07 August 2014

Thoughts For Thursday...
Okay, so THIS morning is starting out a LOT different than yesterday, isn't it?
No rain to speak of, the sun's rising exactly where (and when) it SHOULD be, and it's not hot or humid outside.
A very fine start...so far.
The Hoosierland weather today will see us with a high around 81 degrees, good amount of scattered sun (and some clouds) and little chance of rain.
All in all...not too damn bad, hmm?
So go fill up that morning beverage as we get busy seeing what's going on...
*** First out of the rucksack today is the answer to yesterday's WHO SAID THAT? quote:
"There's nobody who cares more about you than you, and there's nobody better equipped to take of you than you."
This was spoken by none other than America's number one talk radio host - RUSH LIMBAUGH, and here is his WIKI:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rush_Limbaugh
And here is his "official" website:
http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/
Now, you have to admit that Rush has a very sharp mind...and can see things they way they are.
Back in 1992, his first book (The Way Things Ought To Be) became a New York Times BEST SELLER.
His second book, (See, I Told You So - 1993) also claimed best seller status.
And the funny thing is, if you change the name from Bill Clinton to Barack Obama, the book reads as if it were published in 2010!.
I happen to own BOTH, and they are just as timely today as they were back then.
I'll leave it up to all of you to read up on his life and times, but I will say I really like one of his latest ventures (and he doesn't have that many) - the TWO-IF-BY-TEA business.
We've bought some of it, and it IS better than Kroger brand sweet tea, even if it costs a bit more...not as "cloudy", and no after-taste.
We also got those tumblers with his children's book "character" Rush Revere on them.
This is his newest thing...children's books, and they are flying off the shelves.
The first book was Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims...a "time-travel" story with a talking horse (Liberty) and a trip back to the early colonial days in America.
The second book was Rush Revere and the First Patriots. Both have become best sellers.
A marvelous attempt at teaching children REAL American history, as opposed to the homogenized and left-slanted texts we have today.
Goes to show that a self-made man CAN achieve the AMERICAN DREAM...through diligence, failures, persistence, and hard work.
Moving on...
And now, for  OUR trip through history, it's time for "What the hell happened TODAY, Bob?"
August 7:
1679 - The brigantine Le Griffon by Rene-Robert Cavelier,  Sieur de LaSalle is towed to the southeastern end of the Niagara River, to become the FIRST ship to sail the upper Great Lakes of North America.
1782 - George Washington orders the creation of the Badge of Military Merit, for wounded soldiers, later to be renamed The Purple Heart.
1789 - The United States Department of War is established.
1794 - President George Washington invokes The Militia Act of 1792 to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania.
A LONG drive for a new pair of shoes?
1909 - Alice Huyler Ramsey  (and three friends) become the FIRST women to complete e transcontinental auto trip, taking 59 days from New York city to San Francisco.
1927 - The PEACE BRIDGE opens between Fort Erie, Ontario and Buffalo, NY.
1930 - The LAST confirmed lynching of blacks in thee northern United States occurs in Marion, Indiana. 
Two men (Thomas Shipp an Abram Smith) are killed.
1940 - WW2 - Alsace-Lorraine is annexed by the Third Reich
1942 - WW2 - The Battle of Guadalcanal begins.
1944 - IBM dedicates the FIRST program-controlled calculator (known as Harvard Mark 1)
1947 - Thor Heyerdahl's raft, Kon-Tiki, smashes into the reefs near the Tuamotu Islands, ending a 101-day, 4.300 mile journey across the Pacific Ocean to prove that pre-historic people could have sailed there from South America. (a great book, too).
1955 - Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering (precursor to SONY) sells it's FIRST transistor radio in Japan.
Penny for your thoughts
1959 - The LINCOLN MEMORIAL design in the U.S. penny foes into circulation, replacing of the "sheaves of wheat" design, and was minted until 2006.
1964 - The Gulf of Tonken Resolution is passed by Congress, giving LBJ broad powers when dealing with North Vietnamese attacks on American forces.
1966 - Race riots occur in Lansing, Michigan.
