Things to Know - 2 March

1.  The Super PAC (anonymous contributors of big money) is an offensive affront to our political process.  However, while it still exists, it can work both ways.  The shrill twist on social issues by the GeeOpie has "severely" provoked the LGBT community to act, and act in unison as it has never before.  Their money will be directed in money and votes to defeat the GeeOpee in November.  The GOP will reap what is sows:
http://www.nationalmemo.com/article/gay-donors-activists-super-pacs-citizens-united-obama-tammy-baldwin

2.  Keystone XL Pipeline - remember that one?  The energy lobby would like for you to forget, so that it can push it past your sensibilities, using slick TV ads.  So, to refresh your memory and give you an update, there is this piece:
http://www.nationalmemo.com/content/keystone-xl-flim-flam

3.  Olympia Snowe, in her own words, on why she is resigning her senate seat after 40 years of service:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/olympia-snowe-why-im-leaving-the-senate/2012/03/01/gIQApGYZlR_print.html

4.  There is an election in Russia this weekend.  Protests and rallies in the streets have repudiated Vladimir Putin, but there is no viable opposition candidate, so the former KGB agent will probably win.   There is a joke going around in Moscow - An administrative assistant to steps into the office to give Putin the news "President  Putin, you have good news and bad news.  First the good news.  You won.  The bad news is that nobody voted for you":
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/putins-hollow-victory-to-be/2012/02/28/gIQAUbFUlR_print.html

5.  A bad bill was defeated in Congress yesterday.  It was the one that would have allowed en employer to not provide any access to company provided health insurance benefits that it found objectionable.   Since when is an employer more able to figure out what benefits an employee can get than a medical professional?:  It was voted in favor by every single Republican Senator - less Olympia Snowe (see above) #2:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/02/opinion/a-bad-amendment-defeated.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

6.  Paul Krguman delves into the hypocrisy of the Wannabees economic and taxation policies that would make us less solvent that what the current administration proposes:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/02/opinion/krugman-four-fiscal-phonies.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  Credit Unions have seen a huge influx of accounts and dollars coming their way as a result of the Banking Industry's bad behavior.  I have been a credit union member for 45 years, and have no complaints what-so-ever:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-bank-fees-complaints-20120302,0,7419554,print.story

8.  Southern California is a rich melting pot of ethnic diversity.  Yes, there are always negative sensations and problems as changes develop in communities, but changes are not easy.   It is a place of beauty, food, traditions, and a community that is reflective of the future.:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-multiracial-cities-20120302,0,6370978,print.story

9.  You know you are old when you read a story like this.  You consider yourself forward-leaning, progressive, and willing to explore new territory.  However, I am too set in my ways and my understanding of physics and science to even contemplate this plan:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-krikorian-time-20120301,0,3660949,print.story

--
Juan

"Fettucini alfredo is macaroni and cheese for adults."
       -- Mitch Hedberg

"Take the diplomacy out of war and the thing would fall flat in a week."
       -- Will Rogers

"Prediction is very difficult, especially about the future."
       -- Niels Bohr

"He who asks is a fool for five minutes, but he who does not ask remains a fool forever."
       -- Chinese Proverb

"So little time and so little to do."
       -- Oscar Levant

Things to Know - 1 March

1.  There is no end of sleaze with the ethically challenged elected legislators.  Turns out that one of some guy who is VP in a company that sells the device that pokes into the vagina to check things for a woman considering an abortion....well that guy is also a Repugnicant legislator in the state of Alabama:
http://www.nationalmemo.com/article/alabama-pol-pushing-ultrasound-bill-sells-ultrasound-machines-living

2.  This is not a news article, but something you should see.  Legendary British film director Sir Ridley Scott launched a global film making contest for aspiring directors.  It's Titled "Tell It Your Way".  There were over 600 entries.. The film could be no longer than three minutes, contain Only 6 lines of narrative & be a compelling story.  The Winner was "Porcelain Unicorn" from American director Keegan Wilcox.  It's a story of the lifetimes of two people who are totally opposite, yet, very much the same - all told in less than 3 minutes.  You can see why it won.
http://www.porcelainunicorn.com/

3.  Ross Douthat of the NY TImes, who is a bit to the right of center, if it is at all possible to measure that any more these days, thinks that Romney has boxed himself where it is tough for him to run a viable campaign for pres.:
http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/29/what-mitt-lost-while-he-won/?pagemode=print

4.  What we know of the Occupy Movement today is that it is about 6 months old.  Its real origin started about 50 years ago, as detailed in this article.   A Sociologist by the name of C. Wright Mills is credited with much of the ideas that started the critical analysis of the "power elite" (which we now define as the 1%).  The irony is that I just had lunch with my college Sociology professor, on Wednesday afternoon, and this article came to me later in the day.  Hope he likes it.  You should all read it....yes I know it is long, but this puts much of the Occupy Movement into some historical context:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/13018

5.  This op-ed piece from the Washington Post goes rehashes the demise of the GeeOpie Wannabees and speculates that their best chance is to come up with someone totally different at their convention:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/an-election-ripe-for-an-independent-candidate/2012/02/29/gIQAG6M0hR_print.html

6.  I think we've evolved over a period of time to see that corporate America is not exactly a staunch defender of stability of the middle class.  Occupy has highlighted the problems as, as this column shows.  There has been a very clever manipulation of terms, concepts, and values to stigmatize unions, and it has worked to severely weaken the unions.  Civil Rights should also include the right to organize...period:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/01/opinion/a-civil-right-to-unionize.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  Giving Peace a Chance is preferable to fear mongering and gearing up and blowing a bunch of money on a war machine.  In addition to being cheaper, it gives our Agribusiness a market to feed:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/01/opinion/talking-to-north-korea-again.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

8.  Here's Gail Collins on the big day that acknowledges the inauguration of President Harrison (yes, there was a president named Harrison).  It appears that his inaugural address was almost longer than his term in office.  So, here's his story and other silly things about Romney:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/01/opinion/collins-a-big-days-coming.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

--
Juan

"Women have been trained to speak softly and carry a lipstick. Those days are over."
       -- Bella Abzug

"Tact is the ability to describe others as they see themselves."
       -- Abraham Lincoln

"The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable."
       -- John Kenneth Galbraith

