I'll decide about a topic for tomorrow evening. Until then, I sincerely wish the Evangelicals of the USA would put their Bible verses into context instead of treating them as if God said it TODAY !

Dr. Laura is a Twit.  She is NOT a Biblical Scholar.  She is a Political Hack and nothing more.

The photo is:
Leviticus 23:24 "Say to the Israelites: 'On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts"

I received the following in an email today.

In her radio show, Dr Laura Schlesinger said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance. The following response is an open letter to Dr. Laura, penned by a US resident, which was posted on the Internet.

Dear Dr. Laura:

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination ... End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them.

1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination?

7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here.

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I'm confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.
 Your adoring fan,

James M. Kauffman, Ed.D. Professor Emeritus, Dept. Of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education University of Virginia

P.S. It would be a damn shame if we couldn't own a Canadian.

"The Kent State Truth Tribunal" is being conducted for two days. Today was the first day. (Click title here. Thank you. Donate if you care to.)

Some time ago "The Kent State Tribunals" were begun.  There was significant testimony given, but, the truth is there were many more people alive and witnesses to the actions that day.

There is more testimony being taken tomorrow and the testimonies already recorded are online.  This session began today in San Francisco and will continue there tomorrow. 

The photo is Memorial to Jeffrey Miller on Ohio State Campus. Taken from approximately the same perspective as John Filo's famous photograph.

The recording of testimony will resume in October for two days in New York City.

This is an important and effective method of recording a moment in time where unrest of students was so overstated by the Washington administration that it created an atmosphere that demonized them unleasing weapons against unarmed citizens.  THAT is not a minor isssue. 

Now, forty years later, it is safe to record the moment from memories of those present on 'the day four students were killed' for political power.  There is absolutely no other reason why those students were killed that day.  They were simply students protesting the harnessing of their generation to die in a war that was killing millions of Vietnamese.  They were not armed.  It was the end of the semester and everyone was going home.  No one was occupying buildings and there was no interruption of classes.  It was Final Exams and the exams were nearly finished.  It was the last act of frustration with war before leaving campus for the summer and they never breathed after that moment.

Heck of a way to introduce a book.

I can't help believe President Castro is very serious about the 'brink of war' with nuclear weapons.  He has a unique circle of friends and I am sure there are many whom feel as though if they don't act now they won't have an opportunity later.

I am also quite sure their observation is correct.  The military exercises in the Pacific and the sanctions by the USA of Iran is the beginning of sincerely permanent measures by the USA to 'end the threat' of nuclear weapons.

If President Castro's friends are talking about 'acting' on their observations it is good news for the USA in that they are actually achieving measures serious enough to end nuclear threats. 

I thought President Obama had invited openness and conversation all these leaders in ways that will promote nuclear non-proliferation.  It would be good for President Castro to promote peace and commerce with his friends and The West in a way that is peaceful and productive.  Perhaps with age comes wisdom enough to change the dialogue.

...Castro, (click title to entry - thank you) who will mark his 84th birthday on Monday, appeared lucid and healthy during his 90-minute appearance before a full session of Cuba's legislature, though an aide helped him walk around the stage.
It was the first time he participated in an official government act in four years, and the latest in a string of recent public appearances, after four years largely out of the limelight, that have fueled speculation that he's increasing his leadership role in Cuba.

Can the CIA 'predetermine' the 'sentence' of an American known to be 'aiding enemies' of the USA?

The picture is of a Gitmo detainee being processed.

The difference between the 'disposition' of Gitmo detainees that are sincerely enemies of the USA and responsible for American deaths and Anwar Al-Awlaki is the fact 'Alwaki is still out there and American.'

...Federal authorities Wednesday granted two civil liberties groups a license (click title to entry - thank you) they need in challenging the government's authority to use lethal force against U.S. citizens designated as terrorists.

The action by Treasury Department officials comes just one day after the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) filed suit to receive the license they need to go to court. They say it is a first step toward trying to stop the potential targeting of alleged U.S. terrorists abroad.

Regulations give Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control authority to license those who provide legal representation to challenge the government....

The CIA has already investigated the 'influence' Awlaki played in the Fort Hood violence that lead to many deaths of USA soldiers.  Those findings were submitted to the USA military.  It is all academic from there. 

But, the 'basis' of the argument is that somehow Awlaki has to be arrested, read his rights, given a trial and then sentenced before the USA can pass judgement on his 'death sentence.' 

Once the CIA determined 'the role' Awlaki played in the deaths of American soldiers, he was judged as an 'enemy combatant' status.

