Monthly Archives: November 2012

A Real Sweet Deal… 2

Aside, Off The Top • Tags: , ,

Banner - Aside 2Source:  Hostess to Seek Approval for Executive Bonuses – ABC News.

Hostess Brands Inc. plans to ask for a judge’s approval Thursday to give its top executives bonuses totaling up to $1.8 million as part of its wind-down plans

It seems in the upper echelons of the business world you get a big bonus if your workers work hard and the profits come in.  But it also seems that if you screw up the company and turn it into a tear-apart bankruptcy you also get a big bonus to stay around to rip it apart.

The little guy just can’t seem to win in today’s capitalistic world. I will lay dollars to donuts (pun definitely intended) that the line workers will be summarily terminated without a dime’s worth of severance.

BTW, For all you guys that are panicking because you might lose your ding-dongs not to worry as the article says there is a lot of interest in buying up the parts. Ding Dongs will stay a vital part of your life. :)

The Pit And The Pendulum….

Government, In The News, Politics • Tags: , , ,

source:  Romney: Obama won by giving “gifts” to voter blocs – Political Eye – CBS News.

In a phone call with his presidential campaign’s financial backers, Mitt Romney today said he lost the election to President Obama because of the “gifts” Mr. Obama gave to certain constituencies, like young voters and Hispanics, the Los Angeles Times reports.

“The president’s campaign,” he said, “focused on giving targeted groups a big gift — so he made a big effort on small things. Those small things, by the way, add up to trillions of dollars.”

It seems that Mr. Romney is pretty much a run-of-the-mill politician. He wants to blame his defeat on everyone else but himself. In his mind he ran a perfect campaign so it must have been something else that caused him to lose. In his case he wants to blame it on “gifts”. More…

They know it is painful; they know it is damaging but…. 6

Off The Top, Silliness • Tags: , ,

Some call them sexy; some call them erotic. I call them gross!!!!

I’m sorry ladies but I simply can’t understand why you torture yourselves so much? Do you think if you are six inches taller people will be more attracted to you?  Do you really think they make you look sexier?

Here is what I think and of course since I am just an old guy I’m sure you could care less but I am going to have my say anyway.  I kinda believe the a woman’s IQ is inversely proportional to the height of her heels.  When I see women prancing around on the tips of their toes I wonder who they are trying to impress.  I just can’t understand why so many women, who usually have more common sense than most of us men have, do such stupid things to themselves simply because someone tells them it is the latest trend. More…

Those Words…. 1

Cultures, In The News, Politics • Tags: , , ,

Source: Sojourner Mail November 16, 2012

Hearts & Minds by Jim Wallis

The day after the election, Southern Baptist Seminary President Albert Mohler said, “I think this was an evangelical disaster.” 

Not really. But it was a disaster for the religious right, which had again tied its faith to the partisan political agenda of the Republican Party — which did lose the election. But Nov. 6 was an even deeper disaster for the religious right’s leaders, because they will no longer be able to control or easily co-opt the meaning of the term “evangelical.” 

During this election, much of the media continued to use the word as a political term — as a key constituency of the Republican conservative base. But what the media really means when they use term “evangelical” is “conservative white evangelical.” All other kinds of evangelicals are just never counted.

Just as the 2012 electoral results finally revealed the demographic transformation of America — which has been occurring for quite some time — it also dramatically demonstrated how the meaning of the word “evangelical” is being transformed.  More…

About The Debt… 1

About Life, Military, Quotes, Will's Quotes • Tags: , , , , , ,

We are three billion in the hole and will be three billion more next year, and not a Congressman has got the nerve to ask voters to pay part of it.  –  January 29, 1933    Will Rogers

Obviously this quote was said long before even Grover Norquist’s parents were born but it is equally true today as it was in Will’s time. The fact of the matter is up until President Bush, taxes have always gone up to help pay for our wars. But when so many  from the GOP crawled up to the altar of Mr. Norquist with their pledges to NEVER raise taxes this tradition was very unwisely flushed down the toilet. When will we ever learn to never say never? Sometimes it seems that those guys in congress love their party more than the love their country. I don’t know; I’m just a simple guy but it seems that way to me. More…

Power to the People…..