"I'm seventeen and I'm crazy. My uncle says the two always go together. When people ask your age, he said, always say seventeen and insane."
       -- Ray Bradbury

"The thing I hate about an argument is that it always interrupts a discussion."
       -- G. K. Chesterton

"Artificial Intelligence is no match for natural stupidity."
       -- Unknown

Things to Know - 29 February (leap day)

1.  If you enjoy political satire, you'll like this (as you can see by the title of the link):

http://www.cagle.com/2012/02/the-ayatollah-of-pennsylvania/

2.  So, you wanna screw up the GeeOpie guys?   Send or ask the Democrats to go out in Michigan and vote for Santorum.   Romney is so hot, that his plastic exterior is melting:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57386285-503544/could-democrats-give-santorum-a-boost-in-michigan/

3.  A review of General Electric's 10-year tax payment performance is something to put on the table as we consider tax reform:
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/02/27/433250/general-electric-tax-rate-decade/?mobile=nc
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41650/

4.  While the Italian cruise liner business is going sour, the Wannabees are still in a circular firing squad, and Greek restaurants in Berlin are going empty, poor Rupert Murdoch is still having a hard time trying to run a news paper.  Things are so bad that his mangement of the London Sun reads like a shabby check-out tabloid:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/13014

5.  Kathleen Parker of the Washington Post points out that Santorum has the same problem that Mitt--Bot has - just cannot speak to the regular blue collar regular folks without making a mess of it.   Santorum wishes he could have not said what came out of his mouth this past weekend (including the vomit, I guess), but he did say it:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/santorums-failed-pandering-to-blue-collar-workers/2012/02/28/gIQATZn0gR_print.html

6.  Maureen Dowd's column is entertaining as usual.  But, as I read it, I'm thinking that at this stage of the Republican primary campaigns, the Wannabees have literally destroyed themselves in the eyes of the voters.  How in the world can the GeeOpee get a nominee out there who is viable?  It seems impossible that they can close ranks and say that the eventual pick is a swell guy and every body should vote for him.  The damage has been done, and it is not over yet.   They will continue bashing the pulp out of any imagined worth from each other until the whole world is tired of just the mention of any of the Wannabee's names (see cartoon above):
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/29/opinion/dowd-gop-greek-tragedy.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  To compete for your entertainment dollar, and relieve you of the GeeOpie doldrums, follow the 340 boulder that is moving from a rock quarry in Riverside County and going on an 11-day journey, at 5 mph, and traveling only at night until it gets to the LA County Museum of Art.  It will have three semis pulling and pushing a 204-tire centipede transporter on surface streets.  It is reported to travel faster than Santorum's brain, is almost as big as Romneys wallet, and whose silhouette rivals Gingrich:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2012/02/340-ton-boulder-lacma-art-exhibit-1.html?track=icymi

8.  Steve Lopez, is one of my favorite contributors.  He's a local LA Times columnist.  He also wrote the book, which was later tuned into the movie The Soloist.  I don't usually want to include very local news stuff, because I fear it may bore some of the readers who are not familiar with the region.  However, I think that Steve is on to something here, in getting attention focused on an issue that goes way beyond Los Angeles and California.  I am trying to get the correct URL, and will send it out so that you can sign the petition to get action going to overturn the legality of Super PACs:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0229-lopez-dirtymoney-20120228,0,5366045,print.column

THIS IS THE CORRECT URL FOR THE PETITION TO SIGN:  http://www.caclean.org



--
Juan

"Life is not having been told that the man has just waxed the floor."
       -- Ogden Nash

"Conscience is what makes a boy tell his mother before his sister does."
       -- Evan Esar

"About the time we think we can make ends meet, somebody moves the ends."
       -- Herbert Hoover

"There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home."
       -- Ken Olsen

"When a man tells you that he got rich through hard work, ask him: 'Whose?'"
       -- Don Marquis

Leap Day Supplement

		February 28, 2012 Santorum Proposes Replacing Church, State with New Entity Called 'Sturch' Would Offer Salvation, Motor Vehicle Renewals on Sunday LANSING (The Borowitz Report) – Telling a crowd of supporters that the separation of church and state "makes me want to throw up," GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum today proposed replacing church and state with a new entity he called "sturch." "Merging church and state into sturch will benefit all Americans," he said.  "Except maybe Jews." Mr. Santorum said that the combined entity would offer greater convenience to the American people than the separation of church and state currently does, since Americans would be able to get salvation and motor vehicle renewals at the same place every Sunday. Turning to another campaign theme, Mr. Santorum told the crowd, "I support the rights of the unborn child until it is born and wants an education." He contrasted himself with President Obama on the education issue, stating, "Barack Obama speaks in complete sentences.  What a snob." In other campaign news, singer Kid Rock endorsed Mitt Romney, which means that his music is no longer the worst thing about Kid Rock. An upbeat Mr. Romney visited the Daytona 500, where he told a reporter, "I love this stuff.  I've always been a big NASDAQ fan."

--
Juan

"A consultant is someone who saves his client almost enough to pay his fee."
       -- Arnold H. Glasgow

"If you would be known, and not know, vegetate in a village; If you would know, and not be known, live in a city."
       -- Charles Caleb Colton

"Why do writers write? Because it isn't there."
       -- Thomas Berger

"There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes."
       -- Doctor Who

"Nothing is impossible. Some things are just less likely than others."
       -- Jonathan Winters

Things to Know - 28 February

1. Mitt-Bot is living proof that memory begins at conception:
http://www.thestar.com/printarticle/1136834

2.  Thom Hartman and his easy way to indulge in the news of the day:
http://www.thestar.com/printarticle/1136834

3.  An interesting way to understand what kind of food system we have is to work undercover in the fields and at one of the big box market outlets.  The kind of people who work there, are abused there, and remain in acceptance of their lowly existence.   Then, there is the "food":
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12977

4.  Richard Cohen of the Washington Post is here to remind us that Santorum has real problems:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/enough-of-rick-santorums-sermons/2012/02/27/gIQAvUKieR_print.html

