FamGuyToday by Aunty Fox

and they showed part of the Broadway show, 'The Book of Mormon', and played one of the songs, about how Jesus visited the United States, (and the Garden of Eden was in Missouri) and other stuff that the Mormons believe, like the golden tablets that were delivered by an angel, but were misplaced, and their private planet, etc. Pretty crazy, but gets worse, when you realize that the leading Repub candidate is a Mormon. Most religions have some degree of weirdness, but Mormonism kinda goes 'over the top'. Again, let me say, I know/have known Mormons and they are, for the most part, good people. Just hard for me to understand what some people will actually profess to believe.

FOX is moving away from the 'far right'. Oh really? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/26/roger-ailes-fox-news-course-correction_n_980850.html?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl4%7Csec1_lnk3%7C98941 I thought they were 'Fair and Balanced'? Ha ha. The funniest motto, EVER, unless the Nazi's claimed to be 'Caring and Compassionate'. Might be a plan not to be 'SO damned obvious' with their propaganda. But moving away from the far right? You gotta be kidding....

with the extra 10 million dollar added bonus of the Fed-Ex Cup. Hunter Mahan and Bill Haas playing a bunch of extra holes. Some great saves, as these guys battle for prestige and the big bucks. May have to start golfing again, as I see how interesting it can be, even if you're not playing for $10,000,000.

the Repub party, just look at the statements from their two leading candidates. Perry got lambasted by Romney for giving in-state tuition to children of illegal immigrants who qualified for a college education. Romney was reamed cuz his state health care program was/is the best in the country. These were the big NEGATIVE issues the Repubs jumped on. It says it all, about the party, who cheers executions and applauds letting an uninsured 30 year old die, while booing college education and health care.

of, Rage Against the Machine, Tom Morello(?), and was amazed how this Harvard grad is SO artculate, intelligent and talented. This is exactly the kind of guy who could enlighten the typical Conservatives, but they would never give him a chance, cuz he is SO different from them.

used to be elk burgers, but since we are running low, it has become pork chops, w/BBQ sauce, from the grill. I always 'stock up' when there's a sale, but lately, there haven't been any, and we're getting kinda low. Saw an article on-line today, how 'pig rustlers', have become a big problem, with the bad economy and the high hog prices. I guess pigs, raised far from population centers, are increasingly taken care of mechanically, far from those who don't like that particular odor, and thieves have been hauling them off, by the truckload. I wonder if they still hang rustlers? I just know the price of pork chops is sure higher than it used to be.

you've probably heard how, 'No Child Left Behind' has hurt the system. Bush killed us in many ways, but one of the worst is his program to 'dumb down' the classes and force the teachers to focus on the bottom end of the students instead of the upper and middle, where our future leaders will come from.  AND, he tied funding to it, forcing them to 'teach to the test'. Finally, Obama has reversed some of the idiot Texan's damage, by making some major changes to NCLB. Most people just have NO IDEA how much that clown hurt our country, but now, as we enter the dreaded 'double dip' recession, (from which we never left), maybe some will start to notice just how much he damaged us, in so many ways. If you don't know/notice, you just ain't paying attention.

I came across lowlights of O'Reilly's show, where he's saying, 'What kind of moron could blame our current economic problems on the Republicans?' Oh Really? What kind of moron would ask such a moronic question? That's the FOX game. Shift the blame, from what they did to us, repeat it often enough, and the sheep WILL believe. Sickening, but true. Lies and propaganda, all the time. The FOXNews recipe for the sheep, and it works.

until I looked into the 'Stats', on my blog, how many 'foreigners' read me. Glad to help inform them. Canada 336 Russia 328 Malaysia 316 Spain 255 United Kingdom 248 Netherlands 210 Germany 182 France 139 Luxembourg 102, and so on...

