Thoughts For Thursday...

Yes, that is the weekend you hear beckoning to you...and it's right around the corner.
And, as far as summer days go, I think you might find today a lot better than the last several.
Our Hoosierland weather will see us with mostly sunny skies, a LOT less humidity and temps reaching to the lower 80s.
This "trend" will continue well into Sunday, so make the most of it.
Now, let's get our morning drink (because blogging is thirsty work) and we shall see what has been going on elsewhere...
*** First out of the cabbage patch is the answer to yesterday's WHO SAID THAT? quote:
"It is discouraging to see how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit."
This timely message was brought to us by someone you often hear about, but might not know that much about - Noel Coward (16 December 1899 - 26 March 1973), and was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer...and you guessed it, he has a WIKI:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No%C3%ABl_Coward
Interesting to know that he was "knighted" ( 1969 - SIR Noel Pearce Coward ).
He was best known for his wit, flamboyance, and what was said to be his "personal style" (by Time magazine, when that publication used to be GOOD).
Now, if his name association eludes you, that's to be expected, unless you follow stage acting and plays, rather than the cinema.
And the list of actors and actresses who appeared in his numerous plays is very lengthy.
Coward was a homosexual, but, due to the times in which he lived, this was not publicly mentioned.
He was often referred to as a "congenital bachelor".
He left the UK (for tax reasons - what other reason would there be?) in the 1950s and settled in Bermuda (but also bought houses in Switzerland and Jamaica). His  "expatriate" neighbors and friends included Richard Burton, Joan Sutherland, Elizabeth Taylor, David Niven, Blake Edwards and Julie Andrews, along with Ian Fleming and his wife..
He hung in the best circles and was his own person, refusing to follow trends and fads.
His image was self-crafted...and he was proud of it.
The WIKI is a good read and shows the persistence in which he pursued his passion for play writing.
When you see all that he has done in the years he was with us, you can clearly see how prolific he became, and what an influence he brought to acting as a whole. Spanning two world wars is a pretty lofty accomplishment.
And, apparently, his influence to many both on screen and on stage is still being felt.
*** Next up is our 'What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature:
July 230 - 
---Today is NATIONAL CHEESECAKE DAY.

Like lasagna, ANY day is a good one for cheesecake, especially the kind you find on the east coast.
Those people in NYC can make some ORGASMIC cheesecake...damn slice is rich as hell and seemingly melts in your mouth.
The closest thing here in Fort Wayne is the dessert found at Red Lobster.
Their cheesecake is pretty damn good for a restaurant chain.
---And, it's FATHER-IN-LAW DAY.

Well, mine is in Vincennes and he just had a birthday (whaddya doing Don...double dipping? LOL)
My first father-in-law passed a couple years back (former Philly PD officer), and there are times I think quite fondly of him.
---And, since were living in "The month of the hot dog"...

Today is NATIONAL CHILI DOG DAY.
(they had some great ones back in those Philly cart-vendors downtown.)
Moving on...
*** And speaking of police, there is another situation (this time in Cincy) about a college campus police officer (now) charged with murder.

Here's the story link:
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/07/29/ohio-police-officer-who-shot-driver-during-traffic-stop-indicted-on-murder/

Now, I have to take umbrage at the Cincy prosecutor charging the officer with MURDER...a manslaughter charge would be more in the offing here.
But again, as is always the case, let's look at the person who was killed by the officer.
(in the case most recently in Cincy, the driver was a repeat offender with non-violent records, but still shows a lack of respect for authority, does it not?)

What GOES around, COMES around.

They were black, refused to comply with the officer and must have presented an immediate threat TO the officer for him to react in the manner he did.
But that's NEVER entertaining enough for the unwashed masses and low-information people out there.
There ALWAYS has to be a level of "Bread and Circuses" attached to this.
There are those who live to see that "pound of flesh" meted out...like sharks chasing after chum.
Also, we hear this "Black Lives Matter" BS shouted about, as if NO other lives on this f$cking planet matter.
What about blacks killing blacks in the ghettos of Chicago (or any other major city)???
Not one damn word about THOSE lives mattering to anyone, is there?

Only when it's "convenient", though.

Got news for them...ALL lives DO matter, or at least they SHOULD.
If anything, this "new" mantra is nothing more than the old "Black Power", fist-in-the-air, rail against authority rhetoric that was perpetrated back in the late 60s into the mid-70s..change the name, it's STILL the same.