5.  Michael Gerson of the Washington Post is here to remind us that Romney has real problems.  And while we are at it, I guess that I have to throw in my opinion here - Romney keeps on harping about how he has experience in running a business, and Santorum does not.  Being President of the United States is not like running a business.   George W. Bush had his Harvard MBA, and a lot of good that did us.   The business of government is not to make a profit.  It is not to cast off citizens who are not performing to standard or working as hard as others.  There is a lot about the job that Romney has no clue:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-mitt-romney-can-make-the-most-of-his-weakness/2012/02/27/gIQAOYPkeR_print.html

6.  David Brooks of the NY Times is here to remind us that the Republican Party has real problems:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/28/opinion/brooks-the-possum-republicans.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  Frank Bruni of the NY Times is here to close the book on Santorum's fractious ignorance:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/28/opinion/bruni-its-a-college-not-a-cloister.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

8.  This article points out that the very wealthy (close to or part of the 1%) are far less concerned with the rules and regulations that the other 99% go along with.  I think that there is a lot of truth to this experiment.  Kind of explains why I have this road-rage hatred for those big splashy cars whose drivers cut in at the last second to exit the freeway, without waiting in line with the other safety-conscious drivers in the exit lane.  Like they're too good to have to wait with the unwashed masses:
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-0228-greed-20120228,0,7089417,print.story

--
Juan

"A consultant is someone who saves his client almost enough to pay his fee."
       -- Arnold H. Glasgow

"If you would be known, and not know, vegetate in a village; If you would know, and not be known, live in a city."
       -- Charles Caleb Colton

"Why do writers write? Because it isn't there."
       -- Thomas Berger

"There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes."
       -- Doctor Who

"Nothing is impossible. Some things are just less likely than others."
       -- Jonathan Winters

Things to Know - 27 February

1.  Nothing to do with politics.   Sleep.  If some of you are like I am, then you have concerns on not being able to sleep for a solid 8-hour stretch.  So much so, that you get sent to a sleep study for Apnea and experience a trial run with the CPAP (constant pressure airway passage) mask - forget that, and I know now.  Sleep when you feel like it, and don't get twisted up in agony because it does not fit the paradigm.  Of course, when you work for a living, this is a tough adage.  Now, being retired.....just go with the flow.  Naps are good:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16964783

2.  So, with the distinct disadvantage that the GeeOpie Wannabees have given to the Republican Party, it is to be expected that you are going to see, hear, and read chatter like this.  Anything to get George Will from muttering disconsolately in his beer may help:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12895

3.  Rachel Maddow had a real good piece on an insulting claim on the Netherlands, and this was picked up, and has a video of that piece.  Santorum is doing much harm overseas:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41618/

4.  An employee of the federal government takes the time to write about how he is angry and tired of some politicians who continually dump of him and all the other federal workers about how they sap the life out of this country:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/i-work-for-uncle-sam-and-im-proud-of-it/2012/02/14/gIQAVDcdcR_print.html

5.  While all of the hoopla is going on with the GeeOpie's, the middle East, and the Oscars....Scotland is thinking seriously about leaving its long association with the Brits down south of them.....really.   It might happen. or at least the Londoners just may take a better appreciation for their northern neighbors:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/27/opinion/independence-for-scotland.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

6.  Paul Krugman weighs in on those who chide European welfare systems for all that ails them.   Not so, says the Nobel Economist.   He picks apart their talking points, and then proceeds to explain what the problems are and what sort of reality the European Union finds itself:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/27/opinion/krugman-what-ails-europe.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  While most of us were watching the Oscars, Mitt-bot was doing a pep rally in Michigan.  He was out mingling with the regular folks; the NASCAR fans.  He was also telling them about his flirtations with his wife on a pier out on the lakes - well, the trees are the right height.   Real presidential stuff - well at least he did not have any vomiting stories:
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-mitt-romneys-oscarnight-gamble-in-michigan-20120226,0,4046695,print.story

8.  Steve Lopez has returned from the end  of life, the death, and the obituary of his father.  He is now turning to the affairs of the city of Los Angeles, and is taking on the sleaze and lack of political will that infests the greater metropolitan area.  He takes on the current mayor and a guy name Trutanich for starters.  Steve is taking the pen of journalism and is on a mission to clean things up:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0226-lopez-roundup-20120226,0,233483,print.column

--
Juan

"There's one thing about baldness, it's neat."
       -- Don Herold

"Don't try to solve serious matters in the middle of the night."
       -- Philip K. Dick

"The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good."
       -- Samuel Johnson

"You don't stop laughing because you grow old. You grow old because you stop laughing."
       -- Michael Pritchard

"We're not lost. We're locationally challenged."
       -- John M. Ford

Things to Know - 26 February

1.  Santorum is running because god told him to.  Some of other GeeOpie's claim the same divine mission.   God has to make up his mind, and settle on one, or maybe the question should be re-phrased in a different format...you think?   How many other similarly inspired candidates have been presented before the voters in our history, and how many have bombed out? :
http://www.nationalmemo.com/article/god-most-powerful-republican-swing-voter

2.  Jonathan Alter, of the former Newsweek, is around, and I found this good piece.  It's about Romney's intellectual banrkuptcy - in that he knows what is right, but he lacks to the convictions to put them forth.  Instead, he says what he thinks has to be said at the moment:  (actually Newsweek is still around - but not like it used to be)
http://www.nationalmemo.com/content/no-bailouts-romneys-intellectual-bankruptcy

3.  Time for U.S. History 101, and James Madison's contribution as one our "Founding Fathers".  Apparently the Tea Party goes overboard and neglects some of the salient points inserted into our Constitution, through the Federalist Papers, and completely ignores the Commerce Clause.   This has great bearing on what the individual states can and cannot do, and imposes a great influence on what has been the law of the land in the past, and how it should be interpreted on the issue of national health care.  This also give the Albany bureau a chance to fact-check and weigh in:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41604/

4.  The European perception of Rick Santorum.....you have to read it here for yourself (that is why I send these out).  The best line is that..." ....it promotes the dimmest dumbing down of a once great party".   Maybe one of these days that GeeOpie will once again attain the level of the Republican Party:
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/print/2012/02/rick-santorum-represents-everything-europeans-find-weird-about-america/253553/

