grain you've been gathering is growing in last years rubbish tip is one thing, taming goats or cows is one thing. But, who made the jump from grain to bread and milk to cheese?

That’s one of the things that bugs me about the fundies. We've got one hell of a tool kit that humans have assembled over the millennia and they don’t seem to appreciate it. Time and imagination. Especially imagination. Now that I think about it if our ancestors had spent so much time and energy trying to prove that they were right and the other guys were wrong we’d probably still be stealing gazelle haunches from the leopards.

And it wouldn't surprise me if there wasn't an ancestor or two that believed that sticks and rocks were meant to be used separately and it was sacrilege to tie the two together. Oh God/dess do blasphemy charges go back THAT far???????????

LSD KITTY

I suspect there's a little Photoshop involved here, but I ran across this on the net awhile back. Never, ever leave anything you don't want to share where the kids or the pets can get it. Otherwise it just might be boing, boing, boing off the walls for awhile.

Either that are there ARE dragons in the kitchen. Now where did I leave the fire extinguisher? You know, Just in case.

I'VE GOT COAL FOR SOMEBODY'S STOCKINGS

And I promise to get back to the second half of yesterday's entry, but this was too good (bad) to pass up. I can never get over hard line Protestant groups bitching over the so called "War on Christmas." Helloooooo! Christmas? Christ's Mass? Popish idolatry and all that? Puritans didn't celebrate it for years. Quakers either but for different reasons.

We used to get "please send us money so we can keep bitching about what's on TV, the movies and Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction" from the American Family Association. Responses along the lines of leave us alone and how in the heck did you get out name in the first place didn't get results. Not until I borrowed a trick from dear old dad. I found the raunchiest pictures in the mags that I could, tore them into recognizable pieces and mailed them back in their pre paid envelope. Never heard from them again. Can't imagine why. LOL

Anyway, this lovely group (I believe they're on the Southern Poverty Law Center's list of hate groups but that's another story) has published a Naughty and Nice list of companies that they consider to be really pro Christmas, fairly pro, iffy and in the coal in the stocking category. Near as I can tell it's pretty much based on how often the word Christmas is mentioned in their advertising. And guess who's on the top of the list? There own online store. Well it does begin with an A after all. Also Hobby Lobby and a few others. Nest a long list that I suspect is more interested in cashing in on Christmas than really caring one way or the other.

I mean, Amazon sells damn near everything, including cards and ornaments so you'd expect Christmas to get a mention or three. These are the companies supposedly against Christmas. Yeah, I know. A bunch of real  Scrooges.

Barnes & Noble Family Dollar Foot Locker Limited Brands Maurice's Office Depot Pet Smart Radio Shack Staples Supervalu Victoria's Secret

Or maybe they just figure that folks are going to shop anyway so why waste money on advertising. And of course the AFA's online store has a lovely selection of buttons, bumper stickers, yard signs etc so you can prove that you're really in the groove. Wonder how many of them were made in China. :-P

A PIECE OF YOUR HEART

Got this off the net. I think it's one of the Crazy Cat Ladies posts. This is for all the Oscars, Saras, Ferdies, Marvels, Andrews, Leons, Maudies, Luckys, Muffins and all the cats whose names I don't remember or never knew.

At this point I think my heart is getting pretty close to full of kitty. And I know Lisa's is. Rest in peace you all. You wait at the bridge and we'll be along.

It's the sad truth that the cats and dogs that share our lives don't live as long as we do. It hurts but sometimes the last, best action you can take is hold them tight as the pass through the veil to the bridge.

A SENSE OF TOTAL FRUSTRATION

The exchange started on a story about one Rep. Louie Gohmert (R. Texas) who believes thatthe Bible is a Jim Dandy reference book. At least when it comes to our foreign policy decisions about Israel. 

The other guy: This debate is about faith vs. faith, not science vs. religion.
Over the years, evolutionists have managed to falsely frame the debate on human origins as one of science vs. religion, thus reserving for themselves the only pulpit in the nation’s classrooms. While it is certainly comfortable for them to be the only ones allowed to speak, this shuts off all debate and destroys the academic freedom that should be the cornerstone of our educational system.
For years our classrooms have been reduced from educational institutions to indoctrination centers for evolution. Evolution, by definition, presupposes the absence of God (atheism). Students indoctrinated with this world view inevitably move on to extremely damaging conclusions and behavioral consequences on a host of other issues. Our whole national character has thus been corrupted and perhaps fatally damaged because of this intentional brainwashing.

