tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57213913169695207122024-03-06T12:01:26.144-08:00The Flip SideA picture of life as we must live it: the tongue-in-cheek viewpoints of a realAmerican. The Flip Side represents a side of the news never seen in real life. The truth.The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.comBlogger87125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-36761052739282003062017-10-08T13:23:00.001-07:002018-10-09T07:00:44.212-07:00A Wild Reception for Columbus<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";">As Columbus Day, the day set aside
to honor the great explorer, who is said to have discovered America but really
didn’t (he was too late)., approached I began wondering what it would have been
like for Chris and his pals when they landed in America that day in October,
1492. What kind of day was it? What sort of inhabitants greeted him? Were they
happy to see Chris or upset about him and his crew being there? What if he
landed there today? Since, as we all know most anything of importance can be
found in the Wimodaughsian Library in Canisteo. I went there and, sure enough,
found a DVD of Columbus’ historic landing. The first scene shows the
intrepid captain and his sidekick Amerigo debarking a ship’s dinghy and
striding up the beach to parley with a welcoming committee of six rather
strangely attired natives.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Wha’choo
wont here, sucka?” demanded a black resident.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “I’m
Christopher Columbus, the great explorer, and I’m sailing to the West Indies to
find gold, spices and slaves for Queen Isabella. If this is the West Indies,
then you must be an Indian.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Oo-oo-oo,”
crooned a gay blade, “a real queen! I wonder what sheth like.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Naw, man,
I ain’t no Inin,” said the black guy. “That there’s an Inin,” hooking a thumb
at a short, chubby guy with long hair. “Only they ain’t called Inins no mo’,
they called Native Americans.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “And what
do they call you?” Chris wanted to know.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “I’m
African-American.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Would you
now where Africa is?”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Naw, I
dunno, man. It’s not my thing, ya know?” shrugging. “Somewhere.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Why are
you all called different things?” asks Chris. “You all live here together,
don’t you?” He looked over each one of the group. “So what’s he?” nodding
toward the gay guy.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “He’s gay.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Is that
so? Does that mean he’s a happy American?” thinking he was getting the hang of
this diversity business</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Oh, we can
be made happy,” giving Chris an appraising eye but not missing the sword slung
from his left hip. “But, alas, we’re not happy now,” looking dejected.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “You poor
thing! One wonders what it would take to make you happy,” remarked the
explorer.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “You don’t
want to go there!” sneered a member of NOW.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Oh,
shusth, you, you <i>woman,”</i> angry now, standing arms akimbo. “We
have rights, too, you know!” stamping his/her foot.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Wow,”
marveled the environmentalist commie, “ you come across pretty strong for a guy
who gets his panties from an egg.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “What a
drag, man, what rights do you think you have? We the ones that need rights. We
need reparations, man,” says the black guy.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “And we’ll
make sure you get them, too,” smirked the chick from the ACLU, “just as soon as
we get all the pictures of Jesus out of the schools.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “And what
will that accomplish?” asks the Catholic captain.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Ah, I
don’t know,” the chick replied, shrugged her scrawny shoulders, “It’s just what
we do. If we didn’t have that to do, we would have to find real jobs.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “You make a
career of removing from schools pictures of the greatest teacher in the history
of the word? What a remarkable way to spend your life,” said Chris. “And what
irrelevant matters occupy <i>your</i> mind, my dear,” directing the
question to the environmental chick.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “I was
wondering, sir, how many little fish you murdered when you walked ashore a few
minutes ago. And there you stand, thoughtlessly swatting at indigent bugs that
land on you. It’s not their fault you’re here. A typical white male bully,
that’s what you are,” eyes narrowed, a sneer showing a mouthful of crooked,
yellow teeth appears.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Sorry I
asked,” says Chris.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Hey,
Captain,” yelled a mouth from the NOW crowd. “how many women do you have working
on those ships out there?” pointing to the Pinta, the Nina and the Santa Maria
bobbing in the bay.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “What do
you want to know for?” asked the captain, suspicious of the NAG’S motives,
leaning toward her, getting in her face.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “My group
is interested in knowing if women are getting paid the same as men,” spitting
the last word, “and that they aren’t being sexually harassed in the kitchen.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “If we
allowed women on board, Miss Mouth, we would sexually harass them when and
where we damned well pleased. I assume women who yammer of such things are
attempting to extort doubloons from the people they work for. We respond to
that with a good flogging. They never cause us men any trouble after that. Oh,
by the way, the space to which you refer is called a galley.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “No women
on board? What’s the matter, Captain, don’t think women can hoist them sails,
coil them ropes, weigh that anchor?” sneering into his face.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “I’ll bet
therth no gay people either,” whimpered the gay Bermudan, “We can hoist and
coil and weigh, too,” dabbing some snot off his/her nose and a tear from
his/her eye.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Lady, the
last woman who spoke to me like that ended up as an anchor,” Chris’ face
crimson now. “I’m tired of this crap. You!” pointing to the black guy. “Get
some men together, chop down some of the those trees over there and build me a
cabin.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Whoa, hold
on there,” yipped the chick from the EPA. “You can’t be chopping down those
trees for houses. Owls and canaries live there. Where will they go?”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “How about
a different tree? There’s a whole forest of them further down the beach.”
Amerigo Vespucci chiming in for the first time”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Wha’chu
mean, sucka, build a cabin? I ain’t buildin’ no damn cabin. No way! My gub’ment
check don’t cover no manual labor.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Mine
edder. Me no build no damn cabin, edder,” said the Indian guy.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “This is
some bunch of crackpots, Captain,” whispers Amerigo. “We should toss ‘em all in
irons, put gags on them mouthy women, chain Tinkerbell there to the bow in case
we lose an anchor.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> The
environmentalist wasn’t done yet: “Whatsa matter, <i>Mister</i>Conqueror,
don’t think owls and canaries should have rights too? And trees?”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Trees? Trees
have rights?” stammered Chris.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “And
fetuses.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “No they
don’t!” howled the nag from NOW.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Do so!”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Do not!”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “All
animals have rights, too,” insisted the tree hugger.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Oh, for
chrissakes,” howled Chris.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “So do
black folks.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>‘’And gayths,” lisped
Tinkerbell.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “So do
Innins.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “So do
criminals. And victims.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Victims?
Victims of what?”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “Anything.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “We need rules
for tranthexuals. It’s not fair …”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Transexuals had better learn to use properly designated restrooms,”
said a huge man standing on hillside nearby. He leaned against a tree pounding
the side of a double-bitted ax into his palm. “I see one of them fellers that
should be taking a leak in the Men’s Room dangling his bidness in the Girl’s Room,
I know just how to make him the girl he wants to be,” he said, spinning the ax
in his hand.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Watch it, buster,” said the ACLU chick, pointing a finger at the big
man. “You take the law into your own hands and …”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Don’t worry, lady. I won’t be taking anything into my own hands, eh,
eh,” spinning the ax.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white; mso-background-themecolor: background1;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";">
“Ah-ah-ah-ah, let me outta here,” howled the crazed explorer. He and Amerigo
parted company with America’s natives and sprinted down the beach to their
dinghy. “Ho, ho, gotta go!” he yelled as they pushed off and hastily rowed into
the waves. “Let’s head further down the coast,” suggested Chris, “maybe we can
find a kinder, gentler place to discover … maybe someplace with an abortion
factory … or having a mass execution … or maybe even a Nazi demonstration. All
of which would be friendlier places to discover. Hurry, Amerigo! Don’t look
back!”</span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-802394298983654262017-09-21T15:53:00.002-07:002017-09-21T15:53:36.210-07:00Taking $ from FDA Bad for Public Health
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sometimes I get a little
weary about the laxity in standards in this country. I really wonder if there
is a company</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">anywhere</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">who wouldn’t do anything it takes to sell its
products. Legal or illegal, moral or immoral, whatever it takes, as long they
didn’t get caught.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For instance, there is a
popular soda pop company that started selling its beverage in the 1800s. To
insure a steady stream of customers, the company laced its drink with cocaine,
which company officials knew was addicting. After addiction became epidemic,
and hospital wards were swarming with newly minted cocaine addicts, the
government stepped in and put a stop to the practice of drugging Americans in
an attempt to get them to buy more of the company’s <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>soft drinks. Question: Do you think for a
minute this company would not again begin the practice of lacing its beverages
with cocaine if it was thought they could get away with it? And how do we know
it’s not happening now? Can government agencies be trusted to periodically
check the products of the beverage companies for addicting drugs. How can we be
sure that a fat check sent to, say, the FDA couldn’t persuade one of its
officers to turn the other way when samples of drug-laced beverages are
submitted for testing?</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You would likely think,
Well, aren’t there rules to prevent such a practice? </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The answer is, yes there
are.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You might ask, Don’t
American taxpayers pay the government (through taxation), which in turn pays
the salaries of FDA officials to enforce the rules to protect those who eat,
drink, and use medications approved by this department of the government?</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You would think the answer
would be an unequivocal Yes! But you would be only half right.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You see, the government
pays only a part of the money that supports the FDA. Guess who pays the other
part. If you said the industry that the FDA was created to oversee, you would
be right.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Unbelieveable, given the
sleezy reputation of the pharmaceutical companies, but absolutely true.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since the Prescription
Drug User Fee Act of 1992, which says companies seeking approval for new drugs or
drug updates must fork over user fees to the FDA, the pharmaceutical companies
pay half the support for the agency. Before 1992, we taxpayers paid the whole
bill, which, it would seem, makes the process much safer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, the drug companies are the ones who
publicly say they will finance the testing of such-and-such experimental drug,
but when the results don’t support the theory, they secretly discontinue
testing, rearrange the data and submit bogus results for approval. The 1992 law
says forget all the expensive preparation and just submit the crapola. We’ll
take care of everything. Doesn’t that make you feel safe, though?</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">As this report is a bit
out of sync with what I usually write, perhaps an explanation is in order. The
reason I bring this up (seeing as the law has been in effect for 25 years) is
that, according to statnews.com <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trump
budgeteers plan to reduce the FDA’s budget by one billion dollars in the 2018
budget. The plan will mean that drug companies cough up higher user fees than
in the past. Big Pharma is not accustomed to losing money via reduced profits
and so can be expected to recoop what they can. Higher product prices, of
course, but the most disturbing aspect is the possibility of “buying” the
approval of a drug that may not be ready just yet. Or ever be ready.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I don’t think reducing the
funding available for the proper inspection of medicines sold to the public is a
safe and proper way to save money. There must be other places from which money can
be removed that isn’t so potentially deleterious to public health.</span></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-22445949528674848162017-09-12T09:41:00.004-07:002017-09-13T07:19:09.991-07:00How "Her"icanes Got Their Names<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’ve been wondering about all of these hurricanes and I’m
pretty happy we don’t live anywhere near where hurricanes are.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">If you thought Katrina was bad, back in ’05, Harvey was a
complete disaster and it appears Irma was no pussy cat.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I began wondering about the names of hurricanes, so I did
what most citizens in the Internet world do: I googled it. ( Google is, as you
must know, the most important verb in the English language. It is the answer to
almost any question and has been known to open up the whole world for those who
avail themselves of it. But you must be sure not to let Google know too much
about you, as the company has an intimate relationship with the feds.)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">My first question regarding the names of hurricanes is where
the names came from. Before 1979 all hurricanes had female names (a system
begun in 1953)<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>Gloria, Agnes, Hermione(?)<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>but a group of women with nothing
better to do with themselves, probably the NOW gang, thought it sexist that “her”icanes
all were given women’s names. The issue was brought up in Congress (who very
seldom has enough to do or when it does, very seldom does anything appropriate about
it.) and a law was passed that made it a requirement that half of the she-named
storms had to have boys names. So now we have Andrew, George, Rico and Jose and so on and on.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Something I didn’t know (or suspect)is that storms are named
six years in advance. There are lists for the next six years. For example, this
year hurricanes with such names as Arlene, Bret, Cindy, Don, Emily, Franklin, and
Gert have blown through someplace, and then as we by now know, Harvey, Irma, and
perhaps, Katia, and if there are more storms, they’ll be called Lee, Maria,
Nate and Ophelia, etc. I didn’t know hurricanes were prenamed. I had always
thought some guy at the weather service said, “Okay, folks, here comes another
one. Let’s put our heads together and think up a name. U-m-m let's see, we need a female
name that begins with an “R”. Okay?” Next year the first three storms will be
tagged Alberto, Beryl and Chris; in 2019, Andrea, Barry and Chantel. In 2023, a
rotation of the same names used from 2017 through 2022 starts all over again.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">There is, of course, an exception to the rule. If a storm is so deadly or costly that the use of its
name for future storms would be considered inappropriate for (now hold onto your
hats!) reasons of insensitivity, its name will be deleted from upcoming <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>lists. Yep. I hadn’t realized we needed to be
concerned with the feelings of storms, but as we are so sympathetic to almost
every other thing, it wasn’t hard to see it coming. (Yeah, I know what they
meant, but it's fun to make fun of.)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">For example, the name Camille (1969) was stricken from the
list; Agnes has been stricken (as per the storm of 1972), Andrew because of its
devastation in 1992; and Catrina, Dennis, Rita, Stan and Wilma (as per the
storms of ’05); Sandy in 2012; Just last year the names Matthew and Otto were
erased. There are many others (as our sensitivity increases). I just discovered
my own namesake<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>Frederic<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>was scratched in 1979, but I have no
weepy feelings about it (but I’ll bet it got a bum rap).</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">There no doubt that we will never hear about another Harvey again.