"It's not the fall...it's that sudden STOP at the bottom."
1974 - Phillipe Petit performs a high-wire act between the TWIN TOWERS of the WTC, 1,368 feet in the air.
1978 - President Carter declares a federal emergency at Love Canal due to toxic waste that as not disposed of properly.
1987 - Lynne Cox becomes the FIRST person to swim from the USA to Soviet Union.
Notable Birthdays:
1726 - James Boudoin - American politician, and 2nd governor of Massachusetts (d-1790)
1742 - Nathaniel Greene - American General (d-1786)
1876 - Mata Hari - Dutch dancer and spy (d-1917)
1904 - Ralph Bunche - political scientist, academic and diplomat - Nobel Prize Laureate (d-1971)
1926 - Stan Freberg - American voice actor and singer
1927 - Carl Switzer (Alfalfa) - Actor and "singer" (d-1959)
1942 - Garrison Keiller - author and radio host (Prairie home companion)
Never gonna stop the rain by complainin'
1942 - B.J. Thomas - singer
1944 - John Glover - American actor
1950 - Alan Keyes - American diplomat, 16th Asst. Sec of State for Int'l Affairs
1955 - Wayne Knight - American actor (JFK, Jurassic Park)
1960 - David Duchovney - American actor
1963 - Nick Gillespie - American journalist (Reason.com)
Yeah, she's hot!
1975 - Charlize Theron - S. African/American actress
1978 - Cirroc Lofton - American actor (ST: DS9)
And...it's YOUTH DAY in Kirabati (wherever the hell THAT is).
So, now you know a LOT more than you did when you woke up, right?
*** Last back to the sleeping bag today...it now seems like the USA will open some sort of "CDC" in AFRICA to confront this latest outbreak of the EBOLA virus.
And, while that seems well enough (and will cost BILLIONS along the way, as things always do), WHY can't Africa do something like this for ITSELF?
I mean, it's not like WE (the USA) haven't been dropping boatloads of MONEY (and other items such as food) their way for YEARS...we HAVE, but to what end?
It's as though the cash is falling into some sort of black hole (no pun intended) and into an alternate reality.
But the REAL reality is that many warring factions have been siphoning OFF the moolah to fund their little "games" over there.
Been busy, lately?
Civil war is nothing new to them...and you'd think by NOW, they'd be getting BETTER at it, meaning they'd find some way to FINISH the damn thing and get on with BUILDING a damn nation somewhere over there.
No...that's up to US...WE build the schools, the hospitals, and all sorts of other infrastructure, only to see it go to waste as some OTHER tribal war monger comes along and upsets the "apple cart".
Learn it...Live it...Love it!
I don't begrudge ANYONE some assistance to get them back on THEIR feet, but whenever we help others and they wind up getting back on OUR feet, and taking more of OUR money and resources, I have to draw the line.
We've enough (major) issues that need attention HERE, and not getting it, and perhaps it's time we took care of our OWN "house" before we get busy building all those other ones for someone else.
It's just a thought (and a pretty good one, if you ask me).
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.

06 August 2014

Humpday Happenings...
Welcome to a rather foggy morning here in our part of the Hooiserland.
Had some decent rain last night before midnight...actually was kinda QUIET around here (for a damn change).
Rain does seem to keep nearly all the boomcar "boyz" at bay...does the job the FWPD can't seem to want to do...lol.
The rest of today's weather shapes up with temps reaching into the upper 70s...and it looks like the sun is trying it's damnedest to break through the overcast (so far, unsuccessfully)...that will be nice if it shows up.
(not holding my breath though...)
So, let's get cracking and have that cup of morning fortitude filled up as we see what's been going on...
*** First out of the rain-barrel today is our WHO SAID THAT? quote of the week:
"There's nobody who cares more about you than you, and there's nobody better equipped to take of you than you."
So, who said that anyway? And if you guessed ME (because I often invoke such rhetoric), then you are unfortunately incorrect. (but I DO appreciate the sentiment...lol)
But, the answer will be at the top of tomorrow''s post...and it might surprise you.