Where's Angela Davis?

Just hope the morons don't see this as another opportunity to burn another chunk of another city to the ground.
*** While we're on the subject of MORONS...do you know who is behind this "Black Lives Matter" movement...who is FUNDING it?

Should be on the FBI'S 10 most wanted list.

None other than that nasty-ass, socialistic, one world government, down with America bastard - George Soros.(...cue the Darth Vader music..)
Yeah, it's true...who'da thunk it?

NOT part of Abrams Star Wars trilogy, thank God.

Here's some of the proof:
http://theconservativetreehouse.com/2015/01/19/report-george-soros-money-behind-ftp-and-black-lives-matter-agitationprotests/
Yes, this "Open Society Foundation" is behind this, as well as the Ferguson protests.

Kinda makes code pink look tame by comparison, hmm?
Even the UK's Daily Mail picked up on this:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2913625/Billionaire-George-Soros-spent-33MILLION-bankrolling-Ferguson-demonstrators-create-echo-chamber-drive-national-protests.html
Funny, how LITTLE it's mentioned HERE in the USA, isn't it?
None of the big 3 networks cover it, nor do hardly ANY cable news channels (with the exception of FOX).Wonder why that is?
I think we ALL know why...don't we?
*** Next up, how old is YOUR car?
Mine turned 32 years old earlier this month (and no, there wasn't any cake, dammit)

If I could only live THAT long to make it so...

Well, the average age of vehicles has reached a new high...11.5 YEARS.
And here's the skinny on this:
http://www.journalgazette.net/business/US-cars-older--last-longer-7970534

Older, easier, and SAFER by far.

Yeah, it seems people prefer older cars, because they're realizing what I stated here numerous times - too much crap on board.
(well, that's the uncomplicated way of putting it)
"People behind the wheel aren't ENJOYING the benefits of the new technology" they say.
If by "enjoying" you mean being given wrong directions from the Sat-Nav , being FRAGGED by a deploying airbag (K.I.T.T. never needed one of THOSE), or having your CAR hacked into, then NO, that's not what I consider "enjoyment".
People are not wanting to adapt to the semi-autonomous aspect of newer vehicles. I say GOOD FOR THEM!
That's right - I LIKE DRIVING MYSELF.
Don't trust any "system" to do it for me - this isn't Logan's Run, Demolition Man, or some other dystopian futuristic "vision" of vehicular mobility.

THREE MILLION MILES...and still running - WTG!

And if we're smart, it never WILL be.
"Experts" say that there is no "rule" as to automotive longevity.
With proper care, there's no reason a car can't run 200K+ miles.
There's one guy in NY state that has an old Volvo that clocked over THREE MILLION  MILES...and is still running.
Volvo gave him a NEW car to commemorate it, too.
Here's this story:
http://www.today.com/news/man-drives-record-3-million-miles-same-1966-volvo-8C11307586
Seems Mr. Gordon is onto something here...no electronics (to go wonky and leave you stranded), no airbags (for others to steal or get killed by), no entertainment center (that's called the family room at home), and none of the garbage loaded onto new vehicles that jack up the prices for cars and trucks that are constantly RECALLED.
Makes you long for the GOOD old days (and the cars that drove around during such times).
*** Last back to the roadside vegetable stand...it's not hard to see how certain people foment dissension where none is really warranted.

Go ahead...check 'em if 'ya seen 'em.

And in times when people in general have developed extremely THIN skin, such people are "ripe for the picking" when it comes to race-hustlers and overall anti-American sentiments.
This is not to say that all hope is lost...quite the contrary.
What it demonstrates to those of us who take the time to pay attention, is to unmask those behind the curtain.
We're calling THEM out for a change...and that's a change that has been LONG overdue.

If we need to change anything - it's THIS.

This was OUR country...OUR America long before it was theirs, and it will remain such.
But, with any REAL struggle, it means that the work of all those who DO love this country is not over...it's barely begun, in fact.
Those who founded this nation had to make similar decisions when faced with tyranny, and WE may have to do the same, albeit in manners other than those of the founders. We have all this technology at OUR disposal...so let's use it, as those who promote evil against us have been doing.
It's OUR turn, and  while evil plays this game for the chance at POWER...WE, who stand on the other side of this battle play NOT for control...we play to WIN...as did our ancestors.
Like I say...it's OUR choice as to which direction this nation will go...let's make the BEST choice we can for everyone's sake.

Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.