Government, In The News, Politics • Tags: , , ,

source:  Nonwhite voters and changing values make 2012 election pivotal – Los Angeles Times.


The 2012 election marked the point at which a new American electoral coalition solidified its hold on politics, one built on the country’s growing nonwhite population and on cultural changes that have given younger voters of all races a far different outlook on political issues from that of their elders.

It is still not clear just who made up the majority that swept President Obama into a second term and seemingly muted the Tea Party’s power in today’s politics. But it is obvious that the $1 billion spent by the 1% had little effect on who won elections. It is obvious that the common people, many of color, gained power from this election cycle. More…

Bumper Sticker Says It All…..

A Picture Is..., Silliness • Tags: , , ,

I know I promised to move away from politics but when I saw this bumper sticker last week I couldn’t resist showing it to you. Especially because it was in Indiana which is a very red State. It kind of surprised me like when I come across another deaf person. :)  If anyone has something similar for Democrats I would love to see it. But then again an elephant has to hurt worse than a donkey…

Karl Rove on why Romney lost: Obama was ‘suppressing the vote’ 2

In The News, Politics • Tags: , , , ,

via Karl Rove on why Romney lost: Obama was ‘suppressing the vote’ – CSMonitor.com.

“He succeeded by suppressing the vote, by saying to people, ‘you may not like who I am, and I know you can’t bring yourself to vote for me, but I’m going to paint this other guy as simply a rich guy who only cares about himself,’ ” Rove said.

By his definition of suppression, it sounds just like traditional “opposition research” and negative advertising. Does Rove (himself a purveyor of negative ads in his work for George W. Bush and now at the Crossroads GPS group) have some different point to make, or is this just sour grapes over the election outcome?

Karl Rove has a lot of explaining to do. He took over a $1 billions from some very rich folks and delivered virtually nothing for them.  Not only did their candidate Mr. Romney lose the election but many of the tea party also came up short. Mr. Rove has a lot of explaining to do but even I did not imagine he would blame it on President Obama suppressing the vote? More…

Intolerance…. 7

About Life, Quotes, Things Spiritual, Will's Quotes • Tags: , , ,

Many times Will Rogers’ words are an inspiration to me. Of course he saw a lot of prejudice in his times. Maybe more so than even I do today. When I found these words from him about intolerance I found them indeed inspiring.  No explanation is needed. These words stand on their own today as much as they did in Will’s day.

I have sometimes wondered if the preachers themselves have not something to do with intolerance. You hear and read a sermon nowadays, and the biggest part is taken up by knocking or trying to prove the falseness of some other denomination. They say the Catholics are damned, that the Jew’s religion is all wrong, or that the Christian Scientists are a fake, or that Protestants are all out of step.

Now, just suppose, for a change they preach to you about the Lord and not about the other fellows’ church, for every man’s religion is good. We are all trying to arrive at the same place according to our own conscience and teachings. It don’t matter which road you take  -  March 11, 1923    Will Rogers

I Got Some Explaining to Do…… 6

Aside, Off The Top, Quotes, Will's Quotes

Banner - Aside 2
I have some explaining to do here. In alignment with making a new design for this blog and this morning’s post about remaking ourselves I am making a new commitment to going back to the roots of this blog.   In other words I am turning over a new leaf. (I got to figure the origin of that phrase sometime) The words of Will Rogers have been a significant part of my life and of this blog. Regrettably I have been straying from that general area lately but I intend to make a course correction going forward.

That does not mean that I will quit talking about folks that might be controversial in one way or another but now I will do it in a more lighthearted mode. In other words I am going to move away from the dark side of politics.   I will also be going to Will’s words more frequently than I have in the past.

And that’s a promise….

We are living in an age of explanations, and plenty of  ’em too. N0 two things thats been done to us has been explained twice the same way be even the same man  - January 28, 1934    Will Rogers

 Now that I am done explaining it is time to get to work :)

Remaking Ourselves….