Enemy Combatant under the Geneva Conventions states, "Any person in an armed conflict who could be properly detained under the laws and customs of war."

The difference between that definition and the 'status' of American Awlaki is he is not detained. 

We already know there are persons such as Osama bin Laden on "The Most Wanted List" with a price on their head.  "The Most Wanted List" includes Americans.  Does that mean they can be hunted?  Yes.  That means someone 'better be' hunting them.

Does American Awlaki have a special status outside the influence of the intelligent community to be hunted because he is OPERATING outside the USA and an American? 

No.

Should the USA mlitary and/or CIA try to take the 'jerk' alive?  Sure, but, if they aren't able to and the guy dies then I guess he loses, huh?

If Alwaki's father has information leading to the 'safe arrest' of his son, KNOWING, he had absolutely nothing to do with the deaths of the soldiers of Fort Hood.

Even if Alwaki's father has information leading to the 'safe arrest' of his son at all, I suggest he provide it and end 'the danger' of his son's current status.

I would strongly suggest the lawyers (now properly processed with credentials) for Alwaki's father come forward with that information and ask for a further investigation of the evidence at hand exonerating his son.  Otherwise, Alwaki may be an American, but, as an Imam advocating hatred of a CLASS OF PEOPLE, namely Americans he is in danger of being killed while 'WANTED.'  Just because he was born in the USA and educated in the USA does not exonerate him from advocating and inspiring the acts of others against an entire CLASS OF PEOPLE. 

Imams in the USA do not have special status.  This is not an 'Islamic' middle ground where holy men can make outrageous statements and expect people to carry out violence against others.  For how long has The West stated that kind of influence among the young men in the Middle East is an issue?  A long time.  We advocate the closing of madrassas for that reason.

So, an American Imam is no different than any other citizen KNOWN to have invoked words of hatred that manifested in violence.  He is wanted.  He is dangerous.  It is determined.  If there is evidence otherwise then it needs to be submitted and investigated to change his status, but, the 'idea' that as an American he can avoid the 'intervention' of American law and military is hideous.

The USA made a mistake.  They allowed his website to be viewed by the people of this country because we practice Freedom of Speech.  What we as 'generous' people did not discern was that our generosity would be used against us in allowing such openness.

As an Imam he authorized the deaths of USA soliders still within our borders.  He is as guilty as any general of an opposing military force.

President Clinton announces another record budget surplus

..."Eight years ago, (click title to entry - thank you) our future was at risk," Clinton said Wednesday morning. "Economic growth was low, unemployment was high, interest rates were high, the federal debt had quadrupled in the previous 12 years. When Vice President Gore and I took office, the budget deficit was $290 billion, and it was projected this year the budget deficit would be $455 billion."...

That was in the year 2000.

THEN.

CAME.

THE BUSH TAX CUTS of 2001  !!!!!!!!!


Greenspan calls for repeal of Bush tax cuts



Warns of crisis if US coffers drained further
By Sewell Chan
New York Times
August 7, 2010
...“I’m in favor of tax cuts, but not with borrowed money,’’ Greenspan, 84, said yesterday in a telephone interview. “Our choices right now are not between good and better; they’re between bad and worse. The problem we now face is the most extraordinary financial crisis that I have ever seen or read about.’’...



http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2010/08/07/greenspan_calls_for_repeal_of_bush_tax_cuts/
 
 

The Department of Defense needs to defuse this "Wikileaks' mess. Charging a YOUNG solider with treason is not the answer.

The issue is the irresponsible handling of documents simply dumped at Wikileaks. 

Escalating the circumstances by focusing on a soldier whom Americans view as an act of conscience is not the answer. 

I believe holding people responsible in a way that won't allow this to happen again while running an internal investigation to secure the country from such scandal and victimization of its military personnel is the correct path to take. 

The Pentagon said it was conducting an investigation into whether information in the logs placed coalition forces or their informants in danger. Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

...As members of the US Congress raised questions about Pakistan's alleged support for the Taliban, officials in Islamabad and Kabul also traded angry accusations on the same issue.
Further disclosures reveal more evidence of attempts by coalition commanders to cover up civilian casualties in the conflict.
The details emerge from more than 90,000 secret US military files, covering six years of the war, which caused a worldwide uproar when they were leaked yesterday.
The war logs show how a group of US marines who went on a shooting rampage after coming under attack near Jalalabad in 2007 recorded false information about the incident, in which they killed 19 unarmed civilians and wounded a further 50.


http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/27/afghanistan-war-logs-tensions-strained
 
The release of information occurred to put the USA on trial.  I would think that is fairly obvious.  Whether the USA 'deserves' to be put on trial is a question many have, but, when it comes to putting the USA on trail in a public forum is the question.  If the 'leaker' did so to the World Court to determine human rights violations this would be more appropriate, but, that wasn't the venue.