Or an Irma. It’s said Jose may linger for several days before assailing the
Atlantic coast at some point. And “Katia” is out there someplace, destination
unknown. Whether we’ll see either of the latter two on a list again is, at this point, a question mark. Let’s just
say we hope not.</span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-83715401857870982342017-08-29T07:16:00.001-07:002017-09-02T05:57:24.968-07:00From CNN to Congress, the BS Gets DeeperAs we are all aware, President Trump is being given a rough time. Not only foot-and-soldier Liberals (Progressives, whatever) hate the man because HRC lost the election, the warped media and even members of his own party, want to oust him from office. It's easy to understand the reasoning of Liberals (Progressives, whatever) and the liberal media, but why are fellow Republicans wanting him out? It doesn't make sense, unless, of course, the motives of the Right are known: President Trump wants to drain the swamp, the swamp likes things just the way they are.<br />
When we parted company last week Red-State Louie, Pud Politico and I were sloshing through the halls and offices of the Center for Nitwitty News (CNN). As we progressed along it became necessary to exchange sneakers for knee-high galoshes, and a nice, young Republican entrepreneur out to make a few dollars, provided us with gas masks, in order to allow us to breathe; the stench was really getting bad.<br />
We left the Center for Nitwitty News through a back door and crossed the street toward the Halls of Congress. The sloshing was becoming more and more difficult as the BS become outlandishly deep. Luckily another young Republican entrepreneur had a booth set up on the corner, selling hip waders. The BS was sneaking in over the tops of the knee-highs as we approached to look over the many styles and colors of hip waders on display. They came in pink and yellow, the most popular were those in variegated color patterns (for the ladies, I presume, but we were mildly shocked at the number of frilly patterns being chosen by frilly men).<br />
Red State and I chose a pair of unfrilly black waders with white mermaid glued on the sides; Pud selected a pair of light green and chartreuse boots patterned in a series of ornate question marks, which caused the young entrepreneur to raise his eyebrows. He relaxed a bit when we explained that Pud was a Liberal (progressive, whatever) twit. The guy smiles and says he sees quite a lot of that around here.<br />
We were given a nominal trade-in allowance for our knee boots. We slipped on the waders, making sure to fasten the shoulder straps (the guy recommended that we do so because the "excrement is very deep in the Halls of Congress."<br />
And, boy, he wasn't kidding. It wasn't so much the depth of stuff at normal levels, but those lapping waves are a bitch. Seeing everyone in hip waders and a gas mask yondering through the poop was a rip.<br />
We hadn't traveled far when we came upon a man trekking along clutching a stack of folders to his chest, and not wearing boots or a gas mask. He was headed somewhere talking on a cell phone and laughing about something. I stopped and asked him where were his boots and mask.<br />
"Why would I need those things," he asked, his face an amused question.<br />
"Because of the really bad smell and the hip deep BS we are walking through," says I.<br />
"Funny, I don't smell anything bad, and we in the Senate refuse to lower our work to the level of BS."<br />
"What would you call what you do?"<br />
"We call it the important work of the people," says he.<br />
"Is that so?"<br />
"Yep."<br />
"What was the last important thing you did?"<br />
"Actually, we have a lot of important legislation we're holding back, until we get rid of Trump," he said with a smirk. "We're for a lot of things the president doesn't like."<br />
"Let me guess," says I, "you guys want to spend more money foolishly and Trump won't go for it. Right?"<br />
The guy offers up an embarrassed shrug, and with a red face, says, "Well, er, I wouldn't call it 'foolish', exactly."<br />
"What exactly would you call what Congress does? I mean other than approve the policy of asset forfeiture, effectively allowing offices of the federal government to steal the belongings from homes in the private sector."<br />
"Well, you see ... um, we didn't think the time was right for a, uh, tax increase, and as we like to spend money and needed more of it ..."<br />
"You thought it would be okay to just take it from the people. That's theft!"<br />
"But when Congress steals, er, that is, takes the money, it's okay."<br />
"It may be legal, but it ain't okay. Not all of that money is used for legitimate purposes, I hear; what happens to the rest?"<br />
"Well, eh, eh, I'm not supposed to say."<br />
"I hear Congress threw an incredible Christmas bash last year using forfeiture money. And did ATFB actually use a chunk to buy a luxury yacht to play around in?"<br />
"I wouldn't know anything about that." Clutching the folders tighter, he said, "I really have to go. Duty calls."<br />
"And there's still money to be spent?"<br />
"Of course. And you know something, smart ass, there ain't a damn thing you can do about it"<br />
And that's exactly why we were wearing hip boots and gas masks.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-25475576651487420242017-08-22T15:20:00.000-07:002017-08-28T14:25:11.546-07:00Inside the Center for Nitwitty News<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Have you been wondering
what the big fuss over Confederate monuments is all about? Since we talked
together last week, there has been a huge upheaval in interest about the
monuments, most of which were raised more than a century ago.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">There’s something fishy
going on here. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Something diabolical is
happening.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">It sure enough has to be a
cabal of Progressive rabble-rousers attempting to cause problems for the
president. Hillary Clinton? Barack Obama? George Soros? Or any number of other
low-lying creatures (say, the national media) trying to have President Trump impeached
(for who knows what? He’s done nothing illegal.)We should applaud the man for
hanging in there in opposing the slings and potshots flung his way. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">No member of the media that
I have heard has had a single decent thing to say about Donald Trump, although
the man has set an ambitious agenda that would Make America Great Again. It</span>
appears he’s not getting very much help from anywhere, left or right. It could
be Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell got something right when he stated
that perhaps the president was not accustomed to the slower pace that
legislation in D.C. takes. I’m sure there are no successful CEOs who would
tolerate such a pace in business. It doesn’t work that way in the world of
industry – you get it done <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yesterday</i> !</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I must admit that I don’t have much time for watching
CNN, MSNBC and other crappy stations of that kind. The few times I have
listened, I quickly got the gist of the conversations <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒ Everything is Trump’s fault. Trump
won the election because of the Russians. Impeach Trump! Never once have I
heard a satisfactory reason for impeaching the president, other than these
networks don’t like him and they’re mad as hell that Hillary lost the election.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Tough shit, I say. I didn’t like it when Barack O. won back in ’08,
either.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The truth is, though, there’s still good and bad news. The good
news is the House leader has chosen not to censure the president – the reason
being, there is no reason to. Much more disturbing is that the LGBTQ (it’s
getting more and more difficult not to be represented by one of those letters)
is considering suing for reparations for fat, black, oddball chicks. (Do not
doubt me – if this baloney is brought forward for legislative debate
(especially in New York), we will be supporting fat, black, queer chicks. It’s
a done deal. Politicians do not have the cojones to vote it down.)</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Meanwhile, back to our investigation of the roots of the latest
social turmoil. Me and my buddy Red State Louie and our not-too-bright
Progressive hanger-on, Pud Politico, were cracking back a few at the Gurglin’
Hen and Psuedo-Rooster House of Cocktails, near Democrat headquarters in D.C. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Didja hear,” says our erudite Liberal colleague, “where Virginia
Governor McAuliffe has stepped forward to propose profound anti-gun legislation
again. He’s a hell of a man, that McAuliffe, ain’t he?” Pud raised a glass of
green beer to toast the governor. “Although I don’t suppose you two will think much
of it.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Red State slugged down a shot of barleycorn neat, and says, “We
don’t think nothing of it because McAuliffe’s an idiot, just like the retard in
the governor’s office in New York. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Tell us something, Pud, if nobody was shot at at Charlottesville,
why does the governor think it’s necessary to bring up the gun issue again?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“But, er …”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Shut up, Pud,” says I. Let’s take a walk over to the CNN
building. I’ll bet we can get some real poop on social turmoil over there.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“CNN? Why are you picking on CNN?” asked Pud.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“It’s the Center for Nitwitty News. If there’s any behind-the-scenes
crapola going on to foment riots in the country, the Center for Nitwitty News is
the right place to start looking.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">It didn’t take long to verify my observation. An unpleasant odor
wafted on the afternoon D.C. breeze. The closer we strode the stinkier the
smell roiled to greet our nostrils. At the entrance some enterprising young
fellow, obviously a Conservative entrepreneur trying to make a buck, was
selling disposable oxygen masks. The only people not breathing through such an
apparatus were obviously Liberal employees, who did not recognize the stink as
stink. For them, everything was fine.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">We each bought a mask and quickly slipped it on. What a relief! We
then progressed to the back of the lobby to wait for an elevator.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We stopped at the first floor.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">As the doors slid open we viewed the Center for Nitwitty News newsroom.
The place was huge and, by the looks of things, there was a lot of smelly stuff
happening in the news‒or maybe just the newsroom.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Look at the monitor,” yelled one reporter, obviously a novice, “there’s
a triple murder in Baltimore! Three cops shot down!”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Never mind that,” yelped an editor, “here’s a report that came
from someplace that says an anonymous email was sent to somebody that says that
maybe President Trump got help from the Russians in the election <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>… Get right on it; I want it for the 6 o’clock
news.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“You see there,” yelped Politico, “now that’s real investigative
reporting. That editor should be up for a Pulitzer. I’m notifying the committee
right now,” he said reaching for his phone.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Red State and I progressed on through the room, leaving Pud in his
tracks. The floors became slippery with a smelly brown substance that we soon
recognized as bullshit. As it began slopping over the tops of our sneakers we
stumbled into a closet and found, to our everlasting relief, a box of knee-high
galoshes. We quickly slipped into a pair and continued our walk through the
dark halls of pernicious, Progressive <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>rumors. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">There were offices on either side of a long hallway. From well
down the hall a voice rang out, “Halleluyah, lookee here! A government truck
collided with a bus that had a donkey painted on the side in Hollywood. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An obvious political smackdown on Progressive
ideas and ideals. I think we can blame it on Trump and demand impeachment. Get
on it, People!”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Now there you go,” howls Pud, “Progressives doing their jobs. I
love it.!”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Doing their jobs?” asks Red State. “Whatever do you mean? Since
when have Progressives had any Ideas and ideals? It’s just a bunch of jackasses
braying at the moon.”</span></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-3428038529225509702017-08-09T07:08:00.004-07:002017-08-09T07:09:11.840-07:00What? There are Nuts in California?<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">While sitting back this
morning, enjoying a magazine and a cup of joe, wondering what to put into this
space, I encountered a story about my boyhood hometown.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Now you might wonder why I
would think a story about my boyhood hometown would interest you (and maybe it
won’t), but give me few lines to make my case.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A couple of years ago,
while beginning a memoir, I went on Google Earth to find the place of my youth.
I hardly recognized the place; it is quite a bit bigger than when I left there
many years ago. At that time the population of Los Molinos, California was
around 500; now it’s upwards of 3,000. Quite a difference. As there is not much
by way of job opportunities in the village, I thought it might be a bedroom
community for Red Bluff, a town about 16 miles north. Then I noticed one of
those popup websites that said Red Bluff was one of the 10 most redneck towns
in California</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">just
like Hornell, Bath and Penn Yan are in New York. After scanning around with the
online satellite, I began wondering why Los Molinos wasn’t designated a redneck
town. Must not have had a Walmart, which really is one of the criteria.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Anyway, I scanned south in
order to find the old homestead. It would have been mostly unrecognizable
except for the two streams running through it that flow in a recognizable
pattern. The old farmhouse was gone, burned down according to one source then
replaced with an equipment shed. The biggest difference was a half mile north
at the site of the farm buildings. Nothing there was the same; similar but
different, causing a twinge of nostalgia to pass through me, a longing for what
had been.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The item in the magazine
that seized my eye spoke of Los Molinos, now a mecca for nut growers, as the
site for a major theft of walnuts. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Los Molinos is situated on
the northern edge of California’s Central Valley, the agricultural center of
the state and one of the largest of food production areas in the United States.
