Posts

Showing posts from May, 2012

Gotta admit, I got a laugh,

Image
from W today, as his portrait was unveiled at the Whitehouse. He said to Obama, 'Now, when you wander the halls, you can look at this and ask, What would George do?' Kinda funny, and so true. If Obama asks himself that, and does the opposite, he should do fine.

Was working out,

on my Stepmaster, and decided I'd rather do the exercise with a view, SO, got out the recumbent bike and took a nice ride. Found a nice destination point with a great view. If I only knew how to transfer pics from my phone/camera to my blog....

Was gonna blog

about FOX, and their new anti-Obama campaign, but decided against it. If you don't know by now, that FOX is just a platform for Murdoch/Ailes to spew their rightwing propaganda, you never will. Way too obvious to comment about.

Always a good time,

getting together with the kids, and Mon night, it was Ted and Kari, over for a BBQ before they leave for Copenhagen and Sweden. Yesterday, we saw the new Men in Black, which was surprisingly good. Today I'm gonna try to start an exercise program that I've put off for too long. Still learning my Ipad, which I really like, but I'm glad I still have my laptop, cuz they both have their advantages.

On '60 Minutes' tonight,

there's a special Memorial Day program, about the soldiers from Afg and Iran. Bottom line, a bunch of brave young men, were suckered into political wars by W and Cheney, for what? We're finally leaving, after over a trillion dollars, thousands of lives lost and over a hundred thousand injuries, for what? Not like THEY attacked us. It was Cheney's war for Halliburton (etc) profit. Sickening. Over 45% of all soldiers are now claiming disability. Thanks again, George. Good call...

Got together with the 'crew',

for a BBQ last night and had a great time.Typical old farts pot luck, with mojitos. Easy, these days, to just sit around and talk and laugh, before and after dinner. Sometimes, getting old isn't all that bad.

Shocking story,

In the Financial news today. As of last month, over one third of all homeowners in the US are'underwater' on their home loans, and the average amount is over $75,000! Whew. Doesn't look good, for the economy, for a LONG time. I knew it was bad, but that's terrible. Yup, I know it's all Obama's fault, cuz he did't have a magic wand to fix W's mess, that is still like a snowball, rolling downhill, picking up size and speed.

I've always thought,

that the people who know a politician best are those from his home state, where they've dealt with him over the years. That's why I look at Mitt, who's behind Obama by over 25 % in his home state of Mass, and wonder how others think he's prez material. I know the Pubs will do anything to get back in power, but c'mon. Mitt Romney? On second thought, after considering, Bachmann, Perry, Santorum, Cain, etc, I can see why they picked Mitt. Not a lot of talent on that side of the aisle.

Interesting Letterman show last night,

Image
with Bill OReilly. Dave and Bill agreed, surprisingly, that Iraq was a HUGE mistake, and the Bushies lied to us about it, and that Dick Cheney was probably mostly to blame. They discussed O'Reilly's 'Killing of Lincoln' book and things were pretty 'real' until Bill claimed he doesn't lean left OR right in his views, cuz he's right in the middle. Yeah, riiiiigghhttt. Then, he said this economy is owned by Obama, the statute of limitations has run out, on blaming Bush. Are you kidding me?? This mess will take decades to fix, if it can ever be done. Of all the FOX clowns, I do have to respect Bill's intelligence, although I don't agree with him, but think he plays his part well, on the propanda network.

Obama's in town again

and it seems like a really tough choice, as we approach November. We could go with the party who took a financial surplus and 8 years later turned it into the largest debt we have ever seen, that was passed on to the 'new guy', along with an unemployment, housing and economic crisis, not to mention 2 'unpaid for' wars. OR, we could go with the party that is gradually fixing it, shutting down 2 wars and turning around the economy, slowly, cuz the Pubs fight every 'fix'. Wow, is gonna be a really tough decision.

From USA Today, today

Image
At most, one man in 1,000 screened will avoid a prostate cancer death through 10 years. The best and largest study in the U.S. found that no deaths were avoided. Of those 1,000 men, two to three will have a serious complication of treatment, such as a blood clot, heart attack, stroke or even death. As many as 40 will have erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence or both. There is only a tiny chance that the men who suffer those harms have benefited from the test. Goes along with what I've read, before, and am gonna show the article to my Dr. I'll sure miss that finger, though.