In all honesty, I don't know if the documents should be classified.  It appears as though the documents are in regard to actual combat situations that could be testimony of any soldier in the military if they decided to discuss them in a public forum.  I think the Defense Department needs to put this into context and realize 'the truth' about the war within these documents is probably not a reason to raise the tenor of the confrontation of Wikileaks.

Wikileaks is simply attempting to legally out maneuver the USA Defense Department in order to cause further embarrassment and 'self protect' even if the national security of the country is at stake. 

Determining whether or not these documents are STILL issues of national security is not my priority.  I am not engaged in Afghanistan to know the brevity of that decision, but, to create an atmosphere of animosity within the USA is the wrong thing to do. 

The Congressman that is demanding treason charges and death of this soldier is way out of line and is using this issue for poltiical fodder.  It is not, nor should it be.  It is up to the Defense Department to decide the damage here AND to reduce the size of the 'army of people' deployed throughout the country and military with 'security clearance' of one type or another.  I believe that is the issue and not whether or not the battlefield is secure.  I doubt these documents will do anything at this point to compromise troops.  It isn't current information.

The information proves that the 'Counter Insurgency Measures' that are 'suppose to be the best venue' of defense is a lie.  Basically, that is the case.  Where COIN is suppose to be working and providing a measure of security to the people of Afghanistan so they 'render their fear of the Afghan government and USA meaningless' to 'disarm the propaganda' of the Taliban; is what the realease of documents is all about.  In other words, COIN is a lie because that is not what is actually happening.

To me COIN is not a lie, it is a desperate attempt to continue to carry out a war that was wrongfully abandoned in 2003.  That is what the issue is to me.  Trying to 'go back' to 'readdress Afghanistan' to 'complete' a mission that was primarily abandoned for the invasion into Iraq is the issue at hand.  A war nearly ten years old that isn't accomplishing the goal of destroying al Qaeda and securing allies and the USA from the act of violence on September 11th is the issue.  Obviously, and only now that President Obama took office do the American people understand what really happened and unfortunately we are only beginning to realize the degree of negligence of the national security of the USA during the Bush/Cheney years that occurred.

COIN was painted as a 'real strategy' that would end the conflicts in both countries.  That hasn't occurred.  It isn't going to occur as the USA is dealing with people that kill for 'their god' in a way that is suppose to 'dominate the world' in glory to Allah.  It's nuts. 

The AID workers were Christian, but, that has happened in other countries around the world before.  Missionary work is dangerous to begin with and to realize they are conducting missionary work in a war zone in Northern Afghanistan is about as known risk as any in the world.  Whether they should have been protected by the miltitary, either Afghan or USA is a good question.  But, this type of violence against religious missionary work occurs and it not unique to a war strategy.
 
Whether or not Christian NGOs should be allowed in Afghanistan is a question someone has to answer.  Simply because The West sees 'egalitarianism' as a high priority to its communities isn't necessarily the best 'theory' for a war zone. 

I don't understand how COIN would even allow Chrisitan NGOs access in an area where Muslim dominated communities are suppose to be the focus to the best stability of the nation.  COIN is dealing with radical Islamic insurgents (I don't care to know the dictionary meaning of Islamic either.) and yet are allowing Christian NGOs to administer care in some of the most violent areas of the country.  That is absurd.  That is a counter insurgency strategy?  No, that is active aggravation of the local insurgency. 

Like.  What are you doing already?  And I am suppose to take COIN and the USA military and NATO seriously?  No.  This is not a well run strategy and makes no sense at all.  The USA and NATO with COIN as a directive doesn't even have enough control of the battlefield to carry out their strategy.

COIN is the issue.  It is the reason for the Wikileaks documents and it is why the corruption of Afghanistan flourishes. 

The Wikileaks documents only proves COIN is a 'dreamscape' that never was possible.  Soldiers have a right to defend themselves and COIN puts them right in the middle of villages of civilians where they can't discern who is the enemy.  COIN 'creates' tension and conflict and does not defuse it. 

That is what Wikileaks has done.  IT exposed the defeat of COIN.

Is it worth a young soldier's life in charging him with treason?  No.  He hasn't killed anyone and the release of OLD documents hasn't and doesn't either.