The northern area, in which the old homestead rests, has been turned over to
the production of walnuts. Not entirely, of course, but mostly. Most of the
land east of US99E was in walnuts.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Tehama County, where the
village sits, has always been an agricultural community; every kind of edible
product was grown there. We had a dairy farm, next door to the north crops</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">oats, barley, alfalfa</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> were grown, next it was pigs; further north were
prune orchards. The farm to the south grew peaches and grapes and pigs (An
adventure of mine on each of these places can be read in the memoir, which will
be out in the few months). A friend’s dad had honey bees. And on and on. Now it
was mostly nuts.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The way things are going
in California, I would have thought all of the nuts would be found in
Sacramento (the capital) or Beverly Hills (where the movie stars live.) This
became a paramount idea when it was announced that California was seceding from
the union. You had to know there were nuts behind that idea. Then they doubled
down by making every town a sanctuary for illegal aliens, even though the state
would lose most of its federal funding for doing so. I’m sure they were incensed
at the audacity of Republican President Trump’s making such a suggestion, but
the sages of Sacramento simply said they would raise taxes to cover the loss.
Now most of us know that California is one of the highest taxed states in the
union already. Right? But the nuts, and there are lots and lots of nuts in
California, said “Ah, go ahead and tax us some more. We’d like it!” </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Whadya expect? These are
mostly Liberals, you know. Most of the state’s Conservatives have already left
the Nut State for less nutty places to live. The move became imperative when it
was divulged that the loss of federal money far exceeded the state’s GDP. But
that was only Reason Numero Uno. Numero Dos</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The legislation sanctioning sanctuary to people who
should not be allowed in the United States did not address those with criminals
records. So not only do California Nuts have to support welfare-bound illegals,
they will have to fork over more of their pay in order to punish evil-doers.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">But what the heck? These
are nutty Liberals we’re talking about. You can just hear them, now: “Taxes?
More taxes? Heck, man, bring ‘em on! We’re stupid-assed Liberals. We’d enjoy
that!”</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">But please keep in mind, oh readers of mine, the
ones saying this are Southern Nuts. We from the North are much smarter</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">‒</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">although we are known to use an illegal to pick
a few nuts from time to time. And milk the cows and feed the pigs and harvest
the grapes and the apples and the </span>The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-74808081479449027102017-07-31T14:08:00.001-07:002017-08-05T07:32:02.453-07:00Trump Effect Not a Bad Thing<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">About half of the people
in the US approve of President Trump’s job performance for the first half of
the year. There are, however, about an equal number that disapprove. Most of
the detractors, as you would think, are Liberals, mostly the anti-American
media. These schlubs will never, ever approve of anything that Trump accomplishes.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">During the Trump campaign
in 2016, there was a phenomenon known as the “Trump Effect” which was suppose
to describe the effect of Trump’s prognostications on school bullying. It was,
of course, Liberal tripe. I have a better idea: why not refer to some of the
nice things happening because of the influence of Trump as the “Trump Effect”?
For example, protections for the unborn are gaining across the country, and
there is a determined effort to secure religious liberty.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">To wit:</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A movement against
committing murder in the womb is gaining strength in Kentucky. In fact, Kentucky
may become the first state to do away with abortion clinics completely</span>. Efforts
by Planned Parenthood to construct new abortion clinics have been stopped, and
it is now illegal to kill children who have reached 20 weeks of development. Requiring
doctors to show pregnant women ultrasounds of their maturing babies is required
by law.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The state of Tennessee followed suit by making it illegal
to kill an unborn baby beyond viability (able to survive outside the womb).</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Indiana tightened parental consent laws by allowing a
judge to inform the parents of underage girls when she is considering an abortion.
Planned Parenthood and the ACLU are going crazy trying to eliminate this
unprecedented expansion of parental rights. Previously parents had no say in
what went on behind the hallowed doors of the abortionists.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Lawmakers in Iowa passed a bill that denies reimbursement
to abortion clinics relying on Medicaid. The law went into effect July 1. Health
services<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>unrelated
to killing<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>will
still be refunded.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Catholics have sued the city of St. Louis for
disrespecting the religious liberty rights of employers and landlords opposed
to abortion. The law mandates that all employers<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>including catholic
institutions<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>must
respect the reproductive health decisions of it employees. This could mean that
pro-abortion teachers may have grounds to sue if denied a teaching job at a
Catholic school. Such a charge against the school would, of course, require
proof on the part of plaintiff.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The Texas legislature passed a bill that respects the
autonomy of foster care and adoption agencies that receive public funding. As
might be expected, radical homosexuals, as well as men and women who have
undergone surgery to acquire the genitals of the opposite sex, are hugely unhappy
with this move toward religious liberty. What’s good news for the ninety-plus
percent is sour grapes for those who have been behind the pushing of deviant
legislation down our throats for so long. Perhaps someday we’ll see the end of
allowing whatcha-ma-callits into the restrooms and locker rooms of the opposite
sex.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">You may be wondering what all of this has to do with
President Trump. He said earlier this year it was not his intention to see Roe
v. Wade ditched, then have the consequent abortion laws overseen by the federal
government. Mr. Trump as well as the majority of Conservatives in America
believe personal issues should be legislated by the states, not Washington.
That the above states are leading the way in relieving the nation of some egregious
laws without the fear of Washington interfering might truly be called the “Trump
Effect.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This kind of thing
does of course have the ACLU and Planned Parenthood screaming, with much
pulling out of hair and gnashing of teeth, and crowing about how unfair it all
is. Tough stuff. Tell that to the 60-plus-million tiny souls condemned to death
without a life. These assholes need to get a heart, and forget about this “it’s
a woman’s right” crap. We’ve seen what happens when women get a choice. Sixty
million killings in 44 years<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>one million three hundred fifty
thousand babies per year <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>who never got a chance to live so the mother could have
the convenience of not being pregnant. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Way to go, ladies!</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Congrats!</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">That’s real close to the total number of people killed in
the whole world during World War II. What you’ve done is shown, that when given
a choice, what your priorities are. Death over inconvenience. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">You should be so proud.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">The time is past (and has been for a long time)
for this insanity to end. And hopefully it will, but, sadly, probably not in
New York. Our Democrat politicians</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">‒</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">namely,
Shumer, Gillibrand and Crowmo</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">‒</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">will
assure the time-honored tradition abortion-on-demand persists in our state.
Time to consider replacements</span>The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-88834906248043246112017-07-25T07:50:00.002-07:002017-07-25T07:50:23.421-07:00Why Bad Things Happen to Good People III
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It sometimes bothers me,
and I would be willing to bet it bothers most of you, that there seems to be no
“divine” exceptions when it comes to pain and misery for nice people. Most nice
people, if asked, would cast their vote for catching a break when suffering is
involved. (Now that I think about it, most not-so-nice people would also vote
that way – but good people are more deserving, right?)</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My wife is one of the
nicest people God ever put on earth. There is no one who knows her would
disagree - even those who don’t know her personally but have heard of her kindnesses
would agree. It would seem that if God were truly on the ball when it comes to
dishing out fair treatment where pain and suffering are concerned, Mary would
catch a break. That God would be nicer to her, if for no other reason, so she
can keep doing for people the way she does. But no, that’s not the case. She
battles neck pain, back pain, and really bad pain in her legs most every day.
Then there’s the pain in her shoulders and the arthritis in her hands … well,
you get my drift. She is just one of many good people who suffer the aches and
pains of growing older.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">But Mary does not blame
God for the pain she suffers. Quite the contrary. She attributes the pain she
doesn’t have to God. She’ll have a good day, one without much pain, and she
thanks God for it. She also thanks God for being otherwise healthy. (In fact,
at this very minute, she can’t wait for the grass to dry so she can mow.)</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I only bring this up
because, I’m sure you’ll agree, it’s a way of looking at God that’s a bit
different. Too many of us blame God for things that befall us</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">a crippling injury, a terminal illness, the loss of a
job, a financial setback, etc.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">but
seem to forget about Him when perhaps a bit of praise is due. I often complain
about my physical problems, but as painful as they are at times, they do not
compare to cancer or Alsheimers<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>or the
many other serious maladies that afflict mankind. I always thank God for my
lack of such illnesses (I often wonder why I bother. It would seem that if he
can keep cancer away, he could fix a bad back, but He doesn’t bother).</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ever think what it would
be like to live forever? Of course, as mortals living forever isn’t possible.
But what if it was? Would people who suffer from pain suffer forever? Or would
the pain go away at some point? Would people who suffer from cancer or
Alsheimers<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>be afflicted until the end of
time? It would seem that would be a suitable punishment for really bad people.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Have you ever read
Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels? Goes something like this: In Swift’s land
of Luggnaggians, occasionally a child was born with a red spot on his forehead.
This red spot was a sign that the child would never die. Gulliver, our traveler,
believes these people to be the most fortunate people imaginable, being born
exempt from that most fearsome of human maladies, death. But the longer
Gulliver stays in Luggnaggia, he comes to realize the inhabitants are the most
miserable of creatures. The immortals grow old and feeble; their friends die
off. At the age of eighty, their property is confiscated and given to their
children, who would never, otherwise, inherit from them. Their bodies acquire
various ailments, they accumulate grudges and grievances, they grow weary of
living, and they can never look forward to being released from the drudgery of
life.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The reader of Gulliver’s
Travels comes to pity the person who cannot die. A person who lives with pain
might agree with that assessment. At some point, death would be agreeable.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If people lived forever
the world would become impossibly crowded. The amassed throngs would likely not
be allowed to have children. In fact, you and I may never have been born. The
way things are, the way God designed the world(?), is an efficient way for the
old to make way for the new. It is never good that the new make way for the
new. The death of a child is a sad, sad affair.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Although there are instances
when death is agreeable, it is something else again to try to tell a person who
has lost a parent, a spouse, or a child that death is appropriate. We have seen
instances of this, and it is a thoughtless practice</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">to try to convince parents that their
little boy who was run down in the street chasing a ball</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">that the little fellow is in a better
place. It’s a callus practice, still in use by many priests, in an effort to
make us feel better. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Thing is, we can’t explain
untimely death any more than we can explain life itself.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">And nobody has been able
to offer a satisfactory explanation for that.</span></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-10586403480177630502017-07-17T05:46:00.004-07:002017-07-25T05:30:36.106-07:00Why Bad Things Happen to Good People II<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">As a result of our last meeting, it is right to say that
life ain’t fair.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">That’s odd. I was always told, as a kid, life is fair;
life is what you make it. It was only later I starting hearing something closer
to the truth: Life’s a bitch and then you die. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">True, it’s not that way for everybody. Some people get
through life without major calamity befalling them. I don’t think that’s fair.
It’s not fair to the rest of us who have suffered to some degree, or a lot,
whatever we believe God has stricken us with.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">But is all the pain in the world really God’s fault?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Some say yes, because is he not all-powerful and is he
not responsible for everything that happens in the world? Some are a little
kinder in their assessment of God; they say, God is just and fair and wants
people to get what they deserve<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>the good will prosper and the bad are
punished. Into this we must add a plea for ourselves: We are good people. (If
you’re not good; if you sell drugs, molest children, kill people, are a thief,
this applies to you also, as there is no guarantee God will punish you. For
some reason, the rules break down here.)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">If God is both just and powerful then we deserve whatever
he deems is fitting and should consider it our due. But we’ve agreed that God
is not fair in His treatment of us. So perhaps we need to erase the word “just”
and just think of God as powerful. Like one of the kings of olden times who
held the power of life and death of all their subjects in their hands. Think
about that. Having that kind of power and not even being gods. They just
thought they were. You can bet their subjects had other words for them.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">So now God is not “just”, he’s just powerful. We can pray
for interventions on our behalf, or the behalf of others, but God is free to
ignore them. Or is He just so busy He doesn’t hear us? At any rate, even with
all his power, he chooses not to alleviate our suffering.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">No matter what, we are still asked to believe God is good
and has control of everything in the universe. But the one thing I’ve never
been able to understand is why God chose to not reveal himself in the past two
thousand years. It is precisely that he does not respond to prayers and never
appears that he loses fans. Millions of people still flock to church and pray
to him simply because humans need a supreme being to pray to. If He showed up just
once and let us know He really and truly exists, you can bet the world would be
a more moral place in which to live. You know the TV commercial in which two
guys are mooning over a couch. One guy is holding a crowbar (we suspect he used
the tool to gain entry) and he says, “I gotta have it,” meaning he plans to
steal the couch. I wonder if he’d dare do it if he thought God might be
watching.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">But of course, it is God’s sympathy, accountability, and
fairness that are at issue, not His existence. Most of us would not deny the
existence of God<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>of course, there is a god; the universe, the earth, the
human race all had to come from someplace.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, with a
god we believe to be all-powerful but not just, we must recognize that with
those creds he doesn’t have to be fair. All we can do is hope … and pray, just
don’t count on it doing any good.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I would think that God wants the righteous to live
peaceful, happy lives, but it’s pretty obvious he cannot always bring it off.