Awhile back, I wrote about the military retirees in FL who live in gated, golf course communities, drive new cars, and have nice boats and big houses. I got my experience and information on this subject by doing well over a thousand claims involving them, over many years and storms. I lived and worked in Daytona Beach and Pensacola (each twice), W Palm Beach and central FL, to mention a few. Most people never get the chance to enter these gated communities, let alone go into the living rooms, garages and see the large pools and big boat at the dock. Most aren't dripping money, like the retired 'brass', but if you've ever spent any time in FL, you know of what I speak. This being said, I gotta add, that the HUGE majority of these folks, are wonderful people and I don't begrudge most of them their pensions. The gist of my blog is that this is one place to look at saving some money, when the gov't is quickly going broke, and SOME of these retired officers appear to...

but I gotta admit their endless crap and propaganda obviously works. For the first time, more than 50 percent of Americans blame President Barack Obama for the nation’s economic woes , a Gallup poll released Thursday finds. When over half the people can look at the mess Obama inherited, from the lying Texan, who left with a 22% approval rating, HUGE unemployment, the financial world in ruins, housing prices plummeting, two unpaid -for wars and the economy in freefall, and then blame Obama for not 'fixing it, quick', you gotta realize how constant lies and propaganda CAN make a difference as the sheep continue to swallow the swill from FOX.

they trumpeted the news. "More People Prefer FOXNews". Oh Really? The poll gave only 3 choices. CNN, MSNBC and FOX. The sheep chose FOX, which won by a couple of percentage points over CNN and a few more over MSNBC. What is obvious, is that the sheep had one horse in the race, while the non-sheep split their vote, but still FOX got only a pitiful lead, at 36.1%. AND, the major networks, that have REAL news, weren't even included in the poll. Typical FOX bullshit, from Aisles and Murdoch, who've substituted Republican propaganda, for 'news'. http://www.politico.com/blogs/onmedia/0911/Poll_More_prefer_Fox_News.html #

other than the fact that he lied so much, is his policy of private contractors, like his buddies at Haliburton and Blackwater, who got billions in no-bid contracts. From today's AOL News. Tales of waste, fraud and mayhem by private contractors have been commonplace during 10 years of military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Now a Congressional study commission has put a “conservative” estimate on waste of between $31 billion and $60 billion in the $206 billion paid to contractors since the start of the two wars. Excessive reliance on badly supervised private contractors indulging “vast amounts of spending for no benefit” is the heart of the problem, according to the Commission on Wartime Contracting, a bipartisan panel established by Congress, which conducted the three-year study. And you wonder why Bush and his contributors like war so much?

I felt sorry for the hunter who had been killed by a grizzly, in Montana, because I have had close calls with bears, esp when elk/archery hunting, until I read, 'the rest of the story'. These guys were bear hunting, (not deer or elk hunting), which I am totally against, cuz it usually involves 'baiting' them with set out food, and it is usually the sows, with cubs, who get killed. They had shot and wounded the bear, and then followed it into the woods. Surprise! It fought back and killed one of them before it died. No sympathy here, for someone who got what they deserved. There's something wrong with someone who'd kill a bear, for the 'fun' of it.

but we watched the Emmies last night, (recorded, so we could zip through all commercials and most speeches), and I kinda enjoyed it. One of the funniest lines was from Jane Lynch, the hostess, who said, 'You wonder why I'm a Lesbian?. I present the cast of 'Entourage'. Got some good laughs. Also, "Yesterday, my daughter had a tea party with her little friends, and it was so cute. They complained about taxes, called Obama a Communist, and wondered how the Latina kid got in."

could be 'looked at', as a possibility to reduce the deficit. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/19/us/retiree-benefits-for-the-military-could-face-cuts.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha2  Oh Really? If you had worked hurricane damage as an adjuster in Florida, as I have after MANY hurricanes, you would understand how our retired military lives. Like royalty. After retiring at 50 or shortly before or after, these guys live in gated golf course communities, with 2 luxury cars in the garage, a large boat and expensive antiques throughout a huge house. I'm not kidding or exaggerating. Am not sure what rank, in the different services you need to achieve such status, but it is the norm, throughout Florida, espescially on the swanky coasts. Shopping at PX's, with all medical paid for and receiving huge monthly checks. Lotta people don't realize how much taxpayer money goes to support this opulent lifestyle of our retied military. Looks like a logical place to beg...

Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion, on Game of Thrones, won best supporting actor. He definitely deserved it. AND, The Daily Show, with Jon Stewart won the category for 9th year in a row. Well deserved.

but didn't know they did. Forbes ranks Broomfield near the top in 'Places to Retire', in the US. In fact, we were the only Colorado town to make it. Great, now we're gonna have a stampede of old farts. http://xfinity.comcast.net/slideshow/finance-25topsuburbsforretirement/broomfield-colorado/

I just hope the Huskie players learned a life-lesson. No matter what you do in this life, there is someone who can steal it from you, as the Nebr refs did, with 2 unbelievable 'interference' calls that totally turned the game around. Welcome to Lincoln, Huskies...

but today, on their main on-line 'news' page, they were a little much, even for the 'Fair and Balanced' crew. On their main page there were 7 anti-Obama articles. SEVEN, on one page. They barely had room to mention the air disaster in Reno. Amazing, even for those jerks...

to Bill Maher's show last night, where he yelled at a 'typical Repub voter', who was safely inside a plastic bubble and couldn't hear a thing. "Taxes are at their lowest level in 50 years. Reagan raised taxes many times. Reagan tripled the debt. The deficit is mainly because of Bush's 'temp' tax cuts, unpaid for wars, and 'his' economy. The 'debt ceiling' money has ALREADY been spent. The planet IS getting hotter". Many more, then finally, "Wrestling is Fake"! The clueless sheep never heard a thing, in his little world, just like the real Repubs.

today, released figures for the poorest states in the country. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/15/americas-poorest-states-_n_964058.html?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl Surprise. With the exception of Montana, the center of poverty is the center of the Repub base in the South. Poor education=low income, in the middle of the Bible belt. No surprise, cuz it's always the same. The bad news? The votes from these junior high dropouts count the same as mine. Just doesn't seem right, as the Repubs use this base to further their 'no-science' agenda.

As Bill O'Reilly stood up to Cheney. Not THAT Cheney, his daughter Elizabeth. He pointed out the Bushies had screwed up in Iraq and on the economy. Of course Liz whined, 'It was the Democrats', but Bill stood up pretty well, esp when she said 'We were greeted as liberators'. Is it a genetic defect in those Cheney's that blocks out reality? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/16/bill-oreilly-liz-cheney-iraq_n_965917.html

on Obama's negative approval rating, in the low 40th percentile. Yup, but they prefer to gloss over the fact that it is still DOUBLE Bush's rating when he was run out of town, and more than triple the Repub congress' approval rating. What did we do to deserve these losers?

since America's Got Talent is finally over and the dance troupe from Arvada, with Kari's kids, got 2nd place behind Landau. Nobody was gonna beat him, and no way the kids could have become a Vegas act, like Landau, but they did pretty good. Not sure what they won, if anything, but I'm sure it was quite an experience for all the kids involved and at everyone at Coal Creek Middle School is gonna enjoy hearing about it. Congrats, kiddoes.

WASHINGTON -- Former Vice President Dick Cheney was "embarrassed" when the U.S. credit rating was downgraded in August. Cheney's comments came in an extended interview with Rush Limbaugh, published in the right-wing radio host's print newsletter "The Limbaugh Letter." Speaking of embarassed, the country as a whole, is embarrassed, and much worse, that it was represented by someone who started a war, based on lies, then embraced torture. We know how you feel, DICK.

strikes again, as M Bachmann claimed a woman said her daughter had gotten the HPV shot and become mentally retarded. Michelle looked at her and said, 'Mom'? http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/09/13/7745847-fact-check-no-evidence-to-suggest-hpv-vaccine-causes-mental-retardation  Absolutely no proof of that, but there is proof that it saves thousands of lives. 'Our innocent daughters, being forced to have gov't injections', this goofball whines, and Perry gets on board, saying he made a mistake, falling over each other to appeal to the rubes, as they continue to be the 'anti-science' party. Unbelievable.

last night how the Australians are a little miffed cuz Obama has postponed his trip there, twice. Kimmel said they shouldn't feel bad, he's our president and we're still waiting for him to show up. No shit...