This isn't about American occupation, it is about Jesus Christ. And COIN is going to work wonders in Afghanistan. Sure.

...A third Afghan man traveling with the IAM group said he survived by reciting passages from the Quran and saying, "I am Muslim. Don't kill me."...


The Taliban are 'playing the game' of deception and the USA isn't even calling this a war so much as measure of 'counter insurgency.' 

This is ridiculous.  You know the Third Reich existed and now the Taliban do.  When is this war going to be a war and not a hand holding ceremony and get this over with.  COIN is not a strategy, its a 'borderline personality disorder' dreamscape. 

Either fight the war the USA is suppose to fight with its sophistication or leave.  This is ridiculous.  The Taliban have IMPROVISED EXPLOSIVE DEVISES and the USA can't defeat these bigots?  This is nuts. 

Give the Aghan military all the weapons it wants to lead a strong ground assualt against these morons and get out of the country.  End of discussion. 

Triple digits and not a hurricane in sight. Tropical storm, but, no real heat transfer.

I told you so.

Past three months' hot temperatures set record  (click title to entry - thank you)
By NEIL JOHNSON

The Tampa Tribune
Published: August 1, 2010
 
TAMPA - The past three months have been the hottest May, June and July Tampa has seen in 120 years.
The record actually might go back longer than a dozen decades, but National Weather Service records only go back to 1890.
The average temperature for the past three months was 83.3 degrees. Until this year, the hottest average temperature for May, June and July in Tampa was 82.7 degrees in 1998. The weather service tracks monthly record temperatures by averaging each day's highs and lows....


Heat blamed for U.S. deaths
Published: Aug. 3, 2010 at 10:58 PM
KANSAS CITY, Mo., Aug. 3 (UPI) -- A heat wave has enveloped much of the United States and may be responsible for a third death in the Kansas City, Mo., area, city health officials said Tuesday.
Officials with the Kansas City Health Department said a third death in the city, where the temperature reached 98 degrees, was being investigated by the Jackson County medical examiner, the Kansas City Star reported. No further information was available.
The Health Department said Monday it suspected two other deaths were heat-related.
Accuweather.com said it was 118 degrees Fahrenheit in Death Valley, Calif., Tuesday....


http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/08/03/Heat-blamed-for-US-deaths/UPI-21911280890736/


1998 was a very warm year and sometimes considered a record setter.  It was the case in Flint, Michigan.  Not a preference to location, simply a fact.

..1998 ONE OF THE WARMEST YEARS EVER RECORDED IN SOUTHEAST LOWER



MICHIGAN...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR 1998 WAS ONE OF THE WARMEST ON RECORD


ACROSS SOUTHEAST LOWER MICHIGAN. DETROIT METROPOLITAN AIRPORT HAD


THEIR WARMEST YEAR EVER RECORDED. FLINT BISHOP AIRPORT HAD THEIR


WARMEST YEAR ON RECORD AND IT WAS THE 2ND WARMEST YEAR EVER RECORDED


FOR THE FLINT AREA. FINALLY...TRI-CITIES AIRPORT IN FREELAND HAD


THEIR 2ND WARMEST YEAR EVER RECORDED....
 
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/dtx/warm1998.php
 
 
The point is there was much more 'Earth Surface Humidity' in 1998.  What does that mean?  About this time of year, the hurricane season took an uptick in 1998.  The question is will this year repeat the same pattern and help stablize the triple digit heat?
 

Hurricane Bonnie occurred that year lasting from Aug. 19 - 31.  The season began with a tropical storm by the name of Alex.  Upto Bonnie though the hurricane season was virtually absent.  Following Bonnie, there were twelve more storm, all but one had central pressures below 1000 millibars.
 
Hurricane Georges was a Cat 4.
 
http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/atlantic/1998/index.html
 
It would be helpful if there were some large hurricanes and with the Macondo well filled the timing might be 'just right.'
 
It is the Climate Crisis that started in the 1890s.  Way to much Greenhouse Gases in the troposphere.
 
Kindly continue to be vigilant of the heat, it may or may not get better from here depending on the hurricanes that are spawned.  A repeat of 1998 would be good now.

...and then there was the memorable tour of Africa in 1997 (Click long link below - thank you)

I hope First Lady Obama and First Daughter Sasha are making many friends.
















http://books.google.com/books?id=OjkDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA12&lpg=PA12&dq=hillary+and+chelsea+in+africa&source=bl&ots=UlTkep-DA6&sig=wa869WHzQzrwR6mjWp8GTl0TA5Q&hl=en&ei=8ahcTJDDNcL38Abj54n9Ag&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CBwQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=true

I have a challenge to First Lady Obama when she returns home with Sasha.