On a planet with 6 billion people, how could it be possible for even an
all-powerful god to keep cruelty and terrorism and disease from claiming
innocent victims. But you must ask yourself, would a world without at least the
concept of God be better off? There are a lot of good people in the world who
are good only because of their belief in and their fear of God. How the others
avoided God is beyond me. He’s supposed to be everywhere.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">So now if we swap out all-powerful for just and fair,
where does that leave us? Our usual response to a diagnosis of disease or a crippling
injury is to blame God. But we have just absolved God from blame for such
things. He simply doesn’t have the time or, when you think about it, the
motivation to pick you out of all the people on earth to hammer with a bad
disease or injury. (Let’s face it, kiddo, no matter how bad you are or have
been, there is someone out there much worse than you) And let’s get serious, is
there any way He could keep an eye on the hundreds of trillions of chemical reactions
going on in the bodies of every human being, every second of every day?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">We have all (well, most of us anyway) grown up believing
in an all-wise, all-powerful, all-knowing God and it will be very hard for us
to change our way of thinking about Him. To change our thinking on any of these
ideals of Him is, well, unthinkable. We want to hold on to our thoughts about
what God is, just as we wanted to hold on to our conceptions about our parents
when we were children<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>all-powerful, all-knowing. Remember? Dad with his know-how
and magic hands could fix anything and Mom could fix the most painful boo-boo
with a peck on the nose and a hug. Later, however, we discovered the
fallibility of our parents<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>broken toys had to be thrown out because they could not be
fixed, not because Dad didn’t want to fix them. And there were some boo-boos
Mom could not kiss away. Just as these things were realized, we must come to
grips with the knowledge there are some things God does not control. With this
knowledge we can afford him the same consideration we gave our parents when we
had to change our minds about them.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can then quell
our anger, and maintain our self-respect and sense of goodness about ourselves,
without feeling that God has judged us and condemned us because we were bad in
this or a previous life. That bad things happen to good people and God isn’t
picking on just you.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-37102141002301769212017-07-11T10:58:00.001-07:002017-07-14T08:25:50.061-07:00Why Bad Things Happen to Good People<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Today’s topic will upset some people; some, probably
most, will agree. It has been in the forefront of my mind for some time as I am
reminded of past friends who had not completed their lives peaceably, and recently
met some new ones with debilitating ailments.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">From time to time I read on Facebook comments made by a,
seemingly, young woman who is suffering from cancer. I do not know her but I
know about her, as I have known many under such circumstances. When I read her
comments and those of others, I ask myself why is this happening? Why does this
young woman, who I believe has young children, and my many friends and
acquaintances have to suffer before they die?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I had always thought the reason for pain was to inform
the body there was something wrong, so it could be fixed. But what is the
reason for ongoing pain, which is what most of us experience? </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The woman on Facebook’s words echo the pain she suffers
from cancer every day, long after she is aware of the condition. Her words are
pleas for a release of her suffering. She must know, as we all know, there is
only One with power to help her. All of us in pain, all who suffer some sort of
grief, pray that He will response in a kind and gentle way. After all, is He not
kind and gentle? </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Why is it then I’ve never seen an instance where He has
shown a suffering person His mercy? Suffering people continue to suffer. Family
and friends stricken by the tragedy wait for their prayers to be answered, but
they never are. They must come to terms in whatever way they can. It’s best not
to wait for God’s help.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Throughout our formative years, listening to sermons or
homilies, we are reminded of God’s promise to reward those people who behave
well and do good things and to punish those who stray and do evil. But is this
really the way it works? Looked at with an objective eye, God’s system of
reward and punishment seems arbitrary, or more appropriately, totally unfair.
By all accounts Lou Gehrig was a nice man, but he ended his days suffering from
the horribly debilitating disease that bears his name. One of the greatest Yankee hitters of all time is remembered more for the disease God would not take away than for his accomplishments on the baseball diamond. Where’s the justice in
that? Pointless suffering seems more the rule than the exception.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">There are those<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>and I’m acquainted with several<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>who
believe those that suffer are being punished for some foul deed committed
either as an adult or as a child, in this life or a previous one.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I don’t know about you, but I would have a terrible time
attending services sponsored by a god who caused a tiny child to bear the
ravages of leukemia or would lay the burden of cancer on a young mother for a
morally wrong deed committed in a previous life.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">If this belief were not a part of the fiber of some religious
ideal and thought of as sacrosanct, it would be considered ludicrous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet when you tell these people that it cannot
be, that a kind and sensible God doesn’t work that way, they look at you with
wide, round eyes that say, “That’s what we believe. Nothing you say (no matter
how much sense you make) is going to change that. So there!” They stop a bit short of sticking their tongues out at you.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’ve wondered if the severity of the punishment is
intended to reflect the degree of naughtiness committed. If so, the poor soul
on Facebook must have been a monster. But somehow I don’t believe that to be
the case. She doesn’r come across as a Stalin or a Hitler or a Ma Barker, for that matter.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">My friend Don Terry, a truly wonderful man, died of
Alsheimers at age 56. Don suffered the ravages of dementia , as did his family
and friends, from age 51. Suffered, died, and was buried in only five years. I’m
not aware of any offense that deserves that fate.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Sometimes it’s not the afflicted who suffer. By wife’s
brother John drown in Long Island Sound at age 19. No one knows the exact
circumstances, he was found in the water by his cousin (who, by the way, is
currently dying from a brain tumor). The “compassion” of some members of the
NYC police department was on full display when John’s parents returned home
from work to find a note stuck to their front door. The note said, “Your son
DOA, Bronx Hospital.” That’s it. Nothing more. The shock to these two kind and
gentle souls, and John’s two brothers and his sister, was profound. John was a
really good kid and surely didn’t deserve to die at such a young age.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">As an additional kick in the teeth, the priest, during
the funeral, spoke of how God does not lay heavier burdens on us than we can
bear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My father-in-law responded to this
hoi polloi by saying, “I wish He hadn’t thought we were so tough.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">It’s odd, isn’t it, that so many people who have had
burdens laid on them, burdens they were supposed to be able to bear, thought
the burdens were almost too much. Many lives were ruined by such burdens.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I once heard a homily in which the priest did his best to
make a case for pain and suffering as educational. I paraphrase his closing
remark: “The purpose of suffering is to repair that which is faulty in a man’s
personality.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">What?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">He was saying that just as a parent must punish a child
whom he loves, for the child’s sake, so the child will learn an important
lesson, God must punish us for being “bad men and women.” When God’s in a good
mood he gives us a bad cold or the flu. When He’s feeling a bit crotchety, he hits
us with cancer or Lou Gehrig’s disease or MS in place of a slap on the butt for
being naughty.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I don’t buy it, not a bit of it.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">How can a kind and merciful god belabor good folks with
unbearable suffering (never offering a bit of relief) and allow those who bring
unspeakable misery to the rest of us to live long lives unscathed?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It makes no sense. And if it makes sense to
God, he’s wrong</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I don’t believe God has anything to do with any of this.
He doesn’t prevent and he doesn’t promote.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m not even sure He can make suffering disappear. Keeping track of hundreds
of trillions of chemical reactions wouldn’t be possible for even God. He’d have
to goof up someplace.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The conundrum is this: If God is all-powerful then he
should be able to cure our suffering; if he can’t (or won’t) then he’s not the
kind and merciful God he’s made out to be. What are we going to do about that?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I haven’t the faintest idea.</span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-70364654800303015582017-07-03T05:22:00.003-07:002017-07-03T05:22:43.308-07:00Building a Worthwhile Liberal
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I was exploring the
origins of political types when I happen to wander into the pits of Hell.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Well, come to think of it,
I wasn’t quite to Hell just yet, but, judging by the heat, I knew I was close.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I stumbled into a large
room. There were two human-like people there, one in a gown and sported a pair
of wings and a halo. The other was all red and naked, had a long tail with a
spear point at the end and a set of horns. The two were making plans to work on
a project together.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“So what are we going to
make,” asked the winged one.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“A humanoid political
type, replied the one in red.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Sounds interesting. Where
do we start?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">“First, we fill these
molds,” sweeping an arm to direct attention to several thousand more or less
human-shaped molds scattered throughout the room, “with this mixture of sludge
and muck</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> dare
we call it schmuck, for short</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">and
allow it to harden. This, of course, is the concoction for building Liberal
types.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“The mixture is different for
Conservatives?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Oh, gosh yes. For the
Conservative political type, we will use a much more refined, but as yet
undetermined, mold full of muck.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“But where do we find more
refined political muck?’</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Don’t forget, we are in
the early stages of our experiment. There will be mistakes. It’s best to make
all our mistakes with Liberals. Then when we get to making Conservatives, we’ll
have worked out all the kinks, and have a blueprint for fine, upstanding human
beings. Worthwhile people.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Liberals aren’t
worthwhile?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Nah, not by a long shot.
So far we just have prototypes with a half a brain. They really shouldn’t have
any legitimate standing in the human community. But crap happens. Look, you
can’t realistically expect us to get it right the first time. Maybe after
cooking up a few more batches of schmuck, we’ll get the hang of it.” He said
this while pouring a large chunk of schmuck into a mold, lowering the lid, and
turning up the heat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Whoa, boy, does that
stuff stink,” waving her hand in front of her nose.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Yep, that’s liberals for
you. A smelly bunch.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Will these Liberals talk
and think?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Oh, boy, will they ever
talk. Yak, yak, yakety yak, all the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Mouths going a mile a minute. Never shutting up, especially if one feels
he’s been offended, then they all chime in to protect the damned fool. Thing
is, for the most part, they’ll make no sense.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“That’s strange,
human-types are usually pretty smart.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Not so with Liberals.
Brains are a scant commodity in Liberalville. Ones with brains are hugely rare
and highly regarded because of their rareness.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Can you name a highly
regarded Liberal?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“I can’t, no. But if you
ask Liberals, they’ll name some, I’m sure. For instance, Liberals think Barack
Obama is the cat’s ass, as well as Slick Willie Clinton and his wife, Nutty
Nancy, and Cherokee Elizabeth Warren.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Conservatives don’t
believe these are worthwhile people?’</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Let’s just say
Conservatives think we’d all be better off if they weren’t around.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“You were saying Liberals
don’t think very well. Don’t you think they will be upset about that and demand
more brains?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Hell, these fools think
they have all the brains, now. They criticize Conservatives no end for being
stupid. Hillary called Conservatives despicable, when it is Liberals that are
despicable because of their total disregard for the truth, and the lies they
spread about other people.”<br />
“If these are the prototypes of Liberals, how is it we have such horrible
examples of liberalism already?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">“There is batch of early
protoLiberals out there. We didn’t do anything right with that bunch. The group
includes all the usual suspects</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Dingy
Harry Reid, HRC, Nutty Nancy, Cherokee Liz, Chucky Shumer. And, of course, BHO.
The project nearly fell apart when he came along. The Boss was tempted to move
up the Second Coming and smite the Liberal population. But, being the good guy
that he is, he relented. Conservatives howled, sure the Boss left them here to
irritate the hell out of decent people, making them more suitable for Heaven.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Tell me. What went wrong
with the early prototypes and is likely to go wrong with this bunch we’re
cooking up, now?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">“Well, to make a really
good human political type you need lots of really good glue. One of the
problems we had was that the glue we received was substandard. We didn’t know
this and went and made quite a number of substandard Liberal political types</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Nutty Nancy, Dingy Harry, HRC, to name a few</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">all of whom became unglued at one time or another. It
was an ugly thing for regular Liberals to see their political leaders lose
their freaking minds.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Doesn’t that ever happen
to Conservatives?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Never!”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“What else can happen to
Liberals to cause them to lose their sloppily designed minds?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Many things, actually,
but the most important thing is that we were so anxious to release our
invention, we got into too much of a hurry and released them too soon.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“What on earth happened?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“We were using apprentice
mechanics, to save some money, and, of course, come Friday afternoons and
Monday mornings, we weren’t seeing their best work.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Oh, yes, the long weekend
syndrome.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Exactly. Those little
devils got in a hurry and released onto the world massive numbers of Liberals
with loose screws. Some had light bulbs in their heads that flickered out. And
there were those walking around strumming their lips and making goo-goo sounds.