Me: “Evolution presupposes nothing, The how is not addressed. ANd man biology classes sure are powerful. English, history, math, physicis all those other classes have no influence at all. Incidentally I accept evolution and I'm also a believer. Quaker. Incidentally Darwin did not invent evolution. He described the process of natural selection. He couldn't say how, since genes hadn't been discovered yet.”

The other guy: You have a problem then one of the leading biologists Richard Dawkins was once asked why there are still apes, why did they not all evolve, as you know they share 98 percent of genetic makeup with humans, and his answer was well you see way back billions of years ago we split off from apes into humans, Gods word however does not say that it says that God made man in His image and so the problem is this, you all have it backwards because God used the same building blocks to make apes after making man!

Me: Ah, but that two or three percent difference. Upright, bipedal locomotion, opposable thumbs, bigger brains, the ability to speak. We had all those to start with. Apes did and do not. Apes can modify parts of their environment to make what passed for tools. We went beyond that. We not only knocked rocks together, we imagined new shapes and then figured out how to combine them with other parts of our world to make things no ape ever imagined. Spears, arrows, scythes, needles, boats. clothing. We sure as heck  had to have them  because we don't have fur coats, we're slow runners, we don't have fangs and we don't have claws. .

By the same argument why do we still have sharks and sturgeons with their skeletons made of cartilege, not bone? Because sharks fill their little piece of the world very, very well. As long as they don't get finned for soup.

The other guy: Yes I have some reading for you, the first chapter of Romans, it will be easy just google Romans chapter 1!

(I looked up the reference. I’m not going to bother quoting it here. I think the relevant portion has to do with the fate of unbelievers) And you'll notice nothing I said was addressed. I just got another Bible verse. Shrug. 

Me: The Bible is not a science text book. And I suspect Paul, if he was the author, would be surprised to see the way we use his letters.

The other guy: Science is built on the wrong foundation, the Bible is the right one!
(Genesis 3:19) “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”
What are the scientific proof that man’s body came from the dust of the ground, as the Bible says? The human body is made up of materials and minerals found on the surface of the ground, and not from the core of the earth. Oxygen, being the most abundant element on the earth’s crust or on the ground, makes up 65 percent of the human body, and carbon, also abundant on the top soil of the ground, is 18 percent, and hydrogen is 10 percent. The 59 elements found in the human body are all found on the earths crust. This is amazing because what the Bible says perfectly match the scientific composition of a human body.

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

Unless I run across something really, really out there I probably won’t revisit this subject for awhile. You have to admire this guy’s absolute, adamantine focus. Nothing, absolutely nothing that doesn't fit his programming will make it through. Yet this person, who appears to have absolutely no understanding of how science or much of anything else works is probably old enough to vote, is registered to vote and is able to cast his ballot for whoever is the equivalent of Louie Gohmert in his home state. And that ladies and gentlemen is fucking scary. 

And I didn’t bother to take the time to answer the last entry. Let him think he scored a point off me. One: Obviously it would have been a complete waste of time. Two: At this point anything I would have said would never have made it past the mods because it would have run something like this: Yo spam for brains. Yes you. Of course the human body and every other living thing on this planet contains the elements from the earth surface. THAT’S WHERE WE EVOLVED!!!!!!! Damn it, You take all the wonder out of what makes us human. 

To be continued. 

SENSE OF WONDER

“It is customary to blame secular science and anti religious philosophy for the eclipse of religion in modern society. It would be more honest to blame religion for its own defeats. Religion declined, not because it was refuted, but because it became dull, irrelevant, oppressive, insipid. When faith is completely replaced by creed, worship by discipline, love by habit; when crisis of today is ignored because of the splendor of the past; when faith becomes an heirloom rather than a living fountain; when religion speaks in the name of authority rather than with the voice of compassion – it’s voice becomes meaningless.”

Abraham Joshua Heschel. More about him later. 

It's the same mantra we heard after the last election. "Our message was great, the voters just didn't understand." It's easier to blame the other guy than to sit down, shut up and take a good long look at why the message isn't getting through. 

And I could add that when you lose your sense of wonder at a vision like this you might as well pack it in and check out. If all you can see is dollar signs then there's really a problem with your programming. 

This is just a picture of Victoria Falls. The Shaper, Maker, Singer, Harper, Creator of all things, however you envision it.  was really on their game when these started to roar. 

As usual there's a disconnect when it comes to getting what's in my head on paper. Frustration, frustration. 

GET UP AND GO

I can relate. My get up and go got up and went and is in the next state over by now.

LOST TO REALITY READING

Found this on the net.