and NEVER wanted to be, that crazy old fart, who was the 'conspiracy theory' guy. And thought I had gotten past it, cuz it hurt too much and didn't want to go there. BUT, now that we are at the ten year anniversary, and I see it all happening again, it brings back all the feelings that I had managed to put away and ignore. WAY too many unanswered questions, esp about the 'plane' that hit the Pentagon, and Cheney's role, and what happened after, and the role of the Saudi's in Sarasota, and other places, and so much other stuff. We're talking hundreds of billions of dollars, and much more has been done for much less. Just Google all the 9-11 conspiracy, inside job, missile strikes Pentagon, etc, sites. True, there's some crackpots out there, BUT, there is SO much that makes Cheney and the Bushies look REAL guilty. Don't wanna be that crazy old fart, with the conspiracy theories, but wow, it's inescapable when you look at the facts. Sorry....

that the airliner, that hit the Pentagon, hit the west side, cuz that would have been the obvious place, for a plane that was hijacked straight west of there, BUT, the airliner actually performed a peculiar circuitous flight plan, to hit the south side, right in the center of an area that was under remodel, and pretty much uninhabited. Sorta like woulda happened if the planners wanted to 'hit the Pentagon', but not really kill their buddies there. Scary, huh? This is a great site that shows some of what the gov't didn't want us to see. http://www.freedomfiles.org/war/pentagon.htm

but came across 'Almost Famous', and couldn't stop watching. Great music and brought back a whole bunch of 'traveling with the band' memories. Was also fun to see all the co-stars in it that I had never noticed before. Dwight Schroot, from The Office was there as editor of Rolling Stone mag. A fat hotel clerk went on to become the fat gay guy in Modern Family. Lead guitar in the band, Jason Lee, became Earl, and his girlfriend, one the "band-aid" groupie chicks was Anna Paquin, (pink dress in pic) who went on to be Sookie, in True Blood. Phillip Seymour Hoffman was great, as well as my favorite, Kate Hudson, who played Penney Lane. Great movie and music.

Sept. 11, 2011 (AP) RENO, Nev. — Fighter pilot Heather "Lucky" Penney didn't have time to be scared. There was a hijacked commercial airliner headed to Washington, D.C., and she was ordered to stop it. "I was prepared to die for my country," she said. "It's something everyone else would have done if they were in my shoes. I didn't have time to feel fear. We had a mission, and there was a sense of urgency." On Sept. 11, 2001, Penney and her commanding officer were ordered to stop United Airlines Flight 93 from hitting a target in the nation's capital. But they didn't have any missiles or even ammunition. So Col. Marc Sasseville decided they would use their own planes to bring it down.He planned to strike the plane's cockpit. She opted to go for its tail, Penney said. The reason they didn't, or anyone else didn't have any ammo or missiles? Cheney, who was in charge of the military that day, ( the FIRST time in the history...

as the Buffs are leading 27-24 at the beginning of the the 4th. Richardson has school record receiving, already. As I write, Cal broke a long run and we're behind. Quite a game.... The Buffs REALLY need to win this one.

(By Dr. James Zogby, Director of the Arab- American Institute) as we look back at 9-11 and try to put it in some perspective. One thing is sure. Instead of building on the broad and deep international sympathy that had expressed itself so dramatically in the weeks that followed the terrorist attacks on our country, we let our worst instincts trump sound policy. The Bush administration's displays of arrogant bravado may have played well at home, but they cost us the support of friends across the globe. Two ill-conceived, unnecessary, badly executed, and now failed wars have left America weaker. And where once we were seen, and saw ourselves, as "the shining city on the hill" -- after Guantanamo, torture, secret "black sites", and Abu Ghraib -- our reputation is now in tatters. It is disturbing to tally up the damage done by these two wars. On just the American side, we can count more than eight thousand lives lost, and tens of thousands shattered by permanent ...

and laughed out loud several times. He was pushing his new book, "The New New Rules: A Funny Look at How Everybody but Me Has Their Head Up Their Ass,"  which will be published this November.  Love that title, and can relate to it. It just amazes me how some (semi) intelligent people can look at what's going on and can come up with such ignorant conclusions. Gotta be the anal/cranial inversion that I have noted before. No other way to explain what some people actually claim to believe. Lots of examples, but the main one would have to be: How can anyone look at the mess that Bush handed off to Obama, with banks, housing, unemployment, wars, deficits, etc. and blame the new guy? As if that train wreck is gonna be fixed this decade. Absolutely unbelievable, but there's a bunch of 'them idiots' out there...