Somehow there were an inordinate number of these who got spots on cable
television. </span></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-10191274239018701512017-06-27T04:22:00.001-07:002017-06-29T08:11:37.383-07:00The Gaggle Has Ruined Major Media<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">As a member of the press for many years, I am understandably
upset with the shenanigans of major media. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">While I was writing news for The Evening Tribune there was a
concerted effort on the part of the editorial staff to assure the news was
reported in a fair and straight-forward manner. Both Managing Editor Kelly
Luvison and City Editor Neil Coombs read every submission for publication with
a practiced and critical eye.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Facts had
to be checked. If possible, the item had to be balanced, with both sides of the
story told (at times this was not possible as there were times when one of the
parties refused comment. This was noted in the item so readers would know
attempts were made to convey a fair and balanced piece.)The item, of, course,
had to be true<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>fiction had no place in a newspaper (unless it was labeled
as such). Editorializing (the writer inserting his own opinion) was not allowed
in a news story (although opinion pieces could be submitted for the Editorial
Page.) And there was no such thing as an ‘Unnamed Source’. If there was a
citation, there was a source. Period. </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">All of these criteria fell under the rubric of responsible
journalism.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">It’s not like that anymore. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Somewhere along the line “fair and balanced’’ was tossed
aside and replaced with the swill currently being presented as “news.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Where does it say it’s okay to call the President of the
United States a liar – not just once but routinely? Most of the nation’s major
newspapers and news agencies have made a habit of besmirching the name and
character of the rightly and unanimously elected leader of our country. The New
York Times and the Washington Post are leading the way. Neither of these organs
ever called Barack Obama a liar, despite such obvious opportunities as “you can
keep your doctor” and “the Bengazi attack was caused by an internet video.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed, the Times and the Post, along with
the White House press corps, spent eight years cheerleading the BO
administration, never seeing even an iota of corruption or dishonesty. They
have been tough on Hillary Clinton at times, but they never called her a liar,
despite such lulus as “I set up my own computer server so I would only need one
device,” “I turned over all the government emails,” and “I never sent or
received classified emails.” Apparently only Donald Trump is fair game to be
called a liar, although there has been no reason to do so. But then the Donald
has an R after his name.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The New York Times at one time had a reputation for the
highest standards of journalism. The standards stated above were reinforced
over decades to force reporters and editors to be fair and to gain the public
trust. Many times during my college years I referenced the Times to research an
article or for a paper I was writing. I also used the Times as a journalist to
verify certain information to use in a piece for the paper. The Times was,
after all, the newspaper of record. You could count on everything in it being
true and factual. Not anymore. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Years ago, the editorial staff of the paper was run by
managing editor Abe Rosenthal. Reportedly, Rosenthal was a tough but fair
taskmaster when handling the reporters in his charge. He set the rules and they
were followed<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>or else. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rosenthal
was an adherent of responsible journalism, as were Luvison and Coombs. Abe
Rosenthal is no longer with us and with him went the high standards of the
Times. Its true that the journalistic standards of many of the country’s major
newspapers took a licking as the leanings of editors and reporters went Left
and there were no Rosenthals to put a stop to it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The current editor of the Times, a guy named Dean Baquet,
sees no harm in allowing his writers to trample the standards the paper was
noted for for decades. He relishes the practice of calling the president a liar
and freely prints that whatever the president says is false. Under his dominion
the age-old standards of determining who, what, where, how, and why has been
added the reporters’ opinion. Baquet has decided that the standards of fairness
and nonpartisanship can be abandoned in favor of Liberalism, apparently without
consequence. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">I don’t believe that is possible. I think that
not only the public trust shared by the Times but many of the other major
newspapers that have deemed to abandon sound journalistic standards has been
lost, not to be recovered. The internet will provide truth seekers with their
news</span>The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-40956987989097892572017-06-19T05:11:00.004-07:002017-06-19T05:15:33.877-07:00Sticking It To the Gaggle<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I’ve been waiting all morning to hear a report that
President Trump started the horrific forest fire in Portugal that has swept a
good part of the country and burned many towns and scores of homes.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">After all, it’s just the sort of thing the Left would
accuse the president of doing.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Also, I’ve been listening for an item that reveals the
president’s complicity in Bill Cosby’s mistrial. Or the shooting of Congressman
Scalise.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">This just smacks of Republican shenanigans. There is no
other reason for it. The Republicans have nothing better to do than perform
outrageous skullduggery on the hapless populace. Then, of course, use the Left’s
trick of blaming someone else.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Certainly the worst of Republican crimes is leaking. The
scoundrels in the White House have a frolicking good time leaking on the
government they have stewardship over, or so the Left would have us believe.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">In my many years
as an observer of politics I have seen nothing like the spectacle we’re seeing
now. The unprofessional conduct of the Left leaning gaggle is momentous, frightening,
and unforgiveable. That the once-trustworthy news media could turn colors and betray
an entire country is unconscionable. The treachery displayed by them against
Mr. Trump and his government approaches treason, in my view anyway.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I well remember how the gaggle went after Richard Nixon.
It’s doubtful whether the gaggle cared if Nixon was guilty; they wanted him out
of office. (Though one wonders why they settled for Gerald Ford.)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The gaggle pulled out all the stops to see President
Nixon off into retirement, but did all they could to cover the many crimes of
Slick Willie Clinton and his thoroughly corrupt wife. We all know there is no
shame on the part of the gaggle, so we won’t look for any. But how about some
jail time? I have an abiding opinion in my soul that says if the Right stopped
acting like a bunch of whipped pups and prosecuted some of the obvious crimes
against the Trump administration, there would be a lot fewer crimes committed.
Makes sense. Right? </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The problem with this scenario is that the Left has the
Right on the run. Republicans and those that lean right are afraid they will be
accused of something. So they run and hide. When was the last time someone on
the Left was accused of something that anyone in law enforcement took seriously?
Makes one wonder what’s going on in law enforcement, huh? The idea that an
eager investigator can’t come up with something with which to charge a guilty
party on the Left is patently ridiculous. All the lying and the leaking and
lowdown skunky behavior: There has to be some illegal activity somewhere; after
all, this is the Left we’re talking about.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">The thing that irks is instead of jumping in and helping
the Trump administration Make America Great Again, the Honking Gaggle chooses
to dig in its heels and go the exact opposite way. I realize there are those
out there who like what BHO did to the country. Hell, I know one and this
asshole brags about how wonderful he thinks the country is doing right now. Sure,
he was doing fine on his NYS teachers retirement, never mind the 95 million people
out of work. He didn’t care about them. Typical Leftist asshole.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">It doesn’t appear that the Leftist media or the Leftist
world at large wants to see America get straightened around after the
devastation of the BHO years. They must like things the way they are. As long
as they have a paycheck coming, the hell with everybody else. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Most of the people I talk to are of a Conservative bent.
Few of them could explain what a Conservative is, other than “I ain’t no damn
Commie.” But they can tell you what a Conservative America looks like – happy people,
plenty of jobs, a means of taking care of themselves (meaning no welfare), opportunities
for starting businesses – all things the Left despises.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">What Conservatives don’t do is turn on the President of
the United States, tell lies about him and his family, and among other things,
accuse him of crimes that amount to treason, with no proof whatsoever.
Conservatives may disagree with the president, may even become angry with him
and yell a few dirty words. This is legitimate. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">But you don’t carry on the way the shitheads on the Left
are doing. What they are doing amounts to treason and arrests should be made
and prison sentences handed out. The Left has promised it will never let up in
its attacks on the president. Powerful people on the Right need to grow a set
of balls.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">One way to stop the onslaught is send a few thousand Lefties
up the river, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>see them leak from Sing
Sing.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-75960223512150597992017-06-13T08:40:00.004-07:002017-06-13T08:40:51.550-07:00Enjoying Yankee Baseball Again
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Yankee fans who have slipped away over the past few years
may want to revisit the YES channel for some really good baseball.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Bronx Bomber management has added some darn good players
over the last couple of years that just might – maybe – provide a few World
Series appearances in the near future – and maybe a ring or two.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Rookie outfielder Aaron Judge just might be the real
thing. <br />
What real thing, you ask? Would you believe Joe DiMaggio or Mickey Mantle?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Yeah, I know it’s much too early to know for sure what
Aaron Judge will bring to banquet over the next eight, ten years or longer. But
currently he’s leading the American League in homeruns (22) and RBI’s (49), BA
at .347. Judge won the game against the Anaheim Angels yesterday with a two-run
dinger in the 8<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>. He’s a big fellow, bringing a six-feet, eight
inch, 280-lb frame to the plate with mucho power. Sunday he rammed a near line
drive 495 feet for a his 20<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> homer. Reportedly, he’s a cool dude
with no ego. Just an easy laid back guy.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Catcher Gary Sanchez is getting his eye at the plate,
after a slow start and a spell on the DL.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">DiDi Gregorius, the best all-around shortstop in the
league, is hitting .344. Second baseman Starlin Castro is second in the league
in hits (81), while batting .328.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Aaron Hicks, currently in centerfield, is hitting .313
standing in for injured Jacoby Ellsbury. Last year Hicks couldn’t hit a lick.
Time changes everything.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Four starting players batting over .300 – sounds like an
all-star team.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The past few years I’ve strayed from my attraction for
watching Yankee baseball. They just weren’t playing well – or it could be that
that team just wasn’t a good team. They lost games they should have won, and it
seemed that if they ever fell behind, the game for all intents and purposes was
over. At seasons end they managed a one game playoff with the Astros, in which
they failed to score. My opinion of the talent on that team cratered – it seemed
to me they weren’t even trying to squeeze into the playoffs. All they wanted was
to head to the golf course or go fishing, or otherwise start their vacations.
My interest – because of the talents of Judge, Gregorius, Sanchez, Castro, Hicks,
and veteran Matt Holiday (all new talent) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>has returned, and I am once again enjoying
watching Yankee baseball.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Back in ’04, I was in the same quandary. It got to the
point I wasn’t<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>watching TV in the pm,
except for an occasional western movie. My wife had started back to work – she always
worked nights – and I was back to my job of waking her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At that time of day it was always too easy to
fall asleep myself, so I turned on the TV. Not wanting to get involved in
anything lengthy, I went to the YES channel to watch the Yankees for a few
minutes.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A curious thing was happening. Not only were they winning
nearly every game, they were coming from behind to win. Game after game. I
began watching again. Who doesn’t like to watch their team win? Especially in come-from-behind
style.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then came the ’04 playoffs. Remember? Yanks up three
games to none in the ALCS over the Red Sox. Everyone believing the Bombers were
going to the World Series. Then the bottom fell out. The Bean Towners won the
next three. The first sports team to come from an 0-3 deficit and win a best of
seven series. Then to show they were not to be trifled with, Boston took out
the St. Louis Cardinals in four straight in the World Series. It was their
first series win in something like 86 years. The Curse of the Bambino held up
for a long time, but was finally over.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then just last year we saw the end of the Curse of Mrs. O’Leary’s
Cow (or whatever) in Chicago. I find myself sort of thinking it would be nice
to see Cleveland win a series and break its long drought – but not if they
happen to be playing the Yanks, of course. We all have our priorities.</span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-14978241315568678622017-06-05T08:19:00.001-07:002017-06-05T08:19:51.486-07:00Using RICO on the Left?
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The liberal response to the president’s rejection of the
climate treaty was predictable. Had BO rejected this monstrosity, which he
surely wouldn’t, the response would have been much different, as we know. I
applaud President Trump for not losing his cool over the hypocrisy of the left.
This accord would have done nothing but raise our taxes (yours and mine),
meanwhile accomplish nothing as far as climate is concerned.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They say the seas
are rising, some glaciers are melting, but none of it means anything insofar as
our (you and me) causing the heat of the planet to go up. (There has been no
global warming in nearly 20 years.) Climate can, and does, change on its own
from time to time.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Science has lost out to politics<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>global warming enthusiasts
trying to dupe the politicians into giving them free money so they can study
global warming, called currently climate change because global warming is a
lie, as if their jobs depended on it, which it very likely does. But if your job
is dependent on lying and attempting to hoodwink the government<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>and
ultimately we taxpayers<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>into giving you money for something that doesn’t exist,
you need to find a new project or a new job. We know it’s a taxpayer rip-off when
we’re told that China and India<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>the two biggest polluters (and you
thought it was US, huh?) haven’t paid a dime toward preventing global warming
and likely will not. It’s all bee-ess, just like the accusation that President
Trump colluded with the Russians to win the election. Though there is no proof
for either issue, the gaggle of geese keep spitting and honking. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I even hear it said that Rhode Island democrat senator
Sheldon Whitehouse thinks it’s a swell idea to use the RICO laws (those used to
put the racketeers away thirty years or so ago) to prosecute we who deny global
warming. Can you imagine the temerity of this prick<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>to deny those with a brain the
right to freedom of speech. Question: why doesn’t this liberal twit propose the
use of the RICO laws to go after terrorists? </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Hey, you, c’mere. Say, you look like a terrorist, you
walk like a terrorist, you talk like a terrorist; I’ll bet you’re a terrorist.
You’re under arrest for being a terrorist.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“But, Ossifer, I didn’t do nothing. Honest.”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Don’t matter. It’s called the rat test. If you look like
a rat, you walk like a rat, you talk like a rat, you’re a rat. Let’s go!”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Actually, I say this tongue-in-cheek but it really doesn’t
sound like a bad idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Problem being, it’s
terribly politically incorrect and would never be allowed. How about using the
RICO laws to silence the politically correct crowd? What a blessing that would
be. Added benefit: recidivism rates in prisons would plummet<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>who
would want to serve time with these maniacs?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I also heard the president of France<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>can’t
think of his name<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>invited all the “geese” who opposed the president’s
rejection of the accord to come to his country<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>they would be welcomed with
open arms.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Thing is, a good many of the geese are wealthy people<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>movie
stars (who should be boycotted), politicians, industrialists, ad nauseaum) who
own their own gas-guzzling airplanes, polluting the planet with every flight.