At the 'old farts brunch' this week,

I hooked up w/some buddies and we set a tee time for Monday. Great day with perfect weather and a lot of laughs. Played the same ol' course and was good to meet up with the same ol' crew that's still there. After playing 18 hoes I can remember why I loved the game so much, AND why I quit. Golf is satisfying and frustrating at the same time. Bottom line, it IS kinda fun....

If you only see one,

Image
Bill Maher show this year, you should see this week's. He starts out with Dan Rather, who was sacked, cuz he reported that GWBush ducked out of his Nat'l Guard tour, after he was placed there by his well connected father. He didn't show up for a year, BUT, when Rather reported on it, the Pubs changed the question and muddied the waters cuz of one document that may or may not have been original. Total crap from the Pubs, again, that allowed W to duck the question, and the Pubs had their right wing victory, while the people were denied the actual issue. SO typical, for the sheep who can forgive war crimes, but come unglued about a prez getting a BJ.

I know the Pubs hate it,

but Obama is keeping the schedule, even moving it up, to remove troops from Afg, after removing them from Iraq. So much for the Bush/Pub policy of constant/multiple wars. The Pub war machine will have to find different ways to suck $$$ from the US govt, although if Romney is elected, I'm sure he'll attack somewhere...

Some interesting stuff,

on TV lately, but my favorite is 'Downton Abbey'. It's won a BUNCH of awards, and there's a reason, as we are taken into the world of English aristocracy in the early 1900's. Tonight, on '60 Minutes', there was Roger Waters, and the largest grossing concert of all time, as he does 'The Wall', around the world, reliving the best music, ever. Then today, we did 'old farts brunch', and this evening we looked at the eclipse with the glasses Tammie gave us, before we watch the new 'Game of Thrones'.  Still learning my Ipad, and there's some stuff I still can't do with it, but will keep trying.....

This is the first

of my blog posts to be written on my new iPad using voice dictation technology. Really I am just speaking this and it is being written down. Maybe nothing new for some people but for this old fart this is amazing stuff. I was wondering what kind of keyboard to get to use with my iPad but with this I don't need a keypad. Not sure how to post pictures or photos but I am sure I'll figure it out. For now I'm just amazed with my new iPad. Thanks Carol and kids.

What a great party last night,

Image
for the old man. Ted and Kari had us, plus Nate and Laura and Piper, over for steaks and asparagus, among other goodies, with a great salad (one of the best, ever) by Laura, w/Carol making mashed potatoes and a lemon meringue pie. Oh yeah, also good wine and beer, BUT, the highlight of the evening was my new I-pad 3. Totally unexpected and a HUGE surprise, but it is SO cool. Have been playing with it all day, but have to take a break occasionally when my eyes get weary. Have a bit of a learning curve, as with all new technology, and have been keeping a list of questions for the Apple store, but so far, I just love it, and am doing pretty good. Am gonna have to make a real effort to get my butt out of the chair and move this old body in the next few days, but too much exploring to do at the moment. Thank you SO much, my family.

'Bout died this afternoon,

when I was on the back deck, relaxing with a glass of wine about 5;30, and a golf ball, missed my head by inches and slammed into the house, goin' about 300 mph. My heart stopped, and my body bounced off the ceiling, as the ball caromed off the wall and ricocheted into the living room, breaking a ceramic angel, on the far side of the room. Absolutely crazy, and seemingly impossible, but it happened. The perpetrator, an NFL linebacker lookin' guy, who was nice enough to come and face the music after he hit the ball into the house, apologized, and couldn't believe what had happened, and tried to pay for damages. I said no problem, we can glue it, and, being a golfer myself, I knew it was an accident. BUT, it was just crazy, and you had to see it to believe it. 14 years here, and nothing quite like it.

Not to be a pessimist,

Image
but I have started my day by watching CNBC, The Financial Channel, nearly every morning for MANY years, and have come respect to the views and insights of one guy, Art Cashin, over all the other pundits, as he has consistently been able to see what's going on, and explain it. He had a VERY interesting piece on the show this morning that makes a lot of sense. Here's a clip (a little over 3 mins), where he makes a startling prediction in the last half minute. http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000090146&play=1 In a nutshell, Art says that Germany's not going to continue to bail out the Greeks, esp after the last election where the people voted in a Socialist gov't that is nullifying the austerity agreements already agreed upon. SO, just a (small) matter of time before Greece leaves the Euro Zone. As that time approaches, Greeks know that the banks will close for a week or so and re-open w/drachmas instead of Euros. In the lead up to that, Greek citizens (who wa

What a great guy I am

Image
on this Mother's Day, I made breakfast (pancakes, ham and eggs) for the fantastic mother of my children. Then, I got her a fantastic dinner of her choice. Taco Bell, with tacos, nachos supreme and tostadas, before we watch 'Survivor' and 'Game of Thrones'. What a guy....