I'm the one on the end the Christmas break I discovered the Rings Trilogy. I tore through The Two Towers in one sitting, at the end of my bed and when I came up for air it was past two in the morning. Man I had a death grip on the library book. Bummed me out when I took my new found love for fantasy to my English teacher. Bad move. "I shouldn't spend too much time on any one kind of book." Thinking back Mr. Putnam had all the imagination of a turnip. When I'm in the zone don't come between me and my book.

THEY DO SHARE THE WEALTH

A waiter for Carrabba's Italian grill got this note from a customer.

“Thank you for your service, it was excellent. That being said, we cannot in good conscience tip you, for your homosexual lifestyle is an affront to GOD. Queers do not share in the wealth of GOD, and you will not share in ours. We hope you will see the tip your fag choices made you lose out on, and plan accordingly. It is never too late for GOD’S love, but none shall be spared for fags. May GOD have mercy on you.”

God/dess where to start? I guess there’s one thing you have to “love” about haters is their absolute inability to see past the current target of their hate. I suggest that you move to a desert island somewhere. But that won’t do you any good will it? Because the chances are excellent that the clothes you take with you, the supplies you take with you, the ship or plane that you pay to take you there will probably have been manufactured, packed or crewed by someone who is gay. So in the end you’ll end up sharing some of your wealth with a gay anyway so I guess you might as well stay home.


How oh how will you manage if you don’t move to that island? Again, chances are excellent that your house, your car, your groceries, the music you listen to, the TV or movies that you watch, your utilities, every aspect of your precious, bigoted lives is touched at some point your fellow citizens (and how that must stick in your craw) who are gay, lesbians or bi. You share your wealth so to speak every day of your lives. 

It must have really galled this couple as the story spread and customers ASKED to be seated in his section of the restaurant. So in spite of your bigoted efforts the young man appears to be doing very well. No thank you.

STOP PLAYING THE PERSECUTION CARD

Can you believe it? Billy Graham is still alive. He had his 95th birthday this weekend. And oh, there was whoop te do all around. Gag me with a spoon. This op ed piece appeared in a South Carolina Newspaper. I'll spare you the picture of a smirking just out of his teens, proud owner of a Strom Thurmond T shirt.

“The hour is late, and the need is urgent.  The eternal destiny of many souls—and the future of our great nation—are at stake.  Pray that we will turn from our wicked ways and that God will heal our land.”  -Dr. Billy Graham

As part of Billy Graham’s 95^th birthday celebration, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association put together a phenomenal video series billed “My Hope America.”  In the series, Graham discusses the secular path on which our nation seems intent upon traveling.  However, Graham continues to present a message of hope.  Despite the chaos America finds herself in, Graham has hope for our country.

His hope is not in government.  His hope is not in celebrities.  His hope is not in medicine nor is it in business.  His hope is in Jesus Christ.

We live during an age when persecution of Christians is becoming more and more commonplace.  In fact, Christianity grows more and more irrelevant in modern society as the days pass.  We have witnessed attack after vicious attack to alienate us and ostracize our beliefs.  Too many “influential” Americans in the spotlight today find strength in themselves rather than in God.  Their self-centeredness gives them a sense of invincibility and they do as they please.

The Billy Grahams of the United States seem to be growing fewer and fewer.  Our once God-fearing nation has become uninterested in Christian teachings and more interested in self-advancement.  Great evangelicals within our Christian community have been replaced by anti-Christian organizations such as the Freedom from Religion Foundation, the American Atheists, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, and the list goes on.

These groups have taken control of the nation.  They have taken prayer out of schools.  They have murdered more than 50 million unborn children.  They have shoved homosexuality down the throat of America.  They have abandoned morality in the name of “freethinking.”

The bottom line is that Christianity is under attack in America.  Unfortunately, the reason behind these increasing assaults is the church.  The Christian church has become complacent in modern society and has allowed secular progressives to do as they please while we remain silent in the corner.  We cannot expect things to change if we continue to stand by.

The Bible teaches that Christians will face persecution.  Upon accepting Christ, one must accept this reality.  When fear of persecution silences the population, well, we have a serious problem.

Our answer is not found in government.  In fact, the government is not at fault for the actions it has taken.  The blame lies squarely with the church.  So long as we appease the Muslims and atheists and gays and other so-called “activists,” how Christians feel is not important.  This is the position in which we find ourselves after years of complacency.  We cannot expect change unless we are going to drive it.  Our hope is in Jesus Christ.

Dr. Graham has been estimated to have reached more than 210 million lives in his 60 years of preaching.  He understands that we cannot make the decision to follow Christ for anyone but ourselves.  We can, however, present the Gospel to the lost and allow them to make the decision for themselves.