The movie people are the worst. They use their talents (such as they are) to
become rich and famous, then use their wealth and celebrity to tell lies about
the environment and call for elimination of our rights<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>vis-a-vie their opposition to
the Second Amendment. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">There is no reason to listen to these people, trouble
being, some of them contribute muchissimo bucks to the democrat party. (Now
there’s another group we could use the RICO laws to get rid of. Think of it<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>no
freaking geese honking at every move the president makes or that would vote
against us in elections. (I have some friends here locally<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>both
liberals<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>
who I swear go to vote at every election for the past thirty years just to nullify
the votes of my wife and me.) Geese would be welcomed in prison, as I am led to
believe most inmates are democrats at heart. But most are politically
correct-what the hell does that mean, anyway? Politically correct? What’s
correct about it? I suppose there is a political element there someplace<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‒</span>politics
and political correctness both smack of being loaded with bee-ess. As does
liberalism, for that matter. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>None of it
makes any sense. It’s all bee-ess. But why is bee-ess running the country. It
just doesn’t seem as though the winners of the election are doing very well.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Every time our president proposes some act or law or
whatever to help get the country moving, liberals, mostly media types, attack
him. I’ve got to hand it to him; I think if it was me being attacked by the gaggle
of geese at every turn, I would feel compelled to strike back. Likely, I would
regret my words later, but I think there would be certain times I would have
say something vile. President Trump’s every move is for the betterment of a
nation laid waste by his predecessor. And the left doesn’t care. The geese are
still hissing and honking because Hillary isn’t president. To them, it’s all
that matters. Whatever Trump does for the betterment of the country won’t
matter-it will be attributed to something or someone else. (Wow! The RICO laws
are sounding better and better, aren’t they?)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It would nice if there was a way to silence the geese,
but then this wouldn’t be America. There is that darned First Amendment, and
last I looked it’s we conservatives who abide by it, fight for it. It’s the
geese we have to look out for .</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-48528847013110558412017-05-28T14:32:00.001-07:002017-05-28T14:32:05.318-07:00Some Verse for Memorial Day
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I’m sick and tired of hearing this young generation
denigrate the men and women of the American military. Without them there would
be no Memorial Day because there would be no soldiers. There may be no America
because there would be no soldiers fighting for it. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So here’s this bunch of no-accounts defaming the people
who have and are protecting the homeland. These people have contributed
nothing, have nothing to offer, and have no clue about what freedom means. They’ve
always had freedom, never had to fight for it. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A lot of this attitude can be put squarely on American
politicians and American middle school and high school teachers for failing to
teach American history to students who desperately needed to learn the subject.
Without history they had no way of knowing of the tyrannical governments that
were everywhere before our own Revolution (and are still everywhere in the
world, for anyone who cares to look around).</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I sometimes wonder why former soldiers don’t confront
those howling anti-American slogans and slamming those who go to war to protect
the rights of our people. It could be they are prohibited from doing so, (it
sounds like something BO would arrange. I understand ex-military were disarmed
before being allowed to go home.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Below is a poem I ran across, written by a guy named Gary
Huddleston (if you know him, be sure to tell him I attributed his poetry).</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s called Battle of the Flag.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A protest raged on a courthouse lawn,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Round a makeshift stage they charged on,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Fifteen hundred or more they say,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Had come to burn the flag that day.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A boy held up a folded flag, </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cursed it, and called it a dirty rag.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">An old man pushed through the angry crowd,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">With a rusty shotgun shouldered proud.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">His uniform jacket was old and tight,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">He’d polished each button shiny and bright.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">He crossed that stage with a soldier’s grace,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Till he and the boy should face to face.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Freedom of speech,” the old man said,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Is worth dying for, good men are dead,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So you can stand on the courthouse lawn</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">And talk us down from dusk till dawn.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">But before a flag gets burned today,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This old man will have his say!”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“My father died on a foreign shore,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In a war they said would end all wars.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">But Tommy and I wasn’t even full grown, </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Before we fought in a war of our own.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tommy died on Iwo Jima’s beach,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In the shadow of a hill he couldn’t quite reach,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Where five good men raised this flag so high,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">That the whole world could see it fly.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“I got this bum leg that I still drag,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Fighting for this same old flag.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now there’s but one shot in this old gun,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So now’s the time to decide which one.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Which one of you will follow our lead, </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">To stand and die for what you believe.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“For as sure as there is a rising sun, </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">You’ll burn in Hell ‘fore this flag burns, son”</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This riot never came to pass.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The crowd got quiet and that can of gas,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Got set aside as they walked away</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">To talk about what they’d heard that day.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">And the boy who had called it a “dirty rag”,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Handed the old soldier the folded flag.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So the battle of the flag this day was won</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">By a tired old soldier with a rusty gun</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Who for one last time, had to show to some,</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our flag may fade, but the colors don’t run.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I could almost see this happening. It’s too bad we don’t
hear about it happening. Maybe more than the kid in the poem would see the
light.</span></div>
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike>The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-37984895851577611572017-05-19T05:23:00.000-07:002017-05-19T05:23:45.145-07:00Clemency: A dangerous legacy?
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This business of Bradley/ Chelsea Manning getting a pardon
for treason is incomprehensible. What the hell was B. Hussain Obama thinking
when he deemed to set free a person who betrayed his/her country and put us all
at risk? And what about our intelligence agents overseas?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I remember seeing, a number of years ago, a movie in which a
foreign agent acquired a list of American agents working in Europe. A number of
agents were done in by agents from Russia and other enemies of the U.S. Of course
the star of the movie got away but only by the skin of his teeth. I must
apologize for a failing memory, but I do not remember the name of the movie.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Not only is the pardoning of Manning a travesty (there
should be a rule that states when a dangerous<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>convict<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>is set free by an
irresponsible president, the next president, or an act of Congress) has license
to revoke the discharge and return the dangerous criminal to jail where he/ she
belongs.) But Obama set free nearly 2,000 prisoners, many convicted of serious
crimes, like rape and murder, treason, of course, being the most heinous. There’s
something to be said for the concern of Obama in attempting to empty federal
prisons of nonviolent criminals, which he claimed was his intent. There are
many stories of people (and not just minorities) receiving long sentences for paltry
crimes. This should be rectified. No one should be in prison for twenty or
thirty years for having a couple of joints in his pocket. And judges should be
barred for handing out such sentences.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">But when Presidents consider <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>clemency for hard-boiled felons, he should
have an eye on public safety. A couple of reasons why should suffice to
illustrate the point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of you may be
old enough to remember the 1988 presidential campaign, Republican George H.W. Bush
vs. Democrat Michael Dukakis. Dukakis had just vetoed legislation that would
nix a controversial weekend furlough program in Massachusetts. One prisoner
chosen to participate in the program was a guy named Willie Horton, a convicted
murderer. Horton went on the road and did not return to prison. He did,
however, kidnap a man and his girlfriend, stab the man and rape the woman, then
steal the man’s car. Dukakis’ continued support of the furlough program cost
him the election. Horton’s case is the most notorious, but there are plenty of
others. For instance, Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee can tell you about Maurice
Clemmons, who was serving a 108-year sentence for robbery and theft. Governor
Huckabee commuted his sentence to 47 years in 2000, making Clemmons eligible
for parole. Nine years later, in November 2009, Clemmons walked into a Tacoma,
Washington-area coffee shop and shot to death four police officers. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">An observer of such proceedings
must ask just what the hell these presidents think they are doing. If they
offer early parole to inmates, why not chose those convicted of less-violent
crimes. Chances of success would be must greater. Although the recidivism rate
is higher than fifty percent, an opportunity to lower the number must be
appealing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if one is running for
president it may be a wise move to abandon the practice well before the
election. (Huckabee lost any chance at a nomination due to his, dare I<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>say, stupid commutation of Clemmons sentence.
</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This near-the-end-of-term leniency
isn’t the only foolishness these guys are up to. Under Obama’s reign, the U.S
Sentencing Commission lowered the guidelines for a broad range of crimes, and
made the reductions retroactive. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>BO went
crazy! The move triggered the largest release of prisoners<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>in U.S history. Something like 6,000 inmates found
themselves free – they had served their sentences! I’ve been insisting for nine
years that BO is an idiot – or he has intentions of destroying the country. He couldn’t
quite pull it off himself so he’s released a gang of thugs to finish the job. I
wonder how many of us will be robbed and killed because of the former president’s
poor choices.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Of course, large and small groups
of dumb-assed Democrats were (and are) sitting around sipping port wine and
some kind of tea exclaiming that those who received pardons and reduced
sentences are leading productive and law-abiding lives, and contributing to the
community in meaningful ways. Well, maybe half of them are. The other half choose
to go back for some of that yummy jail chow.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">(I wonder how many of these ex-jailbirds have
joined the rioters and anti-Trump crowds who are plaguing </span>The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-79239763401519969602017-05-15T09:25:00.000-07:002017-05-15T09:25:08.670-07:00Libs Support the Ridiculous<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">As has become
obvious over the years, Liberals have a fondness for the ridiculous. In fact
they sponsor it, and always vote for it when something ridiculous shows up
before Congress. These people have no clue as to what is ridiculous and that
which makes sense.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">To wit:</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">As most of
you know the EPA is crammed right full of Liberals – I don’t know how this fact
could possibly escape anyone, given the agency’s track record. It seems that
about fifteen years ago a Cornell – yes an Ivy-League school, no less, where
professors are supposed to have brains, professor, last name Gregg (first name
unremembered) was granted permission to plant trees in Manhattan, and more in
the surrounding rural areas. Professor Gregg naturally surmised the trees in
the suburbs would grow better than those in the smog-laden, polluted city. But
after three years the professor was shown to be wrong. Turns out the trees planted
in the city grew much faster than those in the outskirts. Instead of accepting
the obvious – that something in the pollution favored tree growth – CO2
perhaps? – the professor hatched a brand-new theory! The researcher theorized
that pollution migrated from the city to stunt the growth of the country trees.
It was further thought (and I must paraphrase): “I know this sounds crazy but
it’s true. City-grown pollution – ozone in particular – is tougher on country
trees. It is obvious to me that by the time ozone is formed by the pollution in
the city, the air mass has moved out to the suburbs.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The point
here isn’t what caused the trees in the city to grow faster but that this
college professor took it upon his-/ herself to make up something to cover for
the unexpected evidence – that CO2 – a greenhouse gas - causes plants to grow.
Duh!</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Oh, by the
way, as you probably guessed, the professor was hired by the EPA.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Who says you
have to be half-smart to be a teacher? Think the term “dumbing down” is just an
expression? The New York State Board of Regents doesn’t think so.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The board
will no longer require teachers to pass the Academic Literacy Skills Test (ALST)
in order to become certified. After all, why should teachers have to be
literate? The ALST proved controversial because black and Hispanic candidates passed
it at significantly lower levels than white counterparts. The ruling comes
after a federal judge ruled in 2015 that ALST was not biased, because it
measured the skills necessary to teach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Well that didn’t seem to make any sense to the liberal nitwits sitting
on the Regents board. In fact, the board ordered that teachers who fail the test
measuring practical skills (like lesson planning) to be certified anyway. And
if they fall a little short of a passing grade, pass them anyway. This of
course will make test taking more fair to prospective teachers, but it would
seem to drop students deeper into the hole of ignorance because of dumb
teachers. Dumbing down is not the right way to solve the problem of non-white
teacher candidates failure to pass qualifying tests. What needs to be done is
to make course material available to these people that will enable them to
become smarter, hence become better teachers. American education has been sliding
for years, and as long as the Regents board continues to make qualifying tests
ever easier to pass, it cannot get any better. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">If you’re
wondering why today’s students have a tough time spelling or adding, look to
the Regents board. These sorry liberal thinkers are responsible for the poor
performance of both graduates and current students. They need to be replaced.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">There are many, many more examples of Liberal
idiocy, but there is space here for only a few.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We can explore more in the future.</span>The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-45394489184537400862017-05-08T05:55:00.000-07:002017-05-08T05:55:35.778-07:00Liberals Stole Their Education
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It saddens
me to read the many errors in grammar on Facebook (and other sites as well.) So
many words are misspelled, the wrong words are used. And it is mostly adults
doing the writing.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What happened to the ability to correctly spell the
words that make up our language ? Is it a simple case of being in a hurry and not caring
about proper usage and spelling? I suspect some words are misspelled because
the writer doesn’t know the correct spelling. It’s true, sometimes they don’t care,
and that’s a shame. What happens when the writer is asked to write an
intelligent letter (a resume) or a report for school. College professors are
appalled at the lack of ability to spell and use words properly of students "graduating" from high School. I don’t think
this is entirely the writer’s fault. I think poor spellers had a lot of help
becoming poor spellers. It may have happened like this:</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My pal Red
State Louie and I were indulging in adult beverages at a patio table at the
Golden Gulp and Glug Cocktail Joint in Washington, D.C. We were quietly
discussing the political conventions, as were many around us. Politics was in
the air!</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We were marveling
at how easily liberals accept HRC’s excuses for losing the election she was
supposed to have won by a landslide. Suddenly, down the street came our barely
bearable buddy Pud Politico, a real honest-to-gosh liberal hack. Pud wore a jokers-style
hat and vest, checkerboard pants that he thought were the coolest thing
around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was strumming his lips as he
rode in on a skate board, mumbling “Hillary’s Great, Hillary’s Great.” He kicked
the board up into his hand and dismounted, a stupid grin stretching his
features into a “Gotcha” look. He tucked the board under his arm and flopped
down in a chair at our table.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“That
Hillary’s great, ain’t she?” he asked no one in particular. “Wow, what a woman,
huh, Newshawk?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Are we
talking about the same person, Pud?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Yeah, the woman
who should be president, you know the one.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Yep, the
one who looks and speaks like she wakes up with a bad taste in her mouth every
morning.” </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“She’d be a
great president. Did you hear her concession speech?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hillary would have made life better for
everybody.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Pud,” said Red State Louie,
“all her campaign rhetoric was the same stuff the Democrats have been promising
in every election for at least the past 50 years. More jobs, lower taxes,
better healthcare, fix the education system, national security. Yadda, yadda.