5.  Here is a bit of history on the phenomena of birth control, and how it has turned into a political football by the right-wing.  It is something that the GeeOpee is stuck with now, and is going to be part of the inflexible and selfish mindset that will contribute to its eventual demise.  Perhaps this has to happen to awaken whatever semblance of the real Republican Party may still exist:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-the-catholic-church-almost-came-to-accept-birth-control/2012/02/21/gIQAdy1JYR_print.html

6.  An inconvenient truth is that the Federal "bailout" (to the tune of $80 billion) of the auto industry actually saved it and is employing close to 1.5 million workers who would have all lost their jobs.  The GeeOpee just cannot accept this as fact and avoids the issue, or just does not accept it as fact:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/opinion/sunday/a-million-jobs.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  Thomas Friedman puts forth his energy policy for the USA.  Maybe we should also join OPEC, since we are becoming a viable exporter of the stuff now:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/opinion/sunday/friedman-a-good-question.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

8.  This article takes to task the phrase "self-professed well educated Republican" by calling it an oxymoron:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12936

9.  Just before I pulled in the quotes and hit the send key for today's stuff, I had the TV on and caught bits of ABC and NBC news where both George Stephenopolous and David Gregory had Rick Santorum.   Sen. Ricky was asked about his stance on social issues and his religious beliefs and it was very revealing on how unhinged the guy is.  On ABC, Santorum railed against JFK's speech that advocated a sharp separation between church and state.  Sanitorim said the speech made him "want to throw up".   I am sure that you will be hearing more about it from the various pundits later today and all along the campaign trail.   Theogaffrocy is alive !!!!!
--
Juan

"If I only had a little humility, I'd be perfect."
       -- Ted Turner

"Always acknowledge a fault. This will throw those in authority off their guard and give you an opportunity to commit more."
       -- Mark Twain

"I have discovered that all human evil comes from this, man's being unable to sit still in a room."
       -- Blaise Pascal

"Advertising may be described as the science of arresting the human intelligence long enough to get money from it."
       -- Stephen Leacock

"A husband is what is left of a lover, after the nerve has been extracted."
       -- Helen Rowland

Things to Know - 25 February

1.  It is great that we have satire and comedy to bring up and have us face the ridiculous things that we do in the name of politics and public service.  It is also a tragedy that basic understanding and reasoning does not rule the agenda for common sense.  Case in point, read this article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/2012/02/23/gIQAU4KnWR_print.html

2.  Romney rents out Ford Field in Michigan to give his BIG campaign speech.   Yawza, yawza, yawza....65,000 seats.   Only 1,274 showed up, and most of those were probably campaign workers, reporters, and a few Mexican illegals who were grooming the field, and got included to run up the numbers:
http://www.businessinsider.com/mitt-romney-empty-stadium-rally-2012-2

3.  In order to balance out the Mormon's continuing practice of converting deceased Jews via LDS baptism to Mormonism, Stephen Colbert has (with the power vested in him) converted all dead Mormons to Judiasm:
http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/stephen-colbert-converts-all-dead-mormons-t

4.  It is getting harder every day in trying to figure out if the utterances from Wannabee Santorum are gaffes or that is just the way he is mentally constructed.   It appears that it is in his inscrutable DNA…:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57384204-503544/santorum-obama-wants-to-indoctrinate-students-by-boosting-college-enrollment/?tag=stack

5.  Recall the Congressional committee that refused to allow a woman, any woman, to testify before them on the issue of women's health.  Following this rejection by the Republican group, the Democrats convened a pseudo-committee, and the testimony by one young lady from Georgetown University was heard.  The result of exactly what needed to be hear, and gave further embarrassment to the GeeOpee and the Republican Party.  There is no end dysfunction to the GOP:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/a-witness-for-the-gop-gender-gap/2012/02/24/gIQAwpXsXR_print.html

6.  Charles Blow of the NY Times on how Romney did it again.  Another speech (to an empty football stadium) and then his ad-lib quips at the end and an unforgivable, and not one he can say he "mis-spoke" gaffe:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/25/opinion/blow-mitt-romney-michigan-and-a-couple-of-cadillacs.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  Dick Cavett, in his own style, on the actions by others which give him acid reflux.  He saves his best for life style and closed-minded antics of Ricky Santorum:
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/24/schooling-santorum/?pagemode=print

8.  Bill Maher is not all that convinced that Obama's re-election is a sure thing.   He knows that after the GeeOpee convention, their nominee will get backed by loads and piles of Super PAC money from the fattest of the fat cat 1%.   That's why Bill gave $1 milllion of his own money to the Obama's Super PAC, and hopes it nudges richer Liberals to do the same:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2012/02/bill-maher-says-president-obama-could-absolutely-lose-re-election.html

9. Greg Rodriguez writes his opinion on why Arizona (starting with Tucson) have banned any ethnic studies programs.  It's probably like what you think it is:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-rodriguez-ethnic-studies-20120220,0,6272987,print.column


--
Juan

"If I only had a little humility, I'd be perfect."
       -- Ted Turner

"Always acknowledge a fault. This will throw those in authority off their guard and give you an opportunity to commit more."
       -- Mark Twain

"I have discovered that all human evil comes from this, man's being unable to sit still in a room."
       -- Blaise Pascal

"Advertising may be described as the science of arresting the human intelligence long enough to get money from it."
       -- Stephen Leacock

"A husband is what is left of a lover, after the nerve has been extracted."
       -- Helen Rowland

More Stuff to Think About

Some things don't have url links, acan't wait:

 

February 24, 2012

Santorum Makes Campaign Swing Through Seventeenth Century

Blasts Contraception, Electricity, Soap

THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY (The Borowitz Report) – In an effort to underscore his core beliefs leading up to this Tuesday night's primary contests, former Sen. Rick Santorum made a campaign swing through the Seventeenth Century today.

At the first stop of his ambitious journey, Mr. Santorum restated his reason for seeking the White House: "I am running for President today because the position of Spanish Inquisitor is no longer available."

The former Pennsylvania Senator served up red meat to his seventeenth-century supporters, telling them, "Since we all agree that contraception is a bad idea, it's time to take a harder look at electricity and soap."

Mr. Santorum, who said that in his first day in office he would repeal the Age of Enlightenment, stressed that he had home-schooled all seven of his children: "That means there are at least eight people in this country who don't understand evolution."