I strongly believe that if each Christian in our nation would be as willing to come out of the closet we have locked ourselves in as the homosexuals are, a transformation would occur right here in the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.  We must not forget that the Constitution grants us freedom to worship as we please.  We have the sovereign right to worship the Creator of the heavens and the earth.  If we fail to step up to the plate, this right will be an element of history that generations to come will only be able to read about in textbooks.   G. Miller Thompson

I can't find any particular claim to fame for Mr. Thompson other than access to a computer. 

God/dess where do I start?

Martin Luther King Jr. and Billy Graham were contemporaries. It's scary but I do believe they were both Baptist ministers and that is where they parted company. 

Billy Graham had a national pulpit and access to the mighty. He could have used that pulpit to speak  out against the war in Vietnam. He could have used that to come out against racism. He could have raised his voice to attack injustice. He could have used that influence to help the poor. He could have used his access to speak out against our war against "subversion" in Central and South America. A war that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and left little more than devastation behind. 

He chose not to. Probably would have cost him that national pulpit and that access to the mighty. He chose the rewards of this world while Dr. King became a true prophet. A century down the road I wonder who will be remembered? The Billy Sunday wanna be or the man, who with all his faults, saw poverty, war and injustice and did all he could to stop it. 

I've said it before and I"ll repeat it until I'm blue in the face. When someone uses the word Christian as if everyone from Old Order Amish to Unitarian Universalists shares the same set of beliefs call them out. Better still ask them if they believe in witches and demons. That'll tell you all you need to know. 

AND, WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF US?

This is the other story that caught my attention this morning. For the record folks have the right to own guns. I don't hunt. I've got family that does. And they eat what they shoot. I don't really see the need for guns that have magazines that hold dozens of bullets. But, hey that's just me.

Frankly, I see guns as a canary in the coal mine symptom of a much deeper problem. Why in the hell is this country so violent? Have a wardrobe malfunction during the Super Bowl and the fundies go ballistic because a kid might have gotten a glimpse of Janet Jackson's nipple. Market blow 'em away video games to the same kids and "it's just a game folks." Don't get me started.

But I don't hold with intimidating people who don't agree with you and that's what these people are doing. Intimidation pure and simple. And a lot of commenters got a real "hoot" out of where the group finally retreated to. Yeah, the group included kids. I wonder if these brave souls took there kids with them when they adjourned to the local Hooters.

Anyway, this is the text of the Think Progress article. Check out the picture folks. White bread America out in "force" against I think it's four moms meeting inside the restaurant. Lordy, Lordy, Lordy. Those gals would have me shakin' in my boots.

"On Saturday, nearly 40 armed men, women, and children waited outside a Dallas, Texas area restaurant to protest a membership meeting for the state chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a gun safety advocacy group formed in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

According to a spokeswoman for Moms Demand Action (MDA), the moms were inside the Blue Mesa Grill when members of Open Carry Texas (OCT) — an open carry advocacy group — “pull[ed] up in the parking lot and start[ed] getting guns out of their trunks.” The group then waited in the parking lot for the four MDA members to come out. The spokeswoman said that the restaurant manager did not want to call 911, for fear of “inciting a riot” and waited for the gun advocates to leave. The group moved to a nearby Hooters after approximately two hours.

MDA later released a statement calling OCT “gun bullies” who “disagree[d] with our goal of changing America’s gun laws and policies to protect our children and families.” The statement added that the members and restaurant customers were “terrified by what appeared to be an armed ambush.” A member of OCT responded by tweeting, “I guess I’m a #gunbullies #Comeandtakeit.” 

Me: great attitude asshole. You can keep it. I sure as hell don't want it. What's the difference between you and a member of the Taliban? Yeah, you're not wearing a turban, maybe you shaved this morning and I'm guessing you're a Christian, not a Muslim. But I'm betting that if we stood the two of you together there wouldn't a glimmer of daylight to be seen between you.

This is not the first time that gun advocates have rallied at MDA events. In March, a group of armed men crashed a MDA gun-control rally in Indianapolis. Other gun advocate groups will hold rallies this upcoming December 14, the anniversary date of the Sandy Hook shooting.


Licensed gun owners are allowed to carry concealed weapons, but Texas is one of six states that prohibits open carry of firearms. Attorney General Greg Abbott, a likely Republican successor for Gov. Rick Perry (R), has vowed to permit concealed handgun owners to display their firearms in public. Four GOP contenders for lieutenant governor similarly hope to put in place open carry laws if elected."