the great evening we had Thursday, with Ted and Kari. They have been after us, for over a year, to join them for 'wine pairing dinner' at John's in Boulder. John's is a tiny old house, on the east end of Pearl St mall, where they are famous for their fine dining. A couple of times a year, they feature a winery, this time Huia, from New Zealand, and pair a five course dinner with five different wines. Never done anything like that, so we agreed, and had a great time. Spent nearly 3 hours, just laughing and talking and having great food and wine. Also, got to meet and converse with the huband/wife owners of the unique vineyard who brought the wine over. Pretty amazing evening. Thanks for the invite, guys.

as we did grandparent duty, with the cutest girl in the world, then did our Groupon coupons for beer, pizza and bowling. Really fun to get together with the crew again. Can't believe how much my old body hurts after bowling. Didn't help when the ball slipped out of my hand, on the backswing, cuz I had pizza grease on my fingers, then I went over the line, slipped on the oil, and had a 4 point landing that had everyone howling w/laughter. Glad to be of service, but I'm gonna hurt tomorrow.

as I read the last part of the book and just read about the movie, on today's AOL, called 'The Tillman Story', and it's reviewed today on NBC Sports. http://offthebench.nbcsports.com/2011/09/08/ricks-cafe-pat-tillman-and-the-anniversay-of-9-11/related     (check out the video trailer, in the middle of the article, with highlights from the movie) The review says, 'you'll be horrified by the story, but everyone should see it'. I know what he means, cuz the book has really bothered me. After his death, by fratricide, those involved told what happened and reports went 'up the food chain' til they reached the top and Rummy and the Bushies realized this would be disastrous PR, right before elections, so all the reports disappeared and soldiers were told to write different ones, including reasons for him to be given a Silver Star. Well, the final medal recommendation had NO signature on it, cuz they couldn't find anyone to affix their name to such a l...

John Kyl (R) Arizona, says he's gonna walk out if there's ANY cuts to the HUGE military budget. Unbelievable, but totally typical of these jerks. Let 'em walk out, then the mandatory cuts kick in, and see how the Repubs do in 2012 then. What a bunch of jerks....

as I get to the part in my book, 'Where Men Win Glory', the story of Pat Tillman's life and death, and the details of his death are described by several soldiers who were there. He was actually killed by a trigger-happy punk by the name of Trevor Alders, one of many who 'wanted to kill somebody' that day. During the investigation, or trial, Alders gave 5 conflicting stories of what happened, but the truth came out, from Ranger Bryan O'Neal, among many others, who was near Pat, behind a boulder, when he was shot. It's a miracle O'Neal wasn't killed too, but he said Pat's last words were, "Stop shooting, I'm Pat F' 'in' Tillman', as he was shot numerous times from about 60 yards away. Many Rangers,who were there that day, knew what happened, but STILL the military lied about it for nearly a year, all the way up to Rumsfeld, who claimed that he had been killed by enemy fire. An idiotic mission in an ill advised war, and the ...

WASHINGTON — Two million-year-old bones belonging to a creature with both apelike and human traits provide the clearest evidence of evolution's first major step toward modern humans – findings some are calling a potential game-changer. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/08/australopithecus-sediba-bones_n_954212.html?1315507025&icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl24%7Csec1_lnk3%7C93836 An analysis of the bones found in South Africa suggests Australopithecus sediba is the most likely candidate to be the ancestor of humans, said lead researcher Lee R. Berger of the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa.  I just wonder how the 'creationist, 5000 years old earth' believers handle a story like this in their 'fact-challenged' little world? Just ignore it or assume it's all part of the 'liberal plot'?

we find out (today) about the Saudi's in Sarasota who left in such a big hurry, right before 9-11, leaving new cars, food, clothes, etc, behind.  Mohamed Atta, and several of the suicide pilots, had phone records and photos at the 'gate' to the gated community, with license plates, tying them to the house, but the Bushies totally blocked the investigation, and this is according to Lindsay Graham (R). http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/09/07/v-fullstory/2395698/link-to-911-hijackers-found-in.html The final 28-page section of the Inquiry’s report, which deals with “sources of foreign support for some of the Sept. 11 hijackers,” was entirely blanked out. It was kept secret from the public on the orders of former President George W. Bush and is still withheld to this day, Graham said. This in spite of the fact that Graham and his Republican counterpart, U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, both concluded the release of the pages would not endanger national security. Th...