In a lighter moment, Sen. Santorum told his audience what he said was his favorite joke: "A Kenyan, a Muslim and a socialist walk into a bar. And then he makes everyone get an abortion."

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich scored points with this comment on education: "We should leave no child behind, only wives."


--
Juan

"Formula for success: rise early, work hard, strike oil."
       -- J. Paul Getty

"It is a wise father that knows his own child."
       -- William Shakespeare

"What is the difference between unethical and ethical advertising? Unethical advertising uses falsehoods to deceive the public; ethical advertising uses truth to deceive the public."
       -- Vilhjalmur Stefansson

"It is a very sad thing that nowadays there is so little useless information."
       -- Oscar Wilde

"Is there life before death?"
       -- Graffito

Things to Know - 24 February

1.  If you have not been to Los Angeles lately, there is an amazing transition that has been slowly evolving through gentrification.  Old buildings in run down sections are razed, and being replaced.  The driving force in many cases is the younger work force is moving in to avoid long driving commutes.  The center of the city is revitalized by a new spirit of community, and all services and needs that are brought with it.  The LA Phil, with Gustavo Dudamel, is part of the story, as well as a commitment to an improved public transit system:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-downtown-hotel-20120223,0,1324743,print.story

2.  Here is a satirical presentation, which may be more effective than plain reasoning, to show and expose the right-wing nut jobs that have overrun the Republican Party:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41561/

3.  There is a serious problem with Monsanto and Dow introducing chemicals into our food supply. Recently, a legal issue turned against Monsanto in the case of a French farmer was poisoned.  The chemicals in question are banned in many areas of Europe and Canada.  These chemicals and modified genetic organisms (MGO) are being foisted on an unsuspecting populace without careful oversight:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12858

4.  I have often included some of Thomas Friedman (op-ed NY Times, and book writer) in this journal.   Once in a while, he comes through with something brilliant, but, I have to agree with the criticism here.  For the most part, he probably likes to write too much about stuff about which he knows little, or makes a big issue about stuff that people already know about.  Anyway there is a book out about Friedman, which attempts to expose his shallowness:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12882

5.  Robert Scheer is here today with a pained view of the GeeOpee Wannabees, and their utter dysfunctional dialogue on the issues.  As he terms it - Race to the Bottom.  He particularly takes on Porkie and his absolute bomb throwing:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41558/

6.  Here are four elected officials who are NOT running for president or on any political campaign.  They present an issue, which the Wannabees should be talking about; cap-and trade.  They present it in a concise and logical manner, and support its benefits to our society and economy.   The Wannabees????.....They are off fear-mongering on social issues and throwing bombs:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/carbon-emission-policy-could-slash-debt-improve-environment/2012/02/13/gIQAQ0LZWR_print.html

7.  Timothy Egan writes to the issue of Santorum's professed mission to instill his beliefs into public policy, and where history is not on his side:
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/theocracy-and-its-discontents/?pagemode=print

8.  David Brooks has an intelligent presentation of how our tax/benefit system is a welfare state just like Europe, but even bigger.  We just structure it differently.  It could be on the road to improvement with the one that the Obama administration has proposed:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/24/opinion/brooks-america-is-europe.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

9.  Paul Krugman points out where Romne, in a moment of weakness and candor, stated that cutting government spending hurts the economy.   The damage control from his handlers tried to clean that one up.  Flippity-Floppity ...and what else is new:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/24/opinion/krugman-romneys-economic-closet.html?ref=opinion

10.  In a nation that gets obsessed with dangers and gets focused on building fences to keep out terrorists, it turns out that we have bigger problems walking among us; The Sovereign Citizens Movement:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-terror-cop-killers-20120224,0,6262803,print.story

--
Juan

"Formula for success: rise early, work hard, strike oil."
       -- J. Paul Getty

"It is a wise father that knows his own child."
       -- William Shakespeare

"What is the difference between unethical and ethical advertising? Unethical advertising uses falsehoods to deceive the public; ethical advertising uses truth to deceive the public."
       -- Vilhjalmur Stefansson

"It is a very sad thing that nowadays there is so little useless information."
       -- Oscar Wilde

"Is there life before death?"
       -- Graffito

Things to Know - 23 February

1.  Here's a nudge towards the corporate world by the Obama administration - cut the corporate income tax from 35 to 28 percent, but eliminate all of the other deductions and tax loop holes that allow companies to pay less than 35% or nothing at all.  My guess is that the corporate boards won't like this arrangement.   And, they talk about entitlement programs for the poor the and middle class which are economically destructive?:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/obama-to-propose-lowering-corporate-tax-rate-to-28-percent/2012/02/22/gIQA1sjdSR_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines

2.  The South believes that it can start the movement that created the Civil War.  The mini-minds of the GeeOpee in the state of Georgia actually wants to exempt itself from Federal Laws that it deems objectionable.  What part of Democracy does this idea not understand?:
http://www.ajc.com/news/georgia-government/should-georgia-exempt-itself-1357558.html

3.  Santorum's assault on public education and critical thinking is not a new thing.  This article points to where he is coming from:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12802

4.  Take a few minutes and read about the uber-rich billionaires who give freely of their chump change to the Republican Super PACs.   This is America - land of where the  volume of freedom of speech is equal to the amount of money you have:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/22/us/politics/in-republican-race-a-new-breed-of-superdonor.html?_r=1&nl=us&emc=politicsemailema1&pagewanted=print

5.  Gasoline is sky high and going higher in price.   So, you think there is reason to believe the "drill-baby-drill" crowd?  Not a chance.  We are actually consuming less gasoline that we have last year, and the USA is actually in a position that it cannot consume all it produces, and is selling it out on the global market.   And, that is where the problem is.   Petrol Casino Players (known as speculators) are betting that Iran is going to shut it off, and so speculation buyers outnumber sellers.  Is there any more reason that we should get off the black gooey addictive chemical compound?:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12828

6.  Thom Hartman and his news.  Normally, I draft this mess the night before, and I  include the East-Coast midnight change-over editions of the NY Times, and the Washington Post, and some early next-day offerings from the LA Times.  However, I am going to end it right here for now.   Instead, I am going to watch the modern day version of Wiley Coyote and the Three Stooges and watch the GeeOpee debate, then shower up and go to bed.