Ok, let's see if you can wrap your brains around this. There are ten amendments. Before the second amendment there was the first. You know the one that guarantees, freedom of religion, speech, assembly and the right to petition for the redress of grievances.

Those women were exercising their rights to assemble, speak and plan how to petition for the redress of what they see as legitimate concerns. Repeat after me. They have the right to do this. Again, THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO DO THIS. And if I could I'd put that sentence in again in forty point font.

THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO DO THIS. You may not agree with them but they have the right to do these things without being intimidated by you or anyone else.

This is the anniversary of Kristallnacht. Care to tell me what the difference is between you and Hitler's Brown Shirts or the Pakistani Taliban.? Or the cartel goons in Mexico? Because from where I'm sitting I don't see very much. Oh, did I hurt your tender second amendment feelings. Cry me a river.

I'm on the north side of sixty. I'm running out of time to be polite.

"WE DON'T CATER TO YOU PEOPLE"

This was going to be a two parter. But both stories are worth their own entries. And yeah I'm apt to get  snarky before I'm done. I'm on the north side of sixty folks. I'm running out of time to waste being polite.

Some interesting links on my Facebook page this morning. The first has to do with the craft giant Hobby Lobby. I'd run across part of the story a couple of months ago. This article has a fuller story and the author did research to back up some of the claims.  The original incident happened in a store in New Jersey. You know. The little state across the Hudson from the city that probably has the largest population of Jews in the country. "We don't cater to you people." Ok. Short people? Tall people? Red Heads? Folks with lots of freckles? Folks who wear saris and turbans?

The company's mission statement.  Employees “honor the Lord in all we do by operating the company in a manner consistent with biblical principles.” Let's not examine some of those Biblical principals too closely shall we? And WTF do you think wrote the Old Testament in the first place? And where do you think Yeshua bar Joseph and his followers worshiped? The megachurch on the other side of town? Not bloody likely. They went to the local synagogue. They were Jews. They kept the Holy Days. They were "you people."

Incidentally this weekend is the 75th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass. The orchestrated outburst of violence against German Jews, the synagogues and their businesses. If any German Jews had any illusions left about their futures in the New Germany they died that night. Unfortunately thanks to the attitudes of the folks who own Hobby Lobby the options for getting out of Germany before the curtain fell were limited.

It shocked the hell out of me years ago when I learned that the yearly quotas, such as they were, for Jewish immigration to the US were never filled during WWII. Never, even when we knew, and we did know. Finally what was happening in Nazi occupied Europe. Maybe we didn't know the full horror of what was happening, but we knew.

And, it's kind of prosaic after the last couple of paragraphs but is there anyone out there who has shopped at a Hobby Lobby recently? Say last month. I assume that since the owners are such good Christians that there was nary an image of a witch, a black cat or a Jack O Lantern to be found. After all. Halloween is the high jacked version of Samhain, the Celtic New Year. The day when the veil between the worlds is thinnest and the spirits can walk among us. Hardly a holiday to be celebrated by "good" Christians.

SENSE OF ENTITLEMENT?

This story came out just after Halloween  and this one came out a couple of days ago. And ran across a similar story in Bruce Bawer's Stealing Jesus. Told several cases where basically itinerant evangelists had no compunctions about inserting themselves into a group having lunch and  a perfectly good PRIVATE conversation only to be asked "if they've been saved."

There's an air of passive/aggressive about these street "preachers." My interpretation is the right one. Your opinions don't count. We're doing this for your good. And so on. Every so often we get kids from one of the local little Baptist churches coming around with slick brochures. I thank them and send them on their way. I figure it wouldn't do any good to go into my "I was raised Methodist, but right now I'm a Quaker/Celtic I'll get back to you when I figure it out." Unfortunately I'd probably have to explain the Methodists, the Quakers and the Celts. Takes the fun out of it.

THE RIGHT TO WATER?

Not according the former CEO of Nestle. One of if not the largest food companies in the world. The shot is of Victoria Falls in Africa. Found on the net. 

This quote is from a 2005 interview. More of this "gentleman's" interesting views on the public's right to access natural resources that are essentially the gifts of the Earth, the Creator, God, the Goddess however you see it can be found in this outside blog entry.

I love how he goes on about how safe GMO's are. How this is the best fed, best generation in history. Well I guess it is if you have enough money to pay for his products and don't live in the third world where at least a billion people do not have access to adequate food, shelter or water.

A LITTLE RESPECT

Fill in the needed service of your choice, especially food service. Thank heaven they can't outsource lunch to Mumbai. And neither is trash hauling, teaching, repairing anything fixable the list is almost endless and so are the attempts to belittle and degrade.