Texas, HQ for climate change doubters, set an all-time US heat record this summer. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44441386/ns/weather/ But Rick Perry, climate change nay-sayer, says about himself, 'they didn't believe Galileo either', which goes to further prove my point about idiots.

A new video game is giving players a chance to explore a post-apocalyptic Fox News studio and kill off zombies that resemble famous conservatives including Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck. The game, called "Tea Party Zombies Must Die," is project by StarvingEyes Advergaming, a website that provides games for online viral campaigns. Other characters in the first-person shooter include the "Generic Pissed Off Old White Guy Zombie," the "Pissed Off Stupid White Trash Redneck Birther Zombie" and the "Express Racist Views Anonymously On The Internet Modern Klan Zombie," who dons the remains of a KKK robe as he wanders around with a sign that describes President Barack Obama as a Muslim. Sounds fun...

Pat Tillman, whose death was the source of HUGE lies from the Bushies, first mission as an Army Ranger was to help rescue Jessica Lynch, whose entire story was the source of HUGE lies from the Bushies. Jessica was injured in a vehicle accident, but the official line was that she went down with gun blazing, til she ran out of ammo, then was shot and raped by the Iraqis. BUT, in reality, after her 'captors' gave their own blood to keep her alive and contacted the US to come and pick her up, the military decided instead on a huge raid, with a bunch of special forces, complete with cameramen, to liberate her. There was no resistance, but they shot some hospital workers anyway and the Bushies got their propaganda film. Months later Jessica told the true story of how well she was treated after being injured when her vehicle ran off the road, in the dark, after getting lost. Jim Wilkinson, a fellow Texan, who was in Bush's campaign, did such a good job, when he planted the 'Al...

that I couldn't go to Maryland for storm claims. I would have ended up sitting in a motel room, waiting for it to stop raining, then headed out to a muddy mess. Been there, done that, didn't like it. Some of those poor people are enduring the 2nd 'hundred year rain' with in 2 weeks. Must be terrible.

from the Repub clowns, last night, had to be from Rick Perry, when pressed about his non-belief in global warming. 'Well, Galileo was outnumbered for a spell,'  the anti-science, Bible thumper declared with conviction.  He got the analogy exactly wrong. Galileo was the scientist; the church and its allies, who knew nothing about the scientific method, were lined up against him. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and those Texas govs have VERY little knowledge.

make it to the final 4, on 'America's Got Talent'. Congrats, kids. Ellie sould be back to school in a week or so. Pretty amazing when you think of the thousands that tried to go this far. Still betting on Landau to win it all, though.

of Jon Krakauers' book about Pat Tillman, (that I can't put down), the more impressed I am with both of them, esp Pat, the All-Pro. He was a true warrior/philosopher whose life is well documented on the athletic fields and through his journal that he began writing several years before he was so tragically killed. A truly amazing person who makes me feel puny in comparison, in so many ways. He did realize, though, after enlisting, that instead of finding himself with a bunch of like-minded 'heroes',  he was surrounded by mostly whiny kids who enlisted cuz they couldn't find a job, and he had a premonition about his life 'being in their hands', and that he had probably made a huge mistake as he missed his wife and family. He also said he learned he couldn't trust the 'supreme commander' of the US military. Like I said, he was very intelligent, but fatally impulsive. It should be required reading for anyone who wants to learn the history of our invo...

or didn't care about, when he started the totally unwinnable war in Afghanistan, 'the graveyard of empires' , is that when you're fighting guerillas on their home soil, like we stupidly did in Viet Nam, 'The home team wins, by not losing and the visitors lose, by not winning.' Not that W really thought we could win, he just wanted a war. He fell into the trap that Bin Laden had set, getting the US involved, like the Soviets and so many before them, in a quagmire of tribal alliances that went back many centuries, and a people who hated foreigners, especially 'infidels', for good reason. Nice move, George, as we look back, ten years later.