7.  Ah hell, I'm back.  I tried for about 10 minutes, and watched those clowns talk about the family, abstinence, and birth control.  Is there any reality that exists in the field of candidates, other than an occasional glimmer from Ron Paul?    What I saw looked like the Captain and his crew on board the Costa Concordia trying to get close enough to the Arizona crowd and say "howdy".

8.  George Will can, and does, eloquently, fill up a whole page with bits and pieces to end with the fact that neither Romney or Santorum are viable candidates to run for president:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/santorum-and-romney-are-miscast-candidates/2012/02/21/gIQA1l48TR_print.html

9.  Gov. Chris Christie advises Warren Buffett to shut up about the rich should pay more taxes.  If Christie would follow his own advice and "shut up" perhaps his closed pie hole would ne prevented from accepting any more food.   From my perspective, it is impossible for him to "come out of the closet" since the doorway is not wide enough:
http://money.cnn.com/2012/02/21/news/economy/chris_christie_warren_buffett/index.htm?iid=HP_LN&hpt=hp_c3

10.  Gail Collins did stick around for the entire GeeOpee confab last night.   This is her review.  I did not miss a thing.  I watched The Rachael Maddow Show, instead.  Much better:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/opinion/collins-four-dudes-and-a-table.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print
 

--
Juan

"See, I'm a visionary. I'm ahead of my time. Trouble is, I'm only about an hour and a half ahead."
       -- George Carlin

"How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live."
       -- Henry David Thoreau

"If we were not all so interested in ourselves, life would be so uninteresting that none of us would be able to endure it."
       -- Arthur Schopenhauer

"I was the kid next door's imaginary friend."
       -- Emo Phillips

"Absurdity, n.: A statement or belief manifestly inconsistent with one's own opinion."
       -- Ambrose Bierce

--
Juan

"See, I'm a visionary. I'm ahead of my time. Trouble is, I'm only about an hour and a half ahead."
       -- George Carlin

"How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live."
       -- Henry David Thoreau

"If we were not all so interested in ourselves, life would be so uninteresting that none of us would be able to endure it."
       -- Arthur Schopenhauer

"I was the kid next door's imaginary friend."
       -- Emo Phillips

"Absurdity, n.: A statement or belief manifestly inconsistent with one's own opinion."
       -- Ambrose Bierce

Things to Know - 22 February

1.  A court case decision in France has found Monsanto guilty in the poisoning of a farmer with a genetically modified product (Roundup).  Expect this case to be cited in many more cases around the world where GMOs are being produced and utilized:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12780

2.  The great state of Virginia is embarking on passing the ultra-sound requirement for women who are seeking to control their own choice.   Is there no end to the Republican invasion on the liberties and freedom of women?:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12778

3.  Thanks to a college listserv and a keen observer in Long Beach, this is a YouTube video on where the USA could be if it were not bogged down by a Big Oil Lobby that is preventing us from the future economic model that is the success of modern-day Germany:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ppw5O-Vtxcs

4.  Since the book is not all in on Santorum, it is hard to tell when he is going to self-destruct.  In that vein, it seems that he has already usurped anything that Porkie or Mitt-bot could ever dream up.  The guy is nuts:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/rick-santorum-cries-nazi/2012/02/21/gIQAjyw4RR_print.html

5.  And then there is Newt.  Yup, the guy near the bottom in most polls, and he's peed because nobody is paying any attention to him.  So, what does he do?.....The only thing he knows how to do, and that is throw a bigger bomb that before.  The guy is nuts:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/post/newt-gingrichs-most-dangerous-attack-on-president-obama/2011/03/04/gIQApwavRR_blog.html

6.  Here's an off-the-wall story about real potatoes vs. Pringles.   My wife bought these little tiny tubers at the Claremont Farmers' Market this last weekend, and roasted them with olive oil and seasonings - delicious.  No additives, SKU labels, or exotic chemicals.  We all should all be more acquainted with real food:
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/21/dont-blame-the-potato-for-pringles/?ref=opinion

7.  The GeeOpie dialogue in this campaign is disgusting.  The economy is getting better, so they can't really talk about that.  Osama is a dead issue.  So they put on their robes, find their bibles, and start in on their form of religion.   It would all be laughable if it weren't for the fact that these guys represent many of those who walk among us:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/22/opinion/dowd-ricks-religious-fanaticism.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

8.  To those of you have read the pieces that Steve Lopez did about his dad, and his struggles with the end of life events and surrounding issues, you need to know that Tony Lopez died this past Sunday.  Today's column is a good-bye and an obituary:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0222-lopez-byebyedad-20120221,0,6877902,print.column

--
Juan

"A bookstore is one of the only pieces of evidence we have that people are still thinking."
       -- Jerry Seinfeld

"A man's respect for law and order exists in precise relationship to the size of his paycheck."
       -- Adam Clayton Powell Jr.

"Progress isn't made by early risers. It's made by lazy men trying to find easier ways to do something."
       -- Robert Heinlein

"It is the dull man who is always sure, and the sure man who is always dull."
       -- H.L. Mencken

"Only fools are positive."
       -- Moe Howard

Things to Know - 21 February

1.  There is a lot of buzz and interest, and deservedly so, for the NY Nicks sensation - Jeremy Lin.    He does not fit the stereotypical mold of NBA employees.  I can hardly wait for the emergence of an ex-roofer from the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico to make it big as the point guard with the Lakers. 
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/business/media/jeremy-lin-media-hype-stumbles-on-race.html?_r=1&src=dayp&pagewanted=print

2.  Now that Sanitorium is on the top of the list, stuff is starting to emerge on him. The front-runner gets his backside exposed, and does he ever have a load that he has left behind:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/02/20/10-outrageous-things-rick-santorum-has-said.html

3.  The Koch Brothers are admitting full complicity in funding Wisconsin's Governor Scott Walker's effort to "bust the unions".   The use of oil profits at its finest glory:
http://www.thenation.com/blog/166385/david-koch-admits-big-spending-help-scott-walker-bust-union-power

4.  Thom Hartman with the condensed itty-bitty news:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12772

5.  A very good look at the "trickle-down" theory, and all of its misconceptions and false advertising:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12763