But there’s been no change.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Yep. Yep,
that’s right. Democrats are good at promising …” Pud’s eyes were bugging out
now as his excitement grew.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“And doing nothing.
Liberals have been promising black people a leg up for years – but have never
delivered.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah!,” sputtered Pud. “Why do they keep voting for Democrats then, huh?”
This last in the same childish manner of a fourth-grader. We were surprised he
didn’t stick his tongue out at us.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“I dunno.
It’s obvious the libs have no plans to help blacks – or anyone else, for that
matter. If they were they could have made huge changes for the better in the
past eight years. Instead, they’ve made everything – and I mean everything –
much worse,” I said. </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Yep,”
drawled Red State, “healthcare’s a disaster. The economy, no matter how many
times they lie about how good it is, is in the tank, and our education system
went from being among the best in the world to pretty durn bad.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Mister, oh,
mister,” called a young woman sitting at the next table over. “Aren’t you the
Newshawk?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Yes.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Would you
mind answering a question for me.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“If I can.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“In Mrs.
Clinton’s speech she spoke briefly about an incident that happened in
Philadelphia many years ago. It sounded very important, but I don’t remember
hearing about in school. It started with an R, I believe.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“An
important historical event that started with an R?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“How about
the Renaissance?” suggested Red State.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“No, that
wasn’t it,” replied the girl.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Thur was a
French explorer named sumthing-or-other Radisson who trapped fur in Canada at
one time,” mused Pud. “They named a string of hotels after him – big ones,
too,” wiping his nose on his sleeve.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“How about
retarded,” I suggested, nodding toward Politico.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Reconstruction,
perhaps,” said Red State.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Or
redistribution. We’ve seen quite a bit if that lately.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“No, it had
a V in it. Rev, something, I think.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Oh,” says
Red State perking up. “You mean the Revolution. The American Revolution.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“The
what?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>asked the girl, her faced
wrinkled in an ’I don’t know what you’re taking about’ way.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“The
American Revolution was a war fought here in the United States. Americans were
fighting England for their independence and ultimately their – and our –
freedom.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“We had to
fight for our freedom?” she asked, taken aback by the idea. “Wow. That’s cool.
That makes it so much more precious than just <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">having it.</i> But my dad says we’re losing our freedom.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Freedom.
Fiddlesticks. Now you’re gonna blame liberals for losing our freedom. Ain’t
ya?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Just what
do you think political correctness is all about,” I asked.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“PC is cool,
man. Gives you control over people.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Exactly.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The girl,
looking sad, asked, “Why didn’t I learn about the American Revolution in
school?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“The
education establishment, owned and operated by democrats, elected to deprive
grade school and high school students an awareness of their heritage. It’s much
easier to turn young minds against their country when they have no knowledge of
it or pride in it,” I explained.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“To bad you
and others your age couldn’t sue government agencies involved in stealing your
education, but they would never allow it.”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The sad
young woman looked around as if lost, then asked, “What can I do?”</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Red State
and I thought for a minute, then shrugged.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Pud sat
picking</span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> his nose.</span></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-89867642247660573352017-04-20T12:08:00.003-07:002017-04-20T12:08:35.333-07:00Are the 2000s Really a Change from the 70s?<div class="MsoNormal">
I was watching a little TV the other night and a commercial
came on advertising flowers. A man and a
woman were carrying flats of flowers across the yard, the wife just jabbering away.
The husband wants to know who she talking to.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The flowers,” she says. “they like it.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The question that always pops into my head when I hear this
stuff, “How do they know?” How can she possibly know those flowers liked
hearing her voice – or anyone’s voice, for that matter. Maybe these were the flowers that developed a
spritzer inside to punish those who said something they didn’t want to hear.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I thought about this for a few minutes then suddenly
remembered somethings that happened back in the 1970s. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many of you remember the Wacky Seventies. It was a wild and
crazy time. The 70s had Clara Peller howling, “Where’s the beef?” Remember? And
The Fonz standing with a thumb in the
air, telling you to “Sit on it!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And there was Cap’n Crud cereal, Alpoo dog food, Chef
Girl-ar-Dee spaghetti (as opposed to Chef Boy-ar-Dee. We had at our
disposal Knockoff’s Sugar Frosted Fakes,
Cult .45 beer, Taster’s Choke Coffee, and Chimps Ahoy Cookies.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I think the 70s was the decade in which girls began wearing
jeans with large holes so we could see they were really wearing underwear. (Or
maybe it was the other way around).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Remember togas, bell-bottom pants, and shirts with huge
collars that were seldom buttoned? Remember beads and Roman sandals?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
TV was great. We had All in the Family, Happy days, Hawaii
Five-O. There was the Dukes of Hazzard, Starsky and Hutch and M*A*S*H*</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some of the best movies were made in the 70s: The Godfather
(Parts I and II), Star Wars, Alien, Rocky, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and Jaws</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some hugely popular music arose from the 70s: Rain Drops are
Fallin’ on My Head, One, American Woman, Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, and the
great Merle Haggard singing “Okie From Muskogee,” and “Bonnie and Clyde.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Not only entertainment was on the front burner during the
70s. There were giant steps made in the sciences. For space geeks, Stephen
Hawking theorized the existence of Black Holes and, most importantly, developed
The Big Bang Theory, which has provided us with a really funny sitcom all these
years later. Truly wonderful television.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Huge developments occurred in computers. Much progress was
made in lasers and electronics. Scientology was hot, as was the Mahareeshi Maheesh Yogi and Transendental Meditation. (My
wife and joined a TM class, and after being giving a near hours lecture on how
it was supposed to work, were instructed that under no circumstances were we to
divulge our mantra – the word repeated silently to yourself while mediating. We
discovered later that everybody had the same mantra! Kind of took the zing out
of it)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Viet Nam War ended in the middle of the decade. “Tricky
Dick” Nixon reminded us there were underhanded politicians, with Watergate.
Nixon resigned, but we had Woodstock to brighten the times. Thank goodness for
Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix. Boo to Roe v. Wade.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But I think one of the most important events occurring
during the 70s came with the revelation that plants talked to each other and
sang to each other. And the most amazing aspect of this was it happened in the Fourth
Dimension! Yep, that’s what the girls were telling us. (To clarify, it was college
girls who pushed this idea. As you well know, we all operate in the Third
Dimension, but the ladies were sure it was the Fourth Dimension the plants were
chatting in.) Guys laughed it off as typical female hootspa. But the girls were
adamant. Some swore they were privy to the music, and a number of them claimed
the conversations were on a higher plane when they were grooving behind other
kinds of plants.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It seems to me that as the 70s gave way to the 80s the Talking
Plants of the Fourth Dimension faded away also. College kids were wild and
wacky forty years ago, but I wonder if there are fewer Snow Flakes. I don’t
think they went anywhere, or if they did, THEY’RE BAAACK!</div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Maybe we should ask them if it’s the grass they’re
smoking or the flowers that are singing to them that makes the difference, and why it is the boys have become as flaky as the girls. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Do You think it's because the 2000s are as wild and wacky as the 60s and the 70s, and do you wonder if they will ever change?</span>The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-51900328640527809172017-04-12T06:31:00.001-07:002017-04-12T06:31:40.938-07:00The Empty-Headed Blogger<div class="MsoNormal">
If anyone out there happened to wonder at the lack of solid
Conservative reading material (mine)offered lately, I have an excuse. As mentioned before, there’s been some
problems with medications. If you want to feel as though you’re in a nether
world, let your blood sugars rage. When blood sugars are out of whack – either
too high or too low – it affects your thinking. In fact, it is difficult to
form coherent thoughts at all. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A couple of months ago I invited a young fellow over to
straighten out my computer, which seems to be in the intermediate stages of
developing artificial intelligence – it really does have a mind of its own.
When he arrived I was in a blue funk. I couldn’t think to tell him my username
or password or … anything ! For him, it must have been a spooky experience. He
left with a promise to return the next day, but I never saw him again.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I went through a time when I was having way too many of
these experiences. Things settled down a little – the episodes were fewer and
not as severe, though it is “spooky,” to feel yourself drifting off, light
headed and not quite able to form a thought. You “awaken” to wonder where you
are and what just happened, and I must say, a bit frightened, on occasion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I had just gotten past the foggy episodes when I went to see
a dermalogist for a rash that had developed on my face and wouldn’t go away.
The doctor, obviously looking for a silver bullet, prescribed doxicycline, an
antibiotic intended for serious infections. One of its many side effects is
confusion; and boy, oh, boy, that’s what I needed more of – confusion. I truly
had a terrible time getting past this confusion. It was everywhere, and came on
willy-nilly, leaving me sitting there staring into space or wondering how I got
where I was. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I think its cleared away, the foggy days are fewer. My
primary wants me to see a neurosurgeon, although I don’t know what good it will
do. But with all the different doctors I’ve been seeing and all the different
prescriptions I’m told will make me better, who am I to argue? But I do pay
closer attention to side effects.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you are taking more than one med for what ails you, check
the side effects. You’ll be amazed at what your system is putting up with.
Several of the ones I’m taking mention drowsiness, loss of balance, confusion,
yadda, yadda – little wonder I stagger once in awhile, feel sleepy a lot and
sometimes feel confused. Why shouldn’t I? I’ve got three or four drugs in me to
make sure I do. All you can ask is that these drugs do what they are intended
to do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s not that I had not intended to keep up with my writing.
I had quite a stack of initial attempts to entertain you. But half way through
each piece they stop. It’s pretty obvious what occurred. I ran out of things to
say, and, later, couldn’t remember what I was trying to say in the first place.
They have just been deleted. I refuse to allow them to continue confusing me.
It is maddening to try to decipher something you’d just written and can’t make
hide nor hair of. You’re never sure if it’s the side effects or encroaching age.
The same was happening with books I was trying to read. I would read a paragraph
then forget what I just read – or perhaps I simply wasn’t understanding it in
the first place. Same with television –
the whole memory thing was a washout. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I think I’m thinking fairly straight nowadays. I have my
moments but, all in all, thinking is running fairly smooth. We’ll see how it
goes.</div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-4000758105956079592017-04-05T16:24:00.002-07:002017-04-05T16:24:55.194-07:00The Left a Gaggle of Honking Geese?<div class="MsoNormal">
I have plumb got tired of listening to the evening news –
though Fox seems to get it right, still. I thought the creeps and howlies and things
that go bump in the evening might back off after the election. I mean, the
election is over, Donald J Trump is president, and there is nothing these
screeching idiots can do about it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Or is there? The hoots and jeers seem to strengthen daily as
each morsel of lies and innuendo reach the ears of wacko aficionados ready to
spew “false news” over the airways. There is no lie that is too farfetched for
these nuts to forget about. The President and his men go dutifully about Making
America a Better Place; the liberal Democrats do nothing but bellyache and moan,
and make the betterment of America a tougher job than it needs to be.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One might say, “the commies have come home to roost.” This is the same batch of crazed lunatics
that were raising hell back in the sixties. I was there. These clowns blew up
buildings, led riots, stayed stoned and, low and behold, they grew up to be
anti-American lunatics. Students became socialist professors, law students
evolved into liberal judges out to destroy the fabric of what realAmericans
stood for. The dumbest of the bunch went to work for MSNBC and CNN and NBC and
CBS and ABC. Yes, there were jobs for all the dumb asses. And they all had the
same agenda.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They really are a shameless bunch of sonsabitches. Their
candidate barely escaped jail time for treason. They are doing everything in
their power to destroy the rightful president of the United States.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A lot of what’s going on falls on the heads of the media. It
has, through its wide circulation, acquired much too much power. The left
represents bullying in the extreme. Anyone who falls afoul of the media has a
tough row to hoe. They never give up pounding away, until eventually, their
prey succumbs and goes wherever it is dead media prey disappears to. The media
has absolutely nothing else to do but pound, pound, pound away at whatever poor
sap they’ve decided not to like today.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The last great newsman was none of these clowns we see on TV
every night (with the exceptional of Bret Baier, who I think is hugely
professional). The last great newsman was Walter Cronkite. Cronkite was anchor
man for the CBS Evening News for most of twenty years. His was considered
America’s most trusted newsman. And he was a flaming liberal democrat!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But you never knew it. Cronkite never once let his political
affiliation known on the air. He considered such a disclosure a violation of
trust. Wouldn’t the evening news be more civil if there were a few more
Cronkites serving up the nations news?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am bored with watching the likes of Chris Matthews and the “false news” reporters on CNN attempt
to bully every conservative politician they can think of. People who watch
liberal news should be getting it by now – THERE’S NO SUCH ANIMAL AS A DECENT
CONSERVATIVE. Even if you actually believe that, don’t you get a little tired
of hearing it? I mean I get a little tired of thinking of liberals as assholes.