Meanwhile back at the tea party...
Next, is our look at "What the hell happened today, Bob?"
August 6:
1536 - Bogota, Colombia is founded (didn't know it was losted...lol)
1781 - Fifty proof sheets of the U.S. CONSTITUTION are delivered to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
1881 - The UK annexes Lagos, Nigeria (and were glad to get rid of it later on)
"Old Sparky's Dad"
1890 - In Auburn, NY, murderer William Kemmler is the FIRST person executed by the Electric Chair (...you want fries with that?)
-- Check out the full story over at John D's NOBODY MOVE blog (link at left)
1914 - WW1 - Serbia declares war on Germany. Austria declares war of Russia. 
(I declare I'm confused)
Gotta love being first.
1926 - Gertrude Ederle becomes the first woman to swim across the English Channel.
And STILL, the Japanese didn't surrender.
1945 - WW2 - Hiroshima is devastated when the first atomic bomb ("Little Boy") is dropped on that city, by the U.S. B-29 ENOLA GAY. Some 70,000 people are killed instantly, and tens of thousands die from burns and radiation poisoning.
1962 - Jamaica becomes independent from England (pass the rum)
1965 - LBJ signs the Voting Rights Act of 1965 into law.
Who opened Pandora's box?
1991 - Tim Berners-Lee describes his idea for the WORLD WIDE WEB - WWW debuts as a publicly available service on the Internet.
And...plenty of parking.
2012 - The NASA rover CURIOSITY lands on the surface of Mars.
Notable Birthdays:
1809 - Alfred, Lord Tennyson (d-1892)
1902 - Dutch Schultz - American mobster (d-1935)
Everyone still Loves Lucy.
1911 - Lucille Ball - Actress, singer, and producer (d-1989)
From "The Longest Day"
1917 - Robert Mitchum - actor (d-1997)
1950 - Dorian Harewood - actor
1951 - Catherine Hicks - actress
A Bond girl & starred in "Crouching Tiger Hidden dragon"
1962 - Michelle Yeoh - Malaysin Hong Kong actress and producer
1972 - Gerri Halliwell - English singer, dancer (Spice Girls)
Punky Brewster all grown up.
1976 - Soleil Moon Frye - actress
And, if you happen to be in (or going to) Japan, today is the Hiroshima Peace Memorial ceremony as well as the beginning of the TANABATA ceremony in Sendai. (hope there's tea involved...and cake)
Now you know...all of what's happening.
*** Next, Sean Hannity has been broadcasting his show (10PM - FNC) from ISRAEL for the last two days and I have to say it's been extremely riveting to watch.
Can't wait for tonight's show. It is a real eye-opener and shows what other stations will not.
To see what Israel has to endure (as a nation and as a people) while the "hamasholes" (as Mark Levin has been calling them) seek to wipe the Jewish people off the earth...kinda sounds like GENOCIDE to me...now WHERE have we heard this before?
That's right...NAZI GERMANY.
What is really pissing me off about all of this is that HERE, in AMERICA, there are protests AGAINST Israel...
Yeah, this should be a real "WTF???" moment.
Why isn't anyone protesting those hamasholes who are trying to kill every last Jew on the planet?
What the hell did Israel do except to defend itself when attacked?
They don't actively go out and look for Palestinians to kill in a wholesale manner.
But, the Palestinian terrorists WILL set off bombs in Jerusalem...or Tel-Aviv.
Sure there are CIVILIANS being killed, but when war happens, that WILL one of the results of that war...no avoiding it.
And it's HAMAS that's been tunneling UNDER the border INTO Israel, and NOT the other way around, people.
We can't be THAT "selective" when fighting, no matter how smart our weapons become, because the bad guys will invariably use their OWN civilians as human shields to exacerbate the perception of the conflict...to their advantage.
Think of this as a way to garner (false) sympathy for the cause of terrorism...and too many people HERE have bought into this ruse.
THAT is what pisses me off...all this sudden surge in antisemitism.
Enough with being sad over the hamasholes...it's the ISRAELIS who are being attacked without provocation.