How is the ADULT population of the USA ever going to be healthier and thinner with such a large volume of Scooters in the country.

The scooters are everywhere, even the grocery store.  The grocery store provides the scooters.

It just seems to me these folks need physical therapy and exercise as a requirement to having a scooter.

BP continues to exhibit the poorest management decisions conceivable. They need to be banned from USA leases of any kind.

BP is nearly as 'daffed' as the Louisiana leadership.

There is a moritorium of offshore deepwater exploration.  The Gulf Coast of the USA has been devastated by BP's negligence and we have no idea when and IF it will ever recover.

The Gulf of Mexico Loop Current is still receiving oil and dispersant from the Macondo well with unknown consequences. 

The Investigation into the disaster won't be complete until January 2011.  There is a $20 billion trust fund to the disaster's VICTIMS with the potential of more if the fund provies inadequate over the decades and BP wants to drill at the very same location where there is a cap that has leaked and exhibits methane ice on the exterior of the seal.

NO !!!!!

With such claims by BP to 'drill again' into the same high methane content vat with a compromised well already in the area and oil seeps from other wells nearby, BP has exhibited the poorest judgement it could ever have drawn.

NO !!!!!!

Absolutely NOT !

BP needs to be banned from any leases anywhere in the USA.  Legislation needs to be drawn up providing this protection for the country.  BP is a national security risk.


...In a briefing with reporters (click title to entry - thank you) meant to symbolise BP's return to business-as-usual in the Gulf, the chief operating officer, Doug Suttles, said the company may not give up all claims on the Macondo well, which leaked five million barrels of oil into the Gulf.
"There's lots of oil and gas here," Suttles said. "We're going to have to think about what to do with that at some point."
BP's former chief executive, Tony Hayward, told Congress in June that there were 50 million recoverable barrels of oil in the reservoir.
The company faces tens of billions of dollars of damages from the spill....

There is a special edition of The Duck Stamp for support of the Gulf of Mexico Wetland Conservation

The Federal Duck Stamp Act was passed in 1934 by President Herbert Hoover.  It was help acquire and protect the nation's wetlands.  It was viewed as a vital support to "The Migratory Bird Conservation Act" of 1929.

Help Heal the Gulf Coast Wetlands  (click title to entry - thank you)
July 28, 2010
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar unveiled a special edition Federal Duck Stamp envelope known as a silk cachet, that hunters, stamp collectors and other conservationists can purchase for $25 -- or $10 more than the cost of a regular Duck Stamp -- to help conservation efforts in the Gulf of Mexico. The funds will be used to acquire wetlands for inclusion in the more than thirty-eight national wildlife refuges along the Gulf Coast.

All this started due to The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (click here) which is an international treaty.

At any rate, the Duck Stamp is an interesting activity of the Interior Department.  It costs $15.00 a year and the cost hasn't been raised for 20 years.  When one considers the increase to the Postal Service stamps and just cost of living in general, the Duck Stamp is a real bargain.

I personally believe it is time to raise the cost of the Duck Stamp.  The 'depreciation' of the effect of this stamp only speaks to the lack of commitment the citizens of the USA show toward their wetlands and wildlife.  I would think an increase of five to ten dollars annually would be appropriate.

I have no doubt people will ridicule the issue of this 'special silk cache' as BP is suppose to be paying for every detail of the Gulf restoration.  Well, reality in the long run will dictate otherwise.  When one considers that BP will be receiving a federal subsidy in the way of tax breaks due to the tune of about $10.5 billion this year alone due to loss of income, or better said increase in operating costs; the real payors to the $20 billion trust fund will be the American Taxpayer.

This special edition of The Duck Stamp will provide a good way to improve the funding to the Gulf Coast States as a permanent form of income.  I am sure there is no limit on the issue, so sales will go on for some time. 

As we have witnessed with the Gulf Coast disaster, the coastal wetlands are vital to the nation's national security as a food source and place of commerce such as tourism.  Not funding wetland preservation is a folly the nation should avoid.

I find the Special Edition unique and quite beautiful.  A real addition to Duck Stamp Collectors.  Thank you to the Department of the Interior.  Very nice.

I am having a little problem accepting the Right Wing's hatred of Rock 'n' Roll, so I thought I'd make a few comparisons.

Basically, I see this as an expression of The Middle Class Work Ethic and a relationship between TWO people.