6.  Michael Gerson of the Washington Post is a right-of-center op-ed writer.   So, his message excoriates his Wannabees for their absolutely off message discipline, which is allowing Obama to skate free.   Santorum's wild off-track escapades into areas which are disastrous are an example:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/republicans-are-making-it-easy-for-obama/2012/02/20/gIQAD5P8PR_print.html

7.  David Brooks has written a column which is sure to be passed around the circles of sociology and psychology classes and other discussion groups.  It touches on the need for social skills in adapting to the apparent new society where people go in and out of groups and relationship (the New Talent).  It also mentions the social structure that is now fading away that would allow those with no discernible skills to cope:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/21/opinion/brooks-the-talent-society.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

8.  This NY Times editorial is about the immigration reform issue and what the GeeOpee wannabees are not going to talk about:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/21/opinion/immigration-and-the-2012-campaign.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

9.  Here is a very interesting exchange about health care issues between two people who agreed to correspond - one a Conservative, and the other a Liberal:
http://opinion.latimes.com/opinionla/2012/02/conservative-vs-liberal-healthcare.html

--
Juan

"War is a cowardly escape from the problems of peace."
       -- Thomas Mann

"Never go out to meet trouble. If you will just sit still, nine cases out of ten someone will intercept it before it reaches you."
       -- Calvin Coolidge

"Golf and sex are about the only things you can enjoy without being good at."
       -- Jimmy Demaret

"Drama is life with the dull bits cut out."
       -- Alfred Hitchcock

Things to Know - 20 February

 

1.  Filling up at the pump has gone screwy wild again.  The GeeOpee is going to start harping that Obama's lack drilling and Pipeline is causing it.  Nahh,,,na.   Seems as though it is is the same nasty free-market speculators that are at it again:
http://thinkprogress.org/green/2011/04/13/174989/sachs-speculators-gas-prices/

2.  Oohhhh.  The mortgage-back security market is back in business.   Be careful out there.  Is anyone watching our backs?:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12753

3.  It is utterly disgusting, immoral, and wrong to the lengths that Republicans in many states go to suppress the rights of voters.  Realizing that they are outnumbered, and in declining favor, their only way to hold on is to rig who cannot vote.  The Constitution specifies who can vote, and all the GeeOpee can do is figure out crappy little laws to prevent people from voting:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12755

4.  E.J. Dione is on the subject of the hypocrisy that envelops the the conservative wing (right wing?) babble with the action it demonstrates:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ideological-hypocrites/2012/02/17/gIQAlrAGOR_print.html

5.  Many, many months ago, Julian Assange and WikiLeaks was the center of angst and attention by government officials all over the world and the media. Bill Keller, who was the NY Times Editor at the time, fills us in on where matters stand now:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/opinion/keller-wikileaks-a-postscript.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

6.  Paul Krugman has a "gotta read" article on the perils of following the path of austerity to shape up the economic situation.  Cutting back spending, particularly in areas that support jobs and the social structure support system, have done the Euro Zone countries in trouble on good.   Enough of the slash the budget and balance the budget by severe cuts in necessary spending.  There is proof today that it does not work, as it did not work for Herbert Hoover:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/opinion/krugman-pain-without-gain.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  San Torem barks out the usual right-of-center spiel, but his tilt to his interpretation of religious dogma is inappropriate,wrong, and dangerous for one seeking the office of the presidency:
http://loyalopposition.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/rick-santorum-and-the-politics-of-theology/?pagemode=print

8.  Two non-citizen Vietnam war veterans join in protest on the actions to have them and others like them deported:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-deported-veteran-20120218,0,891231,print.story


--
Juan

"There's a great power in words, if you don't hitch too many of them together."
       -- Josh Bolling

"Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe."
       -- H. G. Wells

"If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much."
       -- Donald H. Rumsfeld

"You get fifteen democrats in a room, and you get twenty opinions."
       -- Senator Patrick Leahy

"Eternal nothingness is fine if you happen to be dressed for it."
       -- Woody Allen

BEST OBAMA CARTOON EVER

One thing about Google, is that it cramps your style when you try and send too much in one message.  So, courtesy of an advisory from the Rochester, MN news bureau, I am forwarding this great cartoon:

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Adele Klingshirn <areader011@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Feb 19, 2012 at 5:18 AM
Subject: Fwd: Fw: BEST OBAMA CARTOON EVER
To: Judith Moore <judithwmoore@gmail.com>, Juan Lynne <juanma2t@gmail.com>


I can't send this to everyone in my address book, but thought you might enjoy it.

A

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Subject: BEST OBAMA CARTOON EVER

--
Juan

"By trying we can easily endure adversity. Another man's, I mean."
       -- Mark Twain

"Youth is a wonderful thing. What a crime to waste it on children."
       -- George Bernard Shaw

"I can't understand why a person will take a year to write a novel when he can easily buy one for a few dollars."
       -- Fred Allen

"The problem with political jokes is they get elected."
       -- Henry Cate VII

"Progress might have been all right once, but it has gone on too long."
       -- Ogden Nash

Things to Know - 19 February

                                              (Cartoon courtesy of Adele Klingshrn)

1.  From the Long Beach news bureau, an offering from the Wall Street Journal.  It is a right-of-center view of college courses that hone in on the teaching points to learn from the Occupy Movement:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204883304577223020110788672.html?KEYWORDS=A+Syllabus+for+the+%22Occupy%22+Movement#printMode

2.  Bill Moyers writes about Obama's move that articulated Freedom of Religion and Freedom From Religion:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41454/

3.  All the GeeOpie wannabees claim that the economy is worse now than in Bush's administration, or that nothing is working.  So let's check this out:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41468/

4.  It inexplicable to what depths of Misogyny the Republicans will go to alienate voters.  There is no explanation of how dumb and stupid they can be at the same time:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12692

5.  Poor George Will.  He's searching for great Republicans to admire.  I guess he looks across the field of GeeOpee history, and .....well he has to go back to Eisenhower.  Nice article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/eisenhower-memorial-misses-the-man/2012/02/16/gIQAJkehKR_print.html

6.  Thomas Friedman throws something into the campaigns for the next election for president.  A candidate who concentrates on those things that the Wannabees and Obama do not even dare talk about, or on which both are in denial:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/opinion/sunday/friedman-a-third-voice-for-2012.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  When it comes to our health care, nothing is more exacerbating than instances when the pharmaceutical industry allows lapses in providing an adequate supply of medications.  Teh F.D.A. can only ASK that they get on the stick and goose up productions, pretty please.  Does it have to be like this?:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/opinion/sunday/a-frightening-shortage-of-vital-drugs.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