last night, 'Enron-The Smartest Guys in the Room', about the Texas power transmission company that quadrupled the price of electricity in California, with fraudulent 'rolling blackouts' to justify it, (I was out there working, then) and it's executives were eventually tried, found guilty and setenced to decades in prison. Not only did they rip off California utility customers, but de-frauded their own employees with stock scams and wrecked all their 401k's and pensions. The big boys went to prison, EXCEPT for Ken Lay, who happened to mysteriously die, at his vacation home in Aspen, right before sentencing. There was no autopsy and he was immediately cremated before any officials could identify the body. There have been many 'sightings' of this personal friend of GWBush, whose hundred million dollar fortune was never recovered. Another 'interesting" part of the Enron story was J Clifford Baxter, who had agreed to testify against his executive bud...

to watch the Repub brain trust on display tonight, as they try to kiss Tea Party ass and blame Obama for the problems that any thinking person can clearly see were handed to him by the previous administration. Eventually, one of them will get the nomination and it will be equally funny to watch him RUN from any endorsement from the Prince of Evil, Dick Cheney, the actual power behind the throne, who pressed for the wars that sucked up trillions of dollars for his defense contractor buddies, instead of being spent on the American people.

Before you entrust your valuables to the typical hotel safe, you may wana know that most of them can be opened, no matter what numbers you choose, by putting in the default code of '0000'. To tell the truth, I have never trusted them, not wanting to put all my valuables in one place, that could obviously be opened by hotel personnel, as I'm sure guests leave, with locked safes, all the time.

that explains how Ronald Reagan, the Alzheimer's addled hero of the Repub Party, wouldn't be able to get the GOP nomination today, now that the right wingers have hijacked the party. He just isn't conservative enough to fit in with the 'new, improved version' that the Christian coalition demands these days. Pretty funny, well-researched article, right here, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-b-keegan/the-2012-gop-field-not-ev_b_952117.html

that FOXNews used for the lead in their story, that 45% believe in Creationism. Michelangelo, one of the most talented, intelligent people of his time, mocked creationism in his famous picture, 'Creation', as he clearly showed God, inside a human cranium, insinuating that God was 'created' within the human mind. FOXNews may not be accurate, but they can be funny.

of 'America's Got Talent', and saw Sihouettes, who I think could very well win it all, after seeing them and hearing what the judges had to say. During the intro, they told about Ellie, a young girl with diabetes who is their inspiration. I know a lot about Ellie, cuz she is in Kari's class, and Kari told me how they lost the school nurse, who helped her so much, to budget cuts. SO COOL to see her and the other kids make it so far on AGT. Am SO proud of Kari and her kids. Hope they go all the way.

cuz I have total sympathy with those fellow humans who are getting burned out in Texas. A terrible tragedy, by any measure. What I am talking about is those Southern Baptist preachers who railed against the 'sinners' in New Orleans, and before that, Florida, who incurred the wrath of a righteous God. Recently, there were two hurricanes, that could have used just a tiny 'nudge' from God, and they woulda got some much needed rain. Didn't happen. Does God hate Texas? I just wonder what those same preachers are preaching now, as their prayers go unanswered.

of Obama. The 'disaprove' number includes me, and about everyone I know. Does that mean we would vote for a Repub, from the party that KILLED our economy/country? Not even close! Don't like Obama, but that doesn't mean we'd vote for the real villains...

I'm really gonna like my new book. Ted loaded my Kindle yesterday, (thanks a bunch,Ted, and for the Ovila Saison) with a bunch of Carl Hiaasen, Stephen White and John Krakauer. I just started 'Where Men Win Glory' by Krakauer. It's the story of Pat Tillman, the NFL player who quit football and joined the military after 911. He was killed, by 'friendly fire' in Afghanistan and officials lied about the circumstances until his family finally dug out the truth after a long cover-up that went all the way to the top. The book includes a detailed account of the Soviets and others who had gotten bogged down there and how anyone with any sense of history, (NOT GWBush) wouldn't have become involved there (but he sure wasn't gonna attack the Saudi's with whom his family had been partners for generations, even though 15 of them attacked us on 9-11). History proves, emphatically, that you cannot win a war in Afghanistan, but, I guess if you just want to start a w...