I've got news for some folks. By the time I was good enough to bake for my first Black Friday at Valley River I don't think I was entry level. Maybe I'm stretching. Lisa, I have to admit I was scared that morning. But you had our backs and by heaven we did it. I was ready to turn cartwheels

And for the umpteenth time it wasn't the cooks or the mechanics or the teachers or the trash haulers or the nurses or the baristas who tanked the economy a few years ago. It was the guys with the MBA's, finance degrees, the fancy suits and the attitude that rest of us are just one stage above what gets scraped off their shoes. Guess what? If all of you disappeared tomorrow the only people who would miss you are the folks who sold you your morning skinny latte's.

MEET CATACLYSM

This story was posted on Face Book via the Crazy Cat Ladies. I hope the original poster doesn't mind my retelling the story of Cataclysm

.
Looks to be about two weeks old here. Eyes open wondering what the Sam Hill is going on. At that age Midge could just about walk in a straight line. Or sneeze. Not both.
Cataclysm's Story


August 17, 2011 at 12:29pm
Today is Cataclysm’s 12th. birthday. In her honor, I’m telling her inspirational story to those who have not heard it. Not to mention that she has also gained a certain amount of a FB cult following due to her OCD sock fetish, which is shown in her album....
It was a very hot day, even for August. Katie and I were staying cool by working as volunteers at the local Humane Society. We had spent most of that day working in the cattery – our favorite location. We had, in fact, taken a cat home a couple of weeks before, to foster until her kittens were adoptable. Cheetah had given birth to 5 in our little home nursery. Being in one of those moods that day, we had dubbed them
“Catillac, Catamaran, Catmandu, Catatonic and Catapult.”

It was late that afternoon when one of the animal officers came into the cattery with a shoebox. He took it to one of the vets and said sadly, “It’s too small, there’s nothing we can do.”
“What’s in the box?,” I asked, always curious about anything new. He paid no attention.

“We have no nursing mothers and it can’t stay here,” the vet said. “We may as well just take care of it now.”
“What’s in the BOX??,” I was becoming more insistent.
“It’s a kitten,” the vet responded, “it can’t be more than about a day old. Someone left it on a hot windowsill to die.” We were horrified at the cruelty with which people treat defenseless animals, and this was such a bittyy baby.
Katie and I looked in the box at the tiny blue-cream baby. It was not even wiggling or making a sound. It was soooo small. We had always been animal lovers but babies of any kind, especially kittens, were a real soft spot for us.

“I heard you say something about a nursing mother. What if you had one?” I asked.
“Then there’s a slim chance that the mother might accept the kitten, but we don’t have one.”
“We’ve got Cheetah,” Katie reminded them, “her litter is only 2 weeks old. Can’t we take her home and try?”
A tiny ray of hope came over the workers. They said that we had nothing to lose. We asked what to do and were told to rub the baby up against the other kittens to try to cover her with their scent. If Cheetah tried to nurse her or bathe her, we MIGHT have a chance. But they made it clear that it wasn’t a good chance.
We immediately took the box and headed out. When we got home, we headed straight for the nursery and sent Cheetah out for a walk. While she was out of the room, we took out the new baby, naming her “Cataclysm,” since she was having that kind of day.
We picked up each of the big kittens, they were about 5 times the size of the newcomer. We rubbed them each fairly vigorously all over her tiny body, she should be good and “scented.” Then we put her on the floor of the nursery and sort of piled all of the big ones on top of her. It was time to let Cheetah back in.
The mama cat sauntered back in, going immediately to the pile of babes. She pushed them around with her nose until they were all spread out. She suddenly stopped and just looked at the newborn. She nosed them all some more, like she was counting and was understandably confused. She started arranging them to nurse, finally picking Cataclysm up in her mouth. This was the moment that made us hold our breath. Would she kill the teeny stranger with one bite or go ahead with the feeding? Our tension was palpable.
She held the baby gently and pushed her into her abdomen, licking her gently, we breathed a huge sigh of relief. But nothing happened, the infant was too weak and dehydrated. We tried to help her latch on to a nipple, but had no success. After 20 min. or so, I told Katie that we were going to leave the nursery; it was out of our hands.

We waited about 2 hours and couldn’t stand the suspense any longer. Down to the nursery we went. Before we even got close to the door, we could hear kittens squalling loudly. That had us wondering! We opened the door and peeked in cautiously. Cheetah had taken the 5 big kittens and piled them in a corner. She was in the opposite corner with a tiny bundle. Slurping loudly and kneading Cheetah’s belly with minuscule paws was Cataclysm!