New favorite website

http://www.soundsleeping.com/index.php Create your own background sounds. On mixing board, click 'pick sounds', then raise volume. Mix rain, thunder, creek, cave water, wind, etc. Really cool.

Why I don't do treadmills...

Image
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ivX8kjlCfc&feature=player_embedded

I've finally figured out

Image
the big diffenence between Dems/Libs and Pubs/Cons. Look at the pic of earth. The libs see one planet, with mankind sharing common problems and ideals. The Cons see different borders and religions, where their God and gov't is better and they gotta fight to dominate those who are different, and legislate their morality on the masses. Really obvious when you look at it from a distance.

Saw Grover Norquist on Bill Maher

Image
and it was ridiculous. All Grover could say, and he said it OVER and OVER, was, Reagan did this and Reagan did that, but Obama hasn't fixed things like Reagan. Oh really? It would be like a car race where Reagan's car had a flat tire and Obama's car had been in a head-on collision. Of course Obama's car is gonna take a while to fix, cuz the last driver 'totalled' it. Who can't/won't see something SO obvious?

This just in, from unidentified Repub male

Image
OMG! Seal Team 6 just broke down my door and is forcing me to marry a big, hairy, ugly dude. Damn you, Obama!

The Pubs came out

Image
saying that Obama had 'shook his fist in Jesus' face' with his pro gay postion, SO, Stephen Colbert brought out a Bible to read Jesus's views on the subject. Seems Jesus was so outraged he was speechless, cuz He NEVER mentioned it. Brings a new answer to WWJD (what would Jesus do). I'm pretty sure he would distance himself from the war loving, gay hating bigots who claim to be his spokesmen.

How gullible are they?

Image
The Romney sheep, that is. I know high school was a long time ago, but Mitt says he 'doesn't remember' holding down the gay kid, and cutting his hair, though he doesn't deny it (think about it), and apologizes for 'going too far with high school pranks'. Is anyone really that stupid/gullible, to actually believe him?  UNbelievable, but SO Republican, where it's OK to do stuff like that, cuz they think the 'Good Book' advocates persecuting that 5-8% of all mammals that are born gay, on this earth that is 5000 years old, according to those 'geniuses', that always vote Repub.

The merry prankster,

Mitt Romney, used to be quite the cut-up.  Romney suggested during the interview that the acts he was apologizing for were merely youthful indiscretions, after the Post described him pinning a closeted gay classmate to the ground and cutting his long hair, for example. Wow, what a joker.

One of the last

Image
moderate Repubs, Richard Lugar (R), IN, was booted out by the good citizens of Indiana, cuz he dared to negotiate with Dems in the Senate. Now, they have a new Tea Party candidate, as they lost all seniority in the Senate, and gov't has taken another step toward gridlock. They should be SO proud.

Colin Powell's new book,

Image
which came out today, says the same thing that George Tenet (former head of CIA) and Condaleeza Rice said. There was never any discussion within the NSC (Nat'l Security Council) about attacking Iraq. 'It was something George wanted to do from the beginning, and the orders came from a brief written by Scooter Libby, at the urging of Dick Cheney.' It was a Bush/Cheney war, based on lies, from the beginning, that cost us well over a trillion dollars, thousands of lives, and the respect of the world, not to mention killing over 100,000 Iraqis. This was after starting a war in Afg, (after 3 Afg and 15 Saudis took down the twin towers). Thanks again, George.

You CAN teach an old dog new tricks

Image
Today, I tried a 'trick' from Kathy, that worked surprisingly well. For easy, good 'corn on the cob', cook each ear for 4 minutes in the microwave. Then,without removing the husk, cut the bottom end off, through the husks, and, while holding on the 'stringy end' with a towel (cuz it's hot), squeeze the ear out of the bottom. All the strings remain with the husk and you have a quick, easy delicious ear of corn. Amazing. ( And, as always, use a small paint brush to spread the butter.)