A Hard Day's Night by the Beetles

It's been a hard day's night, and I've been working like a dog

It's been a hard day's night, I should be sleeping like a log
But when I get home to you I find the things that you do
Will make me feel alright


You know I work all day to get you money to buy you things
And it's worth it just to hear you say you're gonna give me everything
So why on earth should I moan, 'cause when I get you alone
You know I feel okay
When I'm home everything seems to be right
When I'm home feeling you holding me tight,tight,yeah
It's been a hard day's night, and I've been working like a dog
It's been a hard day's night, I should be sleeping like a log
But when I get home to you I find the things that you do
Will make me feel alright


Owwww


But when I get home to you I find the things that you do
Will make me feel alright
When I'm home everything seems to be right
When I'm home feeling you holding me tight,all through the night,yeah


It's been a hard day's night, and I've been working like a dog
It's been a hard day's night, I should be sleeping like a log
But when I get home to you I find the things that you do
Will make me feel alright
You know I feel alright
You know I feel alright...

There is even a cartoon about it.  How cute.


 

The song below is more or less a Plutocratic Work Theme.  The gal obviously is a worker and seems to think she works very hard for her money.  Then the song goes on to say she is a 'good timin' American daughter, that is a redneck, blue collar worker that parties down to her last dollar. 

Why is it that partying hard has to use the dollar of your paycheck?  I would think the better idea would be to 'save' those hard earned dollars and play hard at softball or basketball or some other method of 'social contact.'  I find it a little offensive to think that a Red Neck is also irresponsible and she doesn't know how to save her hard earned dollars. 

There is one more song and I want to see if I can find it.


"Work Hard, Play Harder" by Gretchen Wilson

I work a double shift on monday 

Tuesday i get up before dawn
Wednesday pouring coffee
Thursday night i'm tendin' the bar
Well, when friday finally rolls around
I call my rough and rowdy friends and we're honkytonk bound.


Chorus:
I work hard, i play harder
I'm a good timin' american daughter
Redneck, blue collar,
And i party down to my last dollar
I work hard, i work hard, i work hard,
I play harder


(Now) I don't waste my time on
Manicures and spray on tans
And i don't pay no never mind
To the callouses i've worn on my hands
You know that people just can't understand how
I'm the first to clock in but the last to pass out


I work hard, i play harder
I'm a good timin' american daughter
Redneck, blue collar,
And i party down to my last dollar
I work hard, i work hard, i work hard,
I play harder


yea yea yea yeah


I work hard, i play harder
I'm a good timin' american daughter
Redneck, blue collar,
And i party down to my last dollar


I work hard, i play harder
I'm a good timin' american daughter
Redneck, blue collar,
And i party down to my last dollar
I work hard, i work hard, i work hard,
I work hard, i work hard, i work hard,
I play harder

In the video the girl has a Corvette, so, maybe she gets good tips?



The other song is also a popular song, by a male vocalist.  You can tell I am not really a Country-Western fan as I can't pull this off the top of my head.  But, basically, he lets anyone listenting know that even though he is breaking up a marriage, or at very least contributing to adultry that 'a woman like that,' will be appreciated.

It openly attacks fidelity.  When I run across it I'll make more of a point of it.  I think there are issues with Country Western music and the 'personas' it portrays. 

There just seems to me to be a willingness in the USA to attack Rock artists without even scrutinizing their counterparts in other music 'types.'

Evently, the bodyguards surrounding Ahmadinejad have a dangerous job.

Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad flinches as smoke wafts near him.

These things happen from time to time.  Remember when Bush went to South America and they almost nabbed him.  And then there was that explosive in Georgia when he was making a speech. 

What ya gonna do?


...Whether it was a bomb meant to kill him or fireworks set off in his honor, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was unhurt in a motorcade incident Wednesday and will head to New York next month....

Ahmadinejad must be taking lessions from FOX News Commentators that spew that "infotainment" stuff.  Nearly everyone of the FOX News Commentators have a 'dedicated phone' for the President of the USA to call to correct any issue they discuss.

Well, it would seem as though Mahmoud is doing the same thing.  For three days now he is ranting about how he wants to have 'open dialogue' wtih President Obama.  I would think Mahmoud was more of a Stateman than that.  He needs to follow 'protocol' and it actually might happen.  Never know.  But, one thing is for sure, it won't happen in Iran.  Not with all those weapons and explosives a part of daily life over there.