In just a couple of weeks, “Catty” had almost caught up with the others in size. Her eyes were open and she was beginning to walk around. She had overcome all odds and was firmly entrenched in her new family. When it came time to adopt out Cheetah and the babies, we couldn’t part with her, she has been with us ever since.

Every month, the Humane Society wrote a newsletter for the volunteers. I gave them a copy of this story, figuring the other volunteers would like to know about our determined little cat. To my surprise, instead of going into the newsletter, it was given to the person who wrote the monthly fundraising letter. Our chapter of the Society made about $98,000 during that year. Unbelievably, Cataclysm’s story had raised almost half that amount. Who would have thought that she would become a “$50,000 throw-away?

I can almost see that momma kittly puzzling over the situation and finally deciding "well I'm not MISSING anybody. The humans will explain everything when they're ready."

DON'T GO OUT AFTER DARK IF YOU'RE...

I promise I'll get back to the pagans, semi pagans and other wild life in Massachusetts. Honest. And I have some ideas in answer to Lisa's questions about how to spread some of the holiday joy around.

However, this greeted me when I checked out FB this morning. There is a corroborating entry on Huffington Post from the weekend. And I'm trying to get more recent information.

Here's what we know. The victim was black, young female, apparently had an accident in the early hours of the morning, had a dead cell phone (anybody remember when we DIDN'T have cell phones), went looking for help in a white neighborhood and ended up dead from a shotgun blast to the back of the head.

Although the neighborhood is described as white here is what we don't know. The identity, age or race of the shooter. We do know that Stand Your Ground has been invoked.

Let me get this straight. She's outside. I assume you can see her through the window or the peephole. I assume she appears to be unarmed. I'm also assuming that your door is locked and it isn't a hollow core piece of card board. There is no record of a 911 call to report an intruder. Nothing. Just a blast in the middle of the night and a dead African American woman. The latest in a long, too long line.

And I have a curiosity bump to scratch. In all the pictures of folks exercising their "right" to make us wonder about the sanity of the guy up the street with the rifle slung over his back have seen either a woman, an African American or a Latino with a bushmaster or an AK47 knockoff slung over their shoulders? I sure as hell haven't.

THIS IS THE USA RIGHT? OR WAR ON DRUGS HORROR STORY

This isn’t the first story like this I’ve read, and the far right fundies who are so worried about the black helicopters and FEMA camps are strangely silent about the real invasions of the civil rights of real people. This isn’t conspiracy theory folks, this is the real freakin’  deal.

This story comes from two sources, The Daily Kos and  Think Progress they match up pretty well. This is a prime example of how the War On Drugs has totally distorted the relationship between the civilians and the folks that supposedly take an oath “to protect and serve.” Traffic stops that used to get you a warning or a citation have become the camel’s nose allowing some police departments to, apparently, do anything they damn please.

And from Penny Lernoux’s books and a dandy little volume called School of the Assassins: Guns, Greed and Globalization there’s good data that the war on drugs was never just about keeping drugs out of the US. That war provided a handy cover to allow support for the covert war against so called “subversion” in Latin America.

The real kick in the teeth were cases where the cops in countries like Argentina who were supposed to be helping the US keep drugs out of the US were actually the drug lords we were fighting against. Damn, you couldn’t tell the players even with a score card and a lot of locals ended up jailed, tortured, disappeared and dead. Find a used copy of Lernoux’s Cry of the People and don’t read it just before lights out. It’s very uncomfortable reading.

The real kicker is that the cops managed to get a search warrant. Now, my knowledge of the chain of command here comes from watching Law and Order and Blue Bloods. Cops have suspicion go to somebody in the DA’s office and the DA goes to a judge. Judge says yay or nay and the warrant goes back to the cops. I’d love to get my hands on that warrant because this is a list of the procedures a man stopped for doing a rolling stop through the sign was forced to undergo, without his consent. In fact over his continued protests.

A review of Eckert's medical records, which he released to KOB, and details in the lawsuit show the following happened:

1. Eckert's abdominal area was x-rayed; no narcotics were found.  

2. Doctors then performed an exam of Eckert's anus with their fingers; no narcotics were found.

3. Doctors performed a second exam of Eckert's anus with their fingers; no narcotics were found.  

4. Doctors penetrated Eckert's anus to insert an enema.  Eckert was forced to defecate in front of doctors and police officers.  Eckert watched as doctors searched his stool.  No narcotics were found.

5. Doctors penetrated Eckert's anus to insert an enema a second time.  Eckert was forced to defecate in front of doctors and police officers.  Eckert watched as doctors searched his stool.  No narcotics were found.