8.  Steve Lopez, now in the final days and hours of his father's life.  Many of us have been there, and it is not easy to be comfortable, no matter how many times it is reviewed or re-told:
http://www.latimes.com/health/la-me-lopez-20120219,0,4557516,print.column


--
Juan

"My theory is that all of Scottish cuisine is based on a dare."
       -- Mike Myers

"Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead."
       -- Benjamin Franklin

"No animal should ever jump up on the dining-room furniture unless absolutely certain that he can hold his own in the conversation."
       -- Fran Lebowitz

"Your true value depends entirely on what you are compared with."
       -- Bob Wells

"Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement."
       -- Unknown

Things to Know - 18 February

1.  There is supposed to be a GeeOpee Wannabee debate in Atlanta on 1 March.  Romney and Paul are skipping out of it, and CNN is not going to televise it now.  So, one wonders who is going to show up, if any at all.  Does this signify a gentle implosion of the Republican Party in the state of Georgia?  I do know one thing, and that is that people in the state don't like to be treated as a potted plant:
http://blogs.ajc.com/political-insider-jim-galloway/2012/02/16/mitt-romney-may-skip-gop-presidential-debate-in-atlanta/

2.  This is a slick presentation on the profile of the biggest looters who occupy the pinnacle of the top of the 1%:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12690

3.  Super PACs are not working out as well as some had intended.  Especially those which are driven by one obscenely wealthy individual.  Rick Santorum has Foster Freiss, and Foster has just screwed things up for Rickey:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/foster-friess-aspirin-joke-shows-danger-to-candidates-of-outside-political-groups/2012/02/17/gIQA3VB6JR_print.html

4.  No politics here.  It is an article in the Washington Post on the realistic way to face the end of life situation of our loved ones:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/our-unrealistic-views-of-death-through-a-doctors-eyes/2012/01/31/gIQAeaHpJR_print.html

5.  This is an article on the Five Myths of the U.S, Presidency, which will give you history buffs something to check out:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-myths-about-the-presidency/2012/02/02/gIQAxi0GIR_print.html

6.  Santorum has an apparent problem about which he severely clueless.  He says the wrong things in the worst possible places about the worst subjects possible:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/18/opinion/blow-santorum-exalts-inequality.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

7.  N.J. Governor Cristie has cemented his bona fides with the right wing so that he is planted ready to step in at the brokered GOP convention:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/18/opinion/gov-christies-misguided-and-intolerant-veto.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

8.  For those of you outside of Southern California, and for those of you who missed it, this is a classic example of the perfect storm in creating a massive traffic SNAFU that turned a 30 minute drive into an 9-hour traffic jam:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-epic-traffic-20120217,0,6063957,print.story

--
Juan

"My theory is that all of Scottish cuisine is based on a dare."
       -- Mike Myers

"Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead."
       -- Benjamin Franklin

"No animal should ever jump up on the dining-room furniture unless absolutely certain that he can hold his own in the conversation."
       -- Fran Lebowitz

"Your true value depends entirely on what you are compared with."
       -- Bob Wells

"Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement."
       -- Unknown

Things to Know - 17 February

1.  Here are TWO separate links to let you in on what the Koch Brothers do to finance their brand of political influence:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41436/
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/41435/

2.  A Blast form the Past:
http://www.moneyscience.com/pg/images/and-then-we-told-them-the-wealth-would-trickle-down

3.  There seems to be a worrying interest by the part of the conservative pundits that in their contacts and discussions with Romney, he is distant and disconnected with them:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/us/politics/conservative-pundits-concerned-with-romneys-distance.html?_r=1&nl=us&emc=politicsemailema1&pagewanted=print

4.  It is difficult for one to fathom the lengths to which Republican will go to alienate anyone who is very close to the issue of contraceptive access.  Check this one out:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12667

5.  The party that adamantly champion less intrusive government is now on record of passing legislation that requires a woman to undergo forced trans-vaginal inspection if she desires an abortion.  What is driving The Republicans and where do they think that they are going to wind up?.  Folks, this is in the state of Virginia:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12674

6.  There is a move to focus on the legality of the Norquist signers removed from office because their allegiance to Grover is contrary to the laws and oath of office the assumed when put into office in the state of California.   This may have implications on the federal level.  Read it and see what is going on:
http://www.truth-out.org/print/12577

7.  Paul Krugman shows us with statistics and evidence that those states and regions who claim to be the biggest foes of big gummit entitlements are in fact the biggest recipients of same.
So, what gives?:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/17/opinion/krugman-moochers-against-welfare.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

8.  Jeremy Lin- if you don't know who he is, read about him here.  He is an anomaly.  He is the product of the NBA lockout.  Because of salary caps, and other factors, he hooked up with the NY Nicks, and found a place on the bench, and then got his chance to play.  He's now like a rock star with the fans.  He does not fit the mold of the NBA superstar, and what the scouts look for.  He's Asian, and went to Harvard.  By NBA lockout problems and money issues, he's all the rage now.  Kind of makes you wonder, how many other "stars" are out there of players who do not fit the scouting mold:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/17/opinion/jeremy-lins-team.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

9.  After a long ride on a seemingly safe track on tax policy, the Republicans are realizing that their obstinacy and intractable stance has gotten them into trouble with the voters.  Probably as a result of the Occupy focus, they have had to back down, and realize that they can no longer claim that they are right:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-payroll-tax-20120217,0,395742,print.story


--
Juan

"I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me."
       -- Noel Coward

"Everywhere I go I'm asked if I think the university stifles writers. My opinion is that they don't stifle enough of them. There's many a best-seller that could have been prevented by a good teacher."
       -- Flannery O'Connor

"Advice to writers: Sometimes you just have to stop writing. Even before you begin."
       -- Stanislaw J. Lec

"Aristotle was famous for knowing everything. He taught that the brain exists merely to cool the blood and is not involved in the process of thinking. This is true only of certain persons."
       -- Will Cuppy

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards."
       -- Soren Kierkegaard