Edward Yeranian

Cairo
02 August 2010
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is saying he is ready to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama during a visit to the United Nations next month....
 
http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Iranian-President-Ready-for-Direct-Talks-With-Obama-99754864.html
 

 
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called on U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday to face him in a televised one-on-one debate to see who has the best solutions for the world's problems....

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6711EA20100802



AP Exclusive: Iran Defiant In Nuclear Documents



by The Associated Press
VIENNA
August 5, 2010, 04:06 pm ET
As Iran and world powers prepare for new nuclear talks, letters from Tehran's envoys to top international officials suggest little prospect of major progress, with Tehran combative and unlikely to offer any concessions.
Two letters, both written late last month and obtained by The Associated Press, reflect Iran's apparent determination to continue the nuclear activities that have led to new rounds of U.N., EU, and U.S. sanctions over fears that Tehran might be seeking to develop nuclear arms....


http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=114310355

I have heard it over and over and over again. There is the addition of the 14th amendment to destructive and bigoted agenda of the Republican party.

The Plutocracies Best Friend, Tom DeLay "The Hammer."

U.S. Constitution: Fourteenth Amendment  (click here)

There is the 16th amendment and the 18th amendment.  The Republican montra is dangerous.  We witnessed its dangerous priorities with Bush and Cheney, now this.

The Republicans have no respect for citizens to begin with and now citizens born in the country with obviously no responsiblity in illegally immigrating here are to be considered the same as 'foreign dignitaries' and denied any rights to citizenship under the USA Constitution.

That is not only bizarre, it is bigoted.  It only goes to prove 'The USA Constitution' gets in 'the way' of the Plutocratic goals of the RNC.

Babies, they are picking on babies now.

Below is the PROCEDURE to add Amendments to the USA Constitution.  It would take an additional amendment to change the 14th Amendment.  The 14th Amendment would have to be repealed.  It is a lengthy process and won't happen overnight.  The Congress can pass Immigration Reform before a repeal of the 14th Amendment ever happened, if at all. 

It takes two-thirds of the both houses of the federal legislature to pass an amendment to repeal the 14th and then it takes three-quarters of the state legislatures for 'State Ratification.'  State Ratification requires two-thirds of the State legisatures to ratify an amendment to the USA Constitution. 

It would take ratification of a repeal amendment by 37 or 38 states before it would take effect. 

This is nothing but an ideological 'trick' for political fodder.  It will never happen.  Right Wing 'thunk it up' tanks like dreamscapes rather than reality.

Article V - Amendment



The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.

...and Kagan makes three. 63 "YES" votes is NOT a small margin !!! Congratulations President Obama.

Elena Kagan will join Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Marie Sotomayor at the Supreme Court.  It is the first time in history that three women are sitting on 'the court' at the same time.








My, my.  It is almost becoming a girls club and as exciting as "The View."

U.S. President Barack Obama's nomination (click title to entry - thank you) of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court won Senate approval on Thursday, his second appointment to the court that decides abortion, death penalty and other contentious cases.The Democratic-led Senate voted largely along party lines, 63-37, to confirm the former Harvard Law School dean as the fourth female justice in U.S. history and the 112th high court member.,,,

Happy Birthday, President Obama. What a way to celebrate, with 13 wonderful Americans.

It is a matter of civl rights. Dehumanizing Gays is nothing more than bigotry

A bigot is a person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices.

"I think it may be time for a paradigm shift on how we view the defense of the coast line"

Retired Admiral Thad Allen is the hero in all this.  He has performed the impossible. 

The words at the title to this entry are those spoken by the Retired Admiral.  Given the fact he was a pivotal person in all this, with the most insight to all aspects of the operation, I sincerely hope the government and military take him and his recommendations seriously.

Currently, the well is 'static,' which means, it is capped and filled.  It is filled with 'heavy mud' to help stabilize the oil well. 

Evidently, the relief well will be completed by Mid-August and a concrete fill will complete the closure of the Macondo well.

...BP pumped 2,000 barrels (84,000 gallons) of synthetic drilling mud (click title to entry - thank you) into the well, beginning Tuesday night. That column of mud – weighing 13 pounds a gallon – now sits atop the oil beneath it. The system is in a static state, meaning that the downward weight of the mud is counterbalancing the pressure of the oil pushing upward from the reservoir.
In other words, nothing is moving – the thing BP has been trying to achieve virtually from the moment in late April that it realized it had a mile-deep undersea oil geyser on its hands.
President Obama called it a "significant milestone."...

There is still a great deal of concern regarding the chemicals in the water column.  There is a remarkable assessment of the dispersants in "Nature."