piss off some people, but sometimes I just want them to wake up and use the brain they were born with. When you get a LOT of people who don't care about facts, and are proud of the fact that they, 'take it on faith', you got a treasure trove for a political organization. Joila! The Christian, Repub Party unholy alliance is born. These people don't need any proof, they just take stuff 'on faith', and are PROUD that they can 'turn off their brain' when there's a conflict between fact and faith. This was HUGE, when Karl Rove and those of his ilk realized the possibilities. Hence, the modern Repub Party/Christian coalition. Speak of God and patriotism and you instantly get millions of knee jerk votes. Scary, but very true, as most voters really don't have the time or inclination to follow facts. When you have millions of people who believe the earth is 5000 years old, and actually believe in a literal Noah's Ark, they wil...

Had just booked and paid for (non-refundable) our trip, when my adjusting company told me to report for work. Told 'em I don't do flood and they said they had a bunch of wind claims in Maryland, where my buddy Tony lives. Don't know how many times this has happened, but it seems like a bunch. Oh well, maybe there'll be a new disaster when I get back.

as they play @ Hawaii, against the leading passer, and offense, in college football, from last year. Looks like it could be long year. Football's a tough game when you got no offense and can't tackle. I'm switching around and see LSU (my other 'home' team cuz I watched them every Saturday when I was in Louisiana for so many months) is beating #3 Oregon. I also see Nebr beat Chatanooga. Chatanooga??? Were the 'Little Sisters of the Poor' already booked? If the Huskers were allowed to schedule high school teams, as early season opponents, I'm sure they would. Same thing every year...

You go outside and something's different. A pungent aroma in the air and the light is at a slightly different angle. Just like that, it seems that summer is over and fall is in the air. Today is that day. Went from the 90's to a forecast high of 70, today. Not that I'm complaining. This is my favorite time of year and the heat of summer was getting kind of old. Two days ago we drove over Loveland Pass, and saw snowdrifts beside the road from last winter. Won't be long and they'll be getting deeper. Wow, time sure goes fast, these days....

and was surprised that he came across as somewhat human for a while. Jay took his time, warming him up, with stories of getting kicked out of Yale and spending time in jail in Rock Springs,WY, for DUI. The last time I was in RS, on a fishing trip, we bought a case of beer and they gave us two 'roadies' (extra beer for the road), I swear. Cheney then went into his spin, explaining how it is OK for the US to torture, BUT, if it was done to our soldiers, that would be wrong, cuz we are a 'nation of laws'??? He then claimed that his torture program helped find Bin Laden, although that was many years before BL even moved to the house he was caught in. His many lies leading to the invasion of Iraq were totally ignored. The funniest part of the show came when Carrot Top followed him, and had been told Cheney would be gone by then, but he wasn't. CT had a bunch of Bush/Cheney comedy bits that were funny, but you could tell he was sweating as the Lord of Darkness alternately...

I hate GW, cuz he wrecked the country that I, my kids and grandaughter have to live in, I kinda admire a part of him. Along with DICK Cheney, Rumsfeld and Karl Rove, they were able to ram through a bunch of stuff, like a war based on lies and taking over the SEC, trashing financial safeguards and raising international oil prices, with their friends in high places. Obama is totally wimpy, compared to W's administration, and we're all gonna suffer because of it.

of people. Those who hated Obama from the beginning, and those of us who are REALLY disappointed in what he's done. He inherited a HUGE mess, and Repubs are gonna fight him at every turn, hoping the people will forget who wrecked our country. Well, this guy who we thought was pretty smart, seems pretty dumb, as he acts like the Repubs will actually compromise. WRONG. They are gonna fight anything that will make him look better, and they don't care about the American people when it comes to being re-elected, after they wrecked the economy. Open your eyes, you wimp and see them for what they are, total obstructionists who only wanna make things worse, fighting to get back in power. Get real, Obama, and realize you are in a WAR, with the Repubs. They're ruthless and it's about time you face reality. We'll see, but I doubt if he has the balls to stand up to them. He sure hasn't so far....