Study HISTORY a bit...LEARN the truth, and then spread the word.
*** Last back to the mud puddle...it saddens me to see that people can be so EASILY manipulated in their lives, especially when it comes to POLITICS.
The worse part is that some people don't even become engaged at all.
I admit to once being in that crowd...didn't have the time...didn't concern me...and so on.
Thing is, it DOES concern us all, for the results of our indecision are something we have to live with, just as much as all the decisions we make in our lives. It's one of those nasty unavoidable aspects of life.
The best we can do is get ourselves more learned about what DOES apply to us, bone up on history, and the basic tenets of our founding documents, so as to get a better grasp of what's going on both HERE, and elsewhere, because ALL of it affects us to some degree.
Not saying we ALL need to be law-scholars...just informed enough to help us make better decisions...better choices in life.
And, isn't that always what it comes down to?
Shouldn't be difficult at all for ANY of us to do...if we're willing to pursue the quest for knowledge...and wisdom, right?
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.

05 August 2014

Tuesday Tidbits...
We're waking up to some light rain showers this morning here in the Hoosierland.
Kinda nice, really...a chance to clean things off a bit and freshen the air outside.
Today's high will be around 80 degrees (again) and this morning rain will give way to heavier rain, so I'm not expecting to see anything close to a sunrise this morning.
There may be fog in outlying areas early in the day.
We might catch some sun...later.
"Some day a real rain will come and wash all this scum off the streets." - Travis Bickle (Robert DeNiro) in Taxi Driver (1976).
There 'ya go...free quote today.
In the meanwhile, let's top off that cup of whatever we're having today and get this puppy rolling...
*** First off of the stack is our "What the hell happened today, Bob?"
So here we go.
August 5:
1100 - The FIRST Henry ascends to the throne of England and is crowned in Westminster Abbey
The Mayflower 2 - 50th anniv photo
1620 - The Mayflower sets sail from Southampton, England on it's 1st attempt to reach the new world.
1861 - The Revenue Act of 1861 takes place, and the U.S. governemnt velies the FIRST INCOME TAX - 3% of all incomes OVER $800.
(it was rescinded in 1872...but obviously not for that long, right?)
1882 - The Standard Oil of New Jersey is established.
1884 - The cornerstone for the STATUE OF LIBERTY is laid on Bedloe's Island (now Liberty Island) in New York harbor.
1914 - In Cleveland, OH, the FIRST electric traffic light is installed (guess running red lights soon followed)
The Great Houdini
1926 - Harry Houdini performs his greatest feat; spending 91 minutes underwater in a sealed tank before escaping. (that's one helluva breath he took)
1944 - Polish insurgents liberate a German labor camp in Warsaw, freeing 348 Jewish prisoners.
1944 - The Nazis begin a week-long massacre of between 40,000 to 100,000 civilians and POWs in Wola, Poland.
1944 - About 545 Japanese POWs attempt to escape outside the town of Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
1957 - American Bandstand debuts on the ABC television network (from Philly) with Dick Clark as host.
1962 - Nelson Mandela is jauled in South Africa during the apartheid. He would be released in 1990.
1963 - The USA, the UK, and the USSR sign the nuclear tests ban treaty.
1974 - The U.S. Congress places a 1 billion dollar limit on military aid to South Vietnam
1981 - President Ronald Reagan fires 11,359 striking air traffic controllers who ignored his order to return to work.
Notable Birthdays:
1850 - Guy de Maupassant (d-1893)
1862 - Joseph Merrick (the elephant man d-1890)
From The Miniver Story
1887 - Reginald Owen - English-American actor (d -972)
A true legend.
1906 - John Huston - actor, director and screenwrriter (d-1987)
1911 - Robert Taylor - actor (d-1969)
...One giant leap for mankind.
1930 - Neil Armstrong - First man on the moon (d-2012)
1935 - John Saxon - actor
1940 - Roman Gabriel - football QB
That boy can play!