In another egregious example,

Image
of the Pubs putting their rightwing dogma ahead of the welfare of the people, Colorado Repubs used procedural tactics to kill a 'civil unions' bill in the Colo legislature that was sure to pass after several moderate Pubs had agreed to 'cross the aisle', because it was shown to be the clear will of the people. Not only did they take down that bill, but ALL THIRTY bills that followed it on the last day of the legislature, including water projects, school lunches and vital community funding. Typical Repub crap, as they put their homophobic religious agenda ahead of common sense. Just when you think they can't get any worse.... Read about the damage here http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_20582571/fallout-legislative-implosion-over-colorado-civil-union-bill

The numbers are in,

Image
and the last 12 month's temps in the US are the hottest EVER, since records have been kept. BUT, this won't change the FOXNewsers from saying it's all a liberal plot. These jerks and the sheep that follow them don't let 'mere facts' get in the way of Repub propaganda. Never have and never will. BAAAAA....

They got their panties in a wad,

Image
at FOXNews, after VP Joe Biden stated what everyone already knew, today. In short, he said that the world didn't trust or respect us, under GWBush, as the ignorant cowboy from Texas led us into another ill conceived war. SO true. All you gotta do is travel overseas and talk w/the people, who saw the US attack Iraq, then admit, 'Oops, no WMD's', while killing tens of thousands of innocent citizens. BUT, you oughta hear FOX and the Pubs squeal after Joe admitted it. What do they think? The rest of the world is gonna be like the apologists at FOX, who say, 'Oh that's alright George, we all make mistakes...'

Just finished 'Boomerang', by Michael Lewis

Image
One of the best explanations I've found for our current financial mess. The author of 'The Big Short', 'The Blind Side' and'Moneyball', among others, details how the big investment bankers bundled the sub-prime mortgages, after making a killing on 'prime' mortgage packaging, and sold them with a Triple A rating, thanks to incompetent crooks at Moody's and other ratings agencies. These toxic instruments were bought by pension groups, cities and countries who thought that AAA meant 'no-risk'. HA. This was worthless paper, from 'Liar Loans', as totally unqualified buyers bought WAY overpriced properties so a few investment bankers could reap HUGE profits. The Bush staffed SEC, headed by Chris Cox, turned a blind/ignorant eye toward massive corruption, as AIG 'guaranteed' the whole mess with complicated 'credit default swaps' and other derivatives that masked the ticking time bomb until it exploded in Bush's last

On '60 Minutes', tonight,

Image
there's a great story about Kentucky, where the people went from moonshine, to growing pot, making meth, and are now the leading offenders in presciption drug abuse. Home to some of the worst corruption and the lowest education rates in the country, in the middle of the Bible Belt and the Republican Party. Wow, who coulda guessed those could go together. I'm SHOCKED!

In today's 'WTF' from FOX,

Image
we have a new headline, 'What Makes a Great Leader?', and we find out, from FOX, that GWBush was a great leader, but Obama is not. SO, according to these A-holes, we need a leader that can attack a country, based on, 'Oops, no WMD's'. Typical and total bullshit, from the Repub propaganda channel. Nothing new, though, as the Pubs love an 'actor', like B-movie star Reagan and W (who skipped out on his Nat'l Guard duties), and 'pretended' to be a warrior, as he started a war that others fought and paid for. Pubs, thru and thru, in their make-believe world.

Quotes from 'Inside the Bubble',

Image
that strange place inhabited by Repub politicians and the sheep that follow them. Today's quote is from John McCain, which he gave this morning, in reference to, 'Why did you pick Sarah Palin as a running mate.' 'Sarah Palin's qualifications were the overriding reason', Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), said Sunday. Yup, John, this half term gov, whose prior experience was being mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, is qualified to be a heartbeat (of an OLD man) away from prez of the US. More insight into the Pub brain, which also picked as #1, Michelle Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain and Rick Santorum, before settling on Mitt Romney. These clowns, to follow in the footsteps of GWBush. God help us if they ever get to be 'in charge', again.