I know most of them are, but I tire of hearing it all the time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For the media, and I suspect other rabid pinkos, all
conservative flaws are character flaws. There are few, if any, “nice guy”
conservatives. We are all some kind of morphrodites. We are certainly racists,
all, homophobes, all, we think people should use the biologically appropriate
lavatories, and, yes, we think President Trump should do his best to keep terrorists
out of our country. (It galls me there are so many so-called Americans against
this idea. I wonder what the lib opinion would be if Trump was a democrat?)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If other than liberals considered we conservatives flawed, I
might be worried. But as I look at the bunch of them from where I sit, I see a
gaggle of honking geese with nothing better to do but squawk and flap around.
Just aired headed squawking. It been going on for years, and I suppose I got
used to it. I started getting the idea about the gaggle back in the seventies.
Just recently President Trump’s budget put the kibosh on the global-warming
krap the left has been trying to saddle us with for the past, what?, thirty
years? </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I need only remember this was the same gaggle of screwballs
that were howling about an Ice Age back in the seventies. It’s true – look it
up! </div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-63718984054812992222017-03-18T15:40:00.000-07:002017-03-18T15:40:16.544-07:00Explaining My Life Away<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yeah, I’m a little late in getting this piece to those of you
who read it. I apologize.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Truth is, I haven’t much felt like writing. Perhaps if I explain, you’ll understand.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I have several health problems that I’m dealing with. Usually,
only one manifests itself at a given time. It might be the diabetic neuropathy,
which can cause your feet to burn – there are no flames but it sure feels like
there are. Often, the afflicted endures an especially exhilarating experience, when your feet feel as if there are
ulcers, or perhaps boils, on the bottom of the feet. There are no real sores ,
but it sure feels like there are. Or it might be the arthritic knee that starts
throbbing , not allowing too much use. Or perhaps the worst of all - spinal stenosis – shows up and raises hell
for a few days. Stenosis is a strangling of the spinal column, which pulls the
walls of the column into the nerves. Yes, there are real nerves there, and it
sure feels like it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are medicines, palliatives really, that help …
sometimes, but not particularly. Lyrica helps the feet. It really does take the
pain away … but one of the side effects – Oh, those side effects! – is that it
makes the user gain weight. I quit Lyrica for awhile and lost thirty pounds.
When the feet started to hurt again I got back on Lyrica for a couple of weeks
and gained ten pounds back! Meanwhile, Dan McManus, the realty guy, told me
about Amitriptiline, which helps. I haven’t noticed any upward movement on
bathroom scales, as yet. Wait and see.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When the knee is throbbing, there isn’t much that can be
done. Just sit still and watch whatever ballgame comes on. Same with the
stenosis. These two problems are only, sort of, fixable. The knee will keep
getting worse until replacement becomes the only option. I dread the day. Unfortunately,
the back is a different story. The last neurosurgeon I saw, Dr. CW Kung of
Elmira, said he couldn’t fix what was wrong there. Same with the Laser Spine Institute. They and
Dr. Kung both said there is too much to fix. Ouch. That hurts. The last thing
you want your doctor to say is, “I can’t help you.” My questions were all
answered months later when yet another neurosurgeon, while holding my MRI up to examine it, said, “Wow! I’ve
never seen so much arthritis in one back, that’s for sure!” This was the guy
who shot me down for getting one of those spine stimulators. He said there was
so much arthritis, there was no room for the stimulator! Tired of getting bad
news from neurosurgeons, I stopped going to doctors … except for the optician,
the dermatologist, and the cardiologist I saw last week, I’m doing well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I know what some of you are thinking: You’re thinking, aren’t
you, that all the stuff that caused me to ail did not stop me from walking? You
see? I know what you are thinking. Let me see if I can change your mind. It is
true, is it not, that when you ail in a hurting way, you look for a comfortable
place to sit. Once found, you thoughtlessly throw the family cat from that
place and fall in to it. It feels so good to you, this comfy spot, that you
swear you’ll never move from it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Suddenly, you remember there is a term paper due tomorrow.
You put it off all semester, but your time is up, and you have not even
researched it. Not only that, Mrs. Battles, (or as you usually call your senior
class teacher, Old Battleax)told the whole class that if the term paper was,
for some godly or ungodly reason not turned in, or if it were not of senior class
quality, that person would not receive his or her diploma.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Oh, my God,” you say, “That woman, the Battleax, is ruining
my sick days – hell, my whole sick weekend.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You hatch a plan. You call your best friend, a very smart
girl, and putting on your very best sick voice, you ask her to research the
Battle of Fredericksburg, a Civil War battle.
And could she do it tonight, and you yourself will write the paper
tomorrow when you’re feeling better.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And you think you won’t forgive me for turning in this late
paper? Of course you will. You been here before, haven’t you. By the way, is
your paper ready to hand in? I’d bet you are all in the library tonight. Whadya
bet?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-64974437795195975692017-03-08T16:31:00.001-08:002017-03-08T16:31:48.784-08:00Thieves and Democrats think alike.<div class="MsoNormal">
There certainly seems to be a lot of vermin around willing
to crap on other people’s lives. They loot, tell lies, run fake protests, but I
guess that’s Democrats for you. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many people have emailed me to ask if there wasn’t something
that could be done to remedy the situation. A few answers presented themselves
but I thought the first thing to do would be to interview a Democrat and see
what he thought.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Tell me why people like you loot,” I asked a guy named
Ratty Lowlife.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Aw, go ahead, blame me, why don’t ya?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Hey, wait I wasn’t blaming you personally …”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yeah, but you were gonna. I know your type, Newshawk.
You’re just like all the rest …”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“The rest of who?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You know. Cops. News reporters. Soc …social, people who
study other people. Victims are always complaining and blaming people like me
when lies are being told, and there are protests happening.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But you’re a Democrat. What do you think - there’s someone
else to blame those things on? Certainly, you wouldn’t blame a Republican. It’s
not our style. Republicans have more class than Democrats ever had. “</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Oh, pooh. Republicans have some nerve, blaming Democrats
for all the nasty stuff that goes on. If there’s a riot, Republicans blame
Democrats. Worse, they claim that wealthy Democrats are paying us to stage
riots.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Well, it’s true!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Is not!” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Is so!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Uh, uh!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“I’ll bet you’re one of them that hates President Trump.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Oh, god, I thought I was gonna faint when he got elected.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Did you huddle in a doorway clutching your teddy bear tightly
to your chest? You look the type!” I said with a big smile.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yeah, screw you, Newshawk. I was upset!”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Oh, so you and all the other sissies were cringing
somewhere, tightly holding your teddy bears?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Mine was a fuzzy lamb.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“One you just stole from the toy department of some store,
after smashing in the window? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Well, yeah, I guess.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“See what I mean? Did it have a pink bow around its neck?”
trying to sound sympathetic.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Naw, not when I got it. I had to …er … find one. Put it
around her neck.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“A bow you just stole from the toy department of some store,
after smashing out the window?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yeah, but, did you know these store owners have insurance
on their stuff, in case it get stole?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Sure, they have to recover their losses somehow.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lowlife looked as if he were about to pop. “If shop keepers
can get money back when their stuff gets stole, then I think we thieves should
get paid for stealing it, in the first place.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Well, I … er … don’t doubt that you think that way.“</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“But does anybody pay us for stealing the stuff in the first
place … or breaking the window? N-A-A-A-W.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“What do you think should be done to ease the plight of the
hapless thief?” I asked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“You’re saying that instead of being punished for being a
thief, you should be paid for being one?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yepper. You got it, Champ. Say I’m walking along and I see
a car I like with the keys left in it. Now, you gotta know, man, it’s my duty
to steal that car. I mean, it’s only right. Right?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Yeah, sure … I guess.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Say I don’ take the car and turn in a voucher and collect a
couple of grand from an insurance company or a bank or someplace. Everyone would be better off, ain’t that the
truth?”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Or you could go into left-wing politics – you think just
like a Democrat!”</div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5721391316969520712.post-51593098715413459972017-03-02T05:03:00.003-08:002017-03-02T05:03:43.741-08:00Cowboy Don Takes on Lefty Rodeo<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Several readers have asked
why it is that I haven’t been writing anything about politics. Well, it’s like
this: For the past eight years (or so) I’ve been picking up a lot of good
material on a presidential type who is, was and always will be a liberal
Democrat. And liberal Democrats are oh-h-h-h so much more interesting to write
about than just about anything else I can think of to write.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Let’s face it, there’s a lot
of shit wrong with liberal Democrats, especially this latest batch. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">All this crap about riots and
mobs and beating up people … who the hell do these people think they are,
anyway? Shitheads having a hissy fit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">All of the turmoil, almost
entirely aimed at President Trump, comes via the Democrats – we all know that.
These riots are all bought and paid for by wealthy Democrats – George Soros,
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama (and many others – Chucky Schumer, Nancy Pelosi,
Dingy Harry Reid, Moonbeam Jerry Brown, and so on, to name just a few). These
people are seething because they lost the election. Never mind they had a poor,
unlikeable candidate, who fully expected to win in a landslide, and the Left
never once doubted her ability to pull it off. They thought they had a super
female running for the most powerful job in the world, who couldn’t possibly
lose to an outsider with no (or little) political experience. Donald Trump was
not supposed to win that election, and nobody knows it better than the
Democrats. And, man, oh, man, they are pissed. And man, oh, man, am I glad they’re
pissed because I would hate to wake up every morning with the thought of
dealings with Hillary Clinton as president. The right person won the election,
no doubt about it, but it will be impossible to convince very many Democrats
that that’s the case.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Democrats never admit they
are wrong, just as they never allow a fellow Democrat to be successfully
accused of anything. When that happens the entire party circles the wagons, to
protect the accused. When a Republican is accused of something (doesn’t matter
what it is), all Republicans run for the hills, so as not to attract any “taint”
to themselves. In the current vernacular, they are thrown under the bus. Not so
Democrats. Prime example: Hillary Clinton.
Everybody knew the woman was guilty of all that business with the emails
and the shaking down of world leaders for very large sums of money as down payments
for favors when she became president. Anybody else is in jail; Not Hillary. Why?
The Left simply couldn’t afford to have its presidential candidate locked up
for treason. Instead of habitating a jail cell, HRC is sitting home financing
riots in America’s streets and doing whatever she can to disrupt the legitimate
presidency of Donald Trump.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Meanwhile, the president is
going about causing his campaign promises to come to fruition. He said he would
build a wall between us and Mexico. He’s already proposed that legislation. He
said he wanted to keep people whose backgrounds were unknowable out of the
country; the Left blocked that move but it ain’t over yet. He wants to Repeal
and Replace BOcare, and plans are in the mix. He wants to overhaul the nation’s
infrastructure: he’s just asked Congress for a trillion dollars to do it. And there’s
more, plenty more. All stuff he said he would do while on the campaign trail.
There’s no B.S. in the Oval Office now, friends and neighbors. We got us a real
action figure in Donald J. Trump. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Y’all kin call me names and
all; Hell, I don’t care what you say. I’m just gonna sit back and enjoy the
rodeo. I’m gonna sit back and watch as Cowboy Don ropes and ties them lefty
heifers and bulls with any balls (if he can a lefty bull with any). Yessiree,
and a fine show it will be – watching as Cowboy Don makes America Great Again.
Yah, Ho-o-o-o!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">And shame to any assholes who
stand in his way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
The Newshawk Reportshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01560590392996316487noreply@blogger.com0