1947 - Rick Derringer - American songwriter and guitarist (The McCoys and Edgar Winter Group)
1956 - Maureen McCormick - American actress and singer
There are a lot more, but since I never heard of them ( I don't follow Greek cricket players or Sri Lankan actresses), you'll have to fend for yourselves there...LOL.
*** Next up, some of those marvelous stories that you probably won't be seeing from the "drive-by:" media.
Remember, we ALL have to be more "sensitive".
Like THIS one all about how OUR troops have to bow to "sensitivity"...let's hope that a physical "bow" is not in the offing.
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/07/29/troops-told-to-refrain-from-eating-drinking-in-front-muslims/
-- Then, there is THIS story about how illegals were "secretly dumped" into TENNESSEE...
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/07/28/feds-secretly-dump-hundreds-illegal-immigrants-in-tennessee/
THAT'S not the ONLY state this has happened.
Something SIMILAR happened here in INDIANA, and our governor sent a latter to :"da prez" letting HIM know he wasn't all that pleased with this decision which went BEHIND THE BACK of many state leaders (in many other states).
My concern is HOW the F$ck are you going to round them all back the hell up when you DEPORT them back to their nation of origin?
(short answer - you WON'T)
-- And those who remember "Ole Miss" might want to take a look at the possible NEW ole Miss:
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/national/ole-miss-action-plan-aims-steer-away-racial-divide/ngtMS/
Even MORE "sensitivity" training.
The DIVERSITY POLICE are at it AGAIN...telling everyone HOW to walk, talk, and think.
Anyone smell some AUTHORITARIANISM burning in the air?
--Then, there's THIS story about how judges NEED to be chided when making legal decisions about a CROSS:
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-cross-at-ground-zero-20140731-story.html
Yes, Virginia (and all you f$cking ACLU losers)...the CROSS is a symbol of...(wait for it)...CHRISTIANITY!
Get over yourselves and your libtard progressive-secularist humanistic atheist agenda and get with the REAL program.
In other words...STOP busting on Christians who display a cross.
Put away the broad brushes and stop saying a cross is a symbol to ALL people, because it is not.
It's a CHRISTIAN symbol...like the Star of David is a HEBREW symbol...got it?
*** Last back to the barn today, I don't know about all of you, but I am getting DAMN sick and tired of ALL these assholes in our society (and the world for that matter) who are CONSTANTLY dictating to those of us with a modicum of common sense HOW we should conduct our lives (obviously in "their image").
If it's not about what type of bulb we have to use, it's the type of food we should be eating...or the type of ENERGY  (the cost will necessarily skyrocket) we have to be using.
Or, it's to be more DIVERSE when it comes to ANY person who is differing from normality...or to be more "sensitive" to the needs of all those illegals flooding across our border...BULLSHIT!
Looks pretty damn SECURE to ME.
The damn WHITE HOUSE has a FENCE around it, and it keeps out those who don't BELONG in there REAL well, doesn't it?
(the armed guards and concrete stanchions help as well)
So, why not do the same along OUR BORDERS?
Now that's humorous.
Then, the CAFE standards for vehicles will soon "dictate" a 50+ MPG ruling in another decade...and that will ONLY lead to MORE HIGHWAY DEATHS, because when you make cars lighter (to get that mileage), they become UNSAFE (at any speed...with apologies to Ralph Nader...lol)
And getting back to this "diversity for diversity sake" crap...all that does is FURTHER polarize the populace (except for the sheeple, who will follow anyone off any cliff at the drop of a hat for any feigned reason).
I'm tired of all these minuscule groups of people dictating to the masses as to HOW we need to act, how to treat others and how to respect them (when THEY show absolutely no respect in kind).
When people fall into this trap, there can never be any long-term good that will come of it...that's just what I've come to know as a citizen of this planet for almost 62 years...you look, you listen...and you LEARN.
And if you don't...you've missed a sh*tload of things you NEED to know.
Those people need to get off the cruise-control mentality (by letting the government drive) and take the wheel back and feel the road beneath them, so they can get THEMSELVES to their OWN destination as intended..
They might get to know a LOT more about others, as well as themselves in the process, and that can solve a myriad of problems, right?
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.