6. Doctors penetrated Eckert's anus to insert an enema a third time.  Eckert was forced to defecate in front of doctors and police officers.  Eckert watched as doctors searched his stool.  No narcotics were found.

7. Doctors then x-rayed Eckert again; no narcotics were found.  

8. Doctors prepared Eckert for surgery, sedated him, and then performed a colonoscopy where a scope with a camera was inserted into Eckert's anus, rectum, colon, and large intestines. No narcotics were found.  Throughout this ordeal, Eckert protested and never gave doctors at the Gila Regional Medical Center consent to perform any of these medical procedures.

And guess who is being dunned by the hospital for the bills it isn’t the cops, the DA’s office or the judge. Frankly I’d give the “hospital” the one fingered salute and dare them to take me to collections. And then I'd call every TV, radio station and newspaper in a three state area. 

Either the cops grossly overstepped their bounds or a judge who is so far nameless signed off on a warrant that allowed the cops to do whatever they pleased. Frankly, I believe that everybody from the cops to the DA to the judge should get their asses canned.  And I hope the hospital is part of this lawsuit because they have no business even getting involved. And the impetus for this crap? The PD’s get a share of any resources seized, especially cash. Follow the money it will usually lead you to the truth.

FAMILY TREES

It's said that you can choose your friends. Family? You not only don't get a choice, it's pretty much potluck. Especially when it comes to the generations past aunts, uncles and cousins. In the late 1690's Salem Massachusetts was the site of a notorious set of witch trials. Much of the sting is gone, and the town capitalizes on the notoriety with month long street theater, crafts, pagan celebrations. More about that later. 

The unfortunate subject tonight is a certain Reverend Nicholas Noyes. Apparently my great uncle. Several times removed. During the trials he acted as one of the official ministers. When he called upon Sarah Goode to confess and avoid the rope she cursed him. "I am no more a witch than you are a wizard and if you take my life God will give you blood to drink." It took a few years and he publicly repented of his actions during the trials, but he died in 1717 of a hemorrhage. I think I would rather have known the witches, not the ministers. I'm afraid I would have made a very poor Puritan. 

THE GREY PILGRIM

Wisdom from Gandalf the Grey. It's easy to say what someone else "deserves" in our semi blind opinion. We can't know how decisions will work out in the end. Look at history and how many decisions that seemed like good ideas at the time have turned around and bitten us in the ass. Yeah you'll get bitten, especially if you don't proof read your caption. My bad.

VISIONS OF HALLOWEENS PAST

Well Halloween came and went. I think we had three Trick or Treaters. I was in bed with the flu and mom was manning the door. We packed it in about eight and turned out the lights. The cute little kids are all home taking stock of their stash by then anyway. There’s a small church down the street and they did a Halloween party. I’m guessing that’s where some of the kids ended up. And it was raining. It’s hard to look like a prince when your frog costume is soaking wet. Heck, there wasn't even anything good and scary on the tube. Even if I'd been up to staying vertical that long. Thbppppb as Bill the Cat from Bloom County used to say. 

Then, to add a little insanity to the mix, there  was this gal in North Dakota who was going to hand out “fat letters” to T & T’rs who were overweight. In her opinion. Twit. She’d probably have been perfectly at home at a judge in the Salem Witch Trials three centuries ago.

Or maybe she’s just a prime example of American lack of imagination. I mean she could have stocked up on sugarless candy. It’s out there. But I’m not sure if it comes in a nice, safe wrapper. What I’ve seen comes in bulk. She could have handed out granola bars. Or boxes of raisins. Heck our local butcher shop carries their own brand of jerky. I bet they’d shrink wrap individual servings on order. Of course that would take planning, imagination and more investment in time and cash than just going to BiMart with a coupon and picking up a couple of bags of Snickers or Milky Ways.

I’m old enough to remember Halloweens when you could give out popcorn balls, or cookies, or even donuts. We did that one year. Made a batch, Sampled, Found then ok, but probably won’t do it again and handed out the rest to the door knockers. Did a double batch of chocolate chip cookies one year. Again we had what we wanted, gave away the rest. Did popcorn balls a couple of years. Even tinted the syrup a color that resembled orange. If you used your imagination. The rug rats that knocked on the door didn’t seem to mind.

There was anticipation. What will we get at this house? Well, you pretty much know what’s coming. It’s be in a wrapper and hopefully untouched by human hands. Arrrrrrgh!

Then people started finding pins in the popcorn and razor blades in the apples. The industry came up with “fun” size candy bars and the rest is history. And Halloween really got really, really boring.