Inspiring, Things Spiritual • Tags: , , , , , ,

As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world — that is the myth of the atomic age — as in being able to remake ourselves. — Gandhi

When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood  behind me.  — 1 Corinthians 13

Looking back on my life Gandhi’s quote above inspires me with its wisdom and the second quote from the Bible mirrors the same message.  Being able to see the circumstances and the facts and then making changes is where the greatness lies.
This seems to be a very tough message in today’s world where gridlock and stubborn instance of being right is the norm. There are just too many in the world who are consumed by their current worldviews  and are totally unwilling to even consider that they just might not have all the answers. More…

Happy Thanksgiving…. 1

Off The Top • Tags: , , ,

While this post is being automatically published I am busy working in the Backstreet Soup Kitchen preparing a Thanksgiving for those homeless and financially challenged in my area.  I can’t think of a better place I would want to be. Thank you Lord for showing me my purpose in life. Caring for others is MUCH more rewarding than focusing on myself. Thank you for the many blessings in my life….

What Happened To You John??? 1

Off The Top • Tags:

John, I can’t tell you how unhappy I am to see what you have become. I so admired you in the past.  You were the self-proclaimed “maverick” in the senate. You were a moderate when so many of your GOP colleagues were turning to the right fringes of your party.  You did not strictly tow the party line when so many other were afraid not to.  I actually looked up to you as the person who would bring the GOP back to the center.

But then in 2008 you seemed to start unraveling.  When you chose Sarah as your running mate I began doubting your wisdom.  I couldn’t have dreamed of a worse choice, that is until Romney’s choice. (I just don’t understand why the GOP guys pick such radicals to be “a heartbeat away”?)  Then came the campaign season where like so many others in politics you mutated into something completely unlike the original you. You seemed to bend in whatever direction your handlers instructed you. I couldn’t understand why you did not hold to your principles. More…

Turning Human???

Quotes, Will's Quotes • Tags: , , ,

The whole thing seems too good to be true, but the whole world is changing, so maybe they are going to turn human. – May 18, 1933    – Will Rogers

Sometimes I like to “talk” with my heroes. The following in my imagined soliloquy to Will Rogers about his quote for today:

Will, I must admit that I don’t really know where you are going with this quote? Maybe you are talking about how people came together with common support during the Great Depression when you said these words.  I too see the whole world changing and probably more rapidly than you ever did.  Although you did live through most of the Great Depression so maybe I am wrong in that regard.  But I seem to see the exact opposite this time around in the changing world. More…

Separation of Church and State — Taxes

Getting Serious, Off The Top • Tags: , , ,

Source: Churches and Taxes – ProCon.org.

US churches received an official federal income tax exemption in 1894, and they have been unofficially tax-exempt since the country’s founding. All 50 US states and the District of Columbia exempt churches from paying property tax. Donations to churches are tax-deductible. The debate continues over whether or not these tax benefits should be retained.

Proponents argue that a tax exemption keeps the government out of church finances and thus upholds the separation of church and state. They say that churches deserve a tax break because they provide crucial social services, and that church tax exemptions have been in place for over 200 years without turning America into a theocracy.

Opponents argue that giving churches special tax exemptions violates the separation of church and state, and that tax exemptions are a privilege, not a right guaranteed by the US Constitution. They say that in tough economic times the government cannot afford what amounts to a subsidy worth billions of dollars every year.

More…

The Separation of Church and State — The Founders Views…

Jefferson Quotes, Off The Top, Other Quotes • Tags: , ,

I am going to do a couple of posts here on a pretty controversial topic and that is church and State. I just finished three months worth of political posts so I thought I might as well tackle another difficult issue before my blood pressure  finally goes down to normal.

Being a U.S. history buff I have read quite a bit on Jefferson and his views of the separation of church and State. The primary information about this topic comes from his writing called “An Act For Establishing Religious Freedom” written in 1786.  Another writing prominently mentioned in this area is his response to Danbury Baptist Association letter written in 1801 when he was president. More…

Eternal Peace…

Book Reviews, Inspiring • Tags: , , , ,

Several years ago I came across a small book entitled Quaker Spirituality – Selected Writings. I’m still not sure what made me pause on the title but I am glad I did. Inside that book was an essay by Thomas R. Kelly (1893-1941) talked about the “Eternal Presence”. I didn’t know it then but this essay put me on the path to learning much more about Quakers. It gave me the most complete understanding of who God was that I have ever had in my life up to that point.

Here are some of the words from that essay. I am just going to give you bits an pieces but enough to get its message across:

More…