After watching Sat Night Live, last night,

Image
seems I'm not the only one who thinks FOXNews is nothing but a joke. The opening skit was a hoot, as the crew lampooned the crew of 'Fox and Friends', showing them as the idiots they are. Even Rupert Murdoch was skewered, unlike the real FOXNews, who has totally ignored his trial for hacking, bribery and 'lack of ethics'. I'm always amazed when I think of (somewhat) intelligent people mistaking the Propaganda Network for actual news. UNbelievable, but real. Check out the skit, here, (after 30 sec commercial)  http://www.hulu.com/watch/358340/saturday-night-live-cold-opening-fox-and-friends or http://video.nbc.com/nbc2/thumb/20a17ea3032caeb02ff8a54a5033acb5_large.jpg

Yahoo, Cinco de Mayo

Image
What a holiday! Was in Mexico for Kari's wedding, several years ago, on May 5, and thought we'd get to see a Mexican holiday, up close. Ha. At our resort, the locals had never heard of it, and couldn't understand what we were talking about. Driving the French out of Mexico???

The A-holes at FOX,

Image
will say anything, and it's hard to be shocked, but today, on top of their multiple anti-Obama stories, and an ode to GW Bush, via a 'news' reporter taking a bike ride with him, have a breaking 'news' story about wind farms causing global warming. No shit, the jerks who deny global warming, have a major 'news' story about wind energy causing global warming. http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2012/04/30/wind-farms-are-warming-earth-researchers-say/   Even I couldn't make up this shit, which they continually spew, as the sheep lap it up.

RU kidding me,

Image
as Romney says we oughta be getting over 500k jobs per month, and it was only 115K/mo in April. NEVER, did GWBush get that many, and he inherited a great world, unlike the disaster he left, after 8 years, with every aspect of the economy crashing at an unprecedented rate. Typical Repub crap, who won't admit how they wrecked the best economy in the world, and handed off a turd, wrapped in a flag, for the new prez. Repubs, the 'hoping for amnesia', party. Hopefully, voters aren't that stupid, BUT, many of them watch and believe FOX, so 'who knows?'

For the 2nd day in a row,

Image
Bailey has presented us with a baby rabbit. Not hurt, but pretty scared. SO, we keep her inside, while I try to find the little bunny a new home, along the golf course. If there's 2, there's probably more. Really cute little things.

Was just checking

on the live shot of the eaglets, and saw one of the parents fly in with dinner. A small owl. Talk about top of the food chain... http://www.ustream.tv/decoraheagles

Good day, yesterday,

as we went to Coors Field and happened to catch the kinda game you hope for. Perfect weather, great seats and a close game that was won with a Jason Giambi 'walk-off homer', in the bottom of the 9th. Then it was Survivor night, where Cyndi did a great job with dinner. Life is good....

In British courts,

Image
Rupert Murdoch, the 'dark side' of news, whose entire existence is based on creating Repub Propaganda, disguised as 'news', was judged as 'unfit' as a news source, in Britain, after convictions for hacking and bribery. A nasty old man with billions of dollars and a political agenda, who fools a significant percentage of patriotic Americans, as he makes HUGE money, with Roger Ailes, with his 'Big Oil, Big War' agenda. Sad and tragic, but very effective. FOXNews, the ONLY 'news' organization in the history of the world, who PAID (over a hundred million$), instead of the other way around, to become a 'news' supplier. Think about it. (And Google it), as you begin to see how this propaganda network became a 'player', for the Pubs.

Such Bullshit,

Image
as Obama met w/Karzai, to tell him how much WE are gonna pay for the next 12 years, after GW attacked the wrong country, in his 'Oops, no WMD's' after 911. Dems are damned near as bad as the Pubs, as they are handed a giant turd, wrapped in a flag, as the taxpayers pay for the Haliburtons of our country. Sickening, but typical, in our political world.

Excellent article, exposing FOXNews

Image
How does FOX do it? Take the enormous amount of misinformation that is taken for truth by Fox audiences: the belief that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and that he was in on 9/11, the belief that climate change isn't real and/or man-made, the belief that Barack Obama is Muslim and wasn't born in the United States, the insistence that all Arabs are Muslim and all Muslims are terrorists, the inexplicable perceptions that immigrants are both too lazy to work and are about to steal your job. All of these claims are demonstrably false, yet Fox News viewers will maintain their veracity with incredible zeal. Why? Is it simply that we have lost our respect for knowledge? Read it here, the 14 techniques FOX uses to brainwash their audience. http://truth-out.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=1964:fourteen-propaganda-techniques-fox-news-uses-to-brainwash-americans

For a rare look inside

the mind of Texan Repubs, just look at today's news. They bitch about sex education being taught in schools and try to de-fund Planned Parenthood. THEN, they really bitch about all the money being spent on 'welfare babies'. DUH. Their answer? 'Just Say No'. Yup, that's gonna work.