...For most of the day, the monitors showed little of interest. But towards the afternoon, when the instruments were passing through water about 1,000 metres deep, the fluorometer and transmissometer readings spiked. The team went on to track remnants of that signal for some 45 kilometres southwest of the wellhead, in a layer between about 1,000 metres and 1,400 metres deep. It took some time for researchers to make sense of the data, but all the signs suggested that a deep, hidden plume of oily water was spreading away from the gusher....

http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100804/full/466680a.html


Senator Bill Nelson is one of the folks that are not happy with all the chemicals dumped into the Gulf of Mexico.  I tend to agree that he has a reason to be worried about his state and we all have a reason to still be concerned regarding the Loop Current.  I believe Senator Lautenberg is seeking new regulations regarding the oil dispersants.


BP's use of chemicals used to disperse some of the oil gushing from the floor of the Gulf of Mexico might have been a cure worse than the disease, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson said Monday.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/03/1758437/nelson-blasts-use-of-chemicals.html


We are almost there.

Is it over yet? It could be said that Retired Admiral Thad Allen runs a tight ship and is bringing this in ahead of schedule.

Vessels assisting in the capping of the Deepwater Horizon oil well are seen on the Gulf of Mexico off of the Louisiana coast. Photo: AP  (click title to entry - thank you)


By Rupert Cornwell in Washington
Wednesday, 4 August 2010


BP yesterday began pumping mud into its blown-out Gulf well, under the "static kill" procedure that is the penultimate step before putting a final end to what is now believed to be the worst accidental oil spill in history.
BP crews began the long-awaited effort yesterday afternoon, hours after engineers had dealt with yet another 11th-hour hitch - this time a leak in the valve on the well's temporary cap installed on 15 July....

I knew it would leak.  Oh, well.  The pressure within the capped well is increasing as the 'static fill' begins.  The mass of methane ice, oil and whatever else is in the top part of the well has no place to go, except, to increase the pressure on the existing cap.  It will be okay if the pressures under the cap remain stable, but, I believe the pressures need to be monitored closely to understand what is occurring under that cap.  I would anticipate the ship with the relief well filling the capped well need to be monitored for 'safety' issues and any difficulty in securing the goal of closing the well.


...Barack Obama has ordered a moratorium on deep-sea drilling, and with BP also due to start exploring for oil and gas in the Mediterranean Sea off Libya within weeks, clamour is growing within the EU for a temporary ban on deep-sea drilling. The EU's energy commissioner, Günther Oettinger, describes a moratorium as the "right approach for potentially dangerous drilling... in light of the risk exposed by the Deepwater Horizon spill", and the Italian Environment minister, Stefania Prestigiacomo, said the plans in the Med "give rise to serious concern"....

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/government-to-buck-global-trend-for-ban-on-deepsea-oil-drilling-2042590.html

I know there is a lot going on around the world that could be discussed, like Israel cooperating with an investigation into the Floatilla incident, but this is a truly significant issue.  The Gulf Coast is still seeing oil washing up on its shores and I really feel there can't be enough attention given to this problem.

Briefly, I think Israel is confident about its position as there were arms on the Floatilla boats.  Sorry, but, that does not classify as a peaceful mission or one with a completely humanitarian purpose.  I know there was an exchange of gunfire at the Lebanese border, but, that is not a matter of escalation of tensions.  It was a minimal exchange.  Yes, there were deaths on both sides, including a journalist, but, the reason the exchange of gunfire occurred was hideous.  The Lebanese army officer admitted they began the exchange because there were IDF forces removing a tree from the Lebanese side of the border.

Sorry, but, removing a tree is not suppose to be met with deadly force.  That is the problem with the Middle East, there is no 'answering' to authority before acting.  The Lebanese army was wrong to meet the removal of a tree with deadly force.  If that was an issue, it should have been told to their commanders and dialogue between Lebanon and Israel should have taken place.

It could be said the Israeli forces felt the tree was a threat to their security and decided to remove it.  That is still not a good excuse for crossing the border, but, there is always the possiblity they were unaware of where the border was exactly.

So, here we are with an international incident that could have been avoided, but, instead it will be exploited to hold Israel in a poor light.  That kind of 'reactionary' process has to stop.  Those men could be alive today, if the circumstances were handled properly with higher level authority being called in to handle it.  That isn't what happened and now Israel is suppose to have a discredited reputation due to this.  I don't think so.

Let's hope by tomorrow the Gulf Well will be permanently closed.  It will be a good beginning to recover the Gulf Coast.