Friday, July 13, 2012

Things to Know - 14 July

Clay Bennett
Withdrawal pains are a bitch.  So, this one did catch my eye, and is worthy of a comment.   Romney is still running for the GOP nomination, he really is, why else would be be doing that daffiest and most suicidal campaign moves?  His continued stonewalling of his tax returns and financial records is gnawing on his base, and thereby stimulating genuine concerns about his electability.  Ron Paul People are going to embarrass Romney all over the map.   The only thing Romney can do right now is keep running hard in his tone-deaf-isolated-and-out-of touch manner.   He's got enough money to spray the media with distracting and issue-diverting drivel, but sooner or later the vestiges of the real Republicans party just might kill the deal



The Progress Report Banner

Republicans Are Getting Nervous About Mitt Romney

Jul 13, 2012 | By ThinkProgress War Room

Republicans Agree That Mitt Romney Needs to Come Clean

It's not just people on the left who are concerned about Mitt Romney's outsourcing of American jobs at Bain Capital, his shady foreign finances, and what's hidden in his tax returns. Some Republicans also agree that his record is fair game and that Romney needs to come clean and release more of his tax returns.

Here's the rundown.

Former RNC Chairman Michael Steele:

"If there's nothing there, there's no 'there' there, don't create a 'there.' Put out as much information as you can. Even if you don't release 12 years worth of tax returns, at least three, four, five. "

Rep. Walter Jones (NC):

"I think he should release his financial records and I think if he does it in July it would be a lot better than in October," Jones told CNN. Romney's extension for completing his latest tax return goes until October.

"Obviously people know he's rich, nobody holds that against him," Jones said, but added, "whenever you are asking for the vote of the American people that you need to fully disclose what your holdings are, if you have any."

Jones said he's not a financial expert, but he said Romney should release the last 6 -7 years of records.

Rep. Pete Sessions (TX), who chairs the House Republican re-election effort:

"His personal finances, the way he does things, his record, are fair game," Sessions said. While he declined to name a specific amount of information or number of years' worth of tax returns Romney should release, he called the issue a "legitimate question."

Former RNC Chairman and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour:

Barbour told CNN Tuesday that he would release the returns if he was in Romney's shoes.
"I would. But should it be an issue in the campaign? I don't think it amounts to diddly."

Republican stragesist Rick Tyler:

"Mitt Romney had an opportunity to answer these questions during the primary," said Rick Tyler, who ran the pro-Gingrich super PAC that spent millions attacking Romney on the Bain issue. " He did not answer these questions and now they're coming up again."

Tyler warned that the newest Bain twist has the potential to inflict real harm if Romney doesn't start providing answers.

"I saw Andrea Saul's robotic response, which was the same as it's always been," Tyler said, referring to Romney's press secretary. "That doesn't comport with documents that have his name on it after 1999 that list him as CEO who was making money off of transactions. If he wasn't making money from Bain, then his tax returns from the period in question would reveal that."

Tyler said Romney needs to be frank and provide all the details necessary to explain his role in the company after 1999. He hypothesized that there could be more documents to come.

"Only [Romney] can provide that information," Tyler said. "Or we'll just have drip, drip, drip to November."

Republican strategist Ana Navarro:

"I feel like we are watching a rerun of an episode from the Republican primary with the return of the releasing of taxes issue," she said. "It turned into a big deal during the primary, and pretty much got diffused when he released the one-year of returns. I wish he'd hurry up and release more tax returns so this distraction would go away."

It's also worth remembering that one of Romney's own Republican rival, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, first called on Romney to release his tax returns way back in October. Perry followed up during a debate in January:

"It is important for Mitt to release his tax returns. The fact is we can't fire our nominee in September."

IN ONE SENTENCE: There is bipartisan agreement that Mitt Romney needs to release his tax returns so we can get to the bottom of his record at Bain Capital, secret Bermuda corporation, shady foreign accounts, and the unfair loopholes and tricks he used to pay an ultra-low tax rate.

Evening Brief: Important Stories That You May Have Missed

Why Mitt Romney's story about Bain just doesn't add up.

President George H.W. Bush attacks the GOP tax pledge: "Who the hell is Grover Norquist, anyway?"

The media wasn't allowed to take any pictures of Mitt Romney together with Dick Cheney.

The Senate will vote on the DISCLOSE Act next week and the NRA is already threatening senators.

Even if automatic cuts go into effect in January, defense spending will still be larger than it was in 2006.

Thirteen reasons why this is the worst. Congress. Ever.

This week's chronicle of Mitt's mendacity.

Lizz Winstead on her edgy material, hecklers, and new memoir.

The Washington Post's fact checker has jumped the shark.

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--
Juan

"I like an escalator because an escalator can never break, it can only become stairs. There would never be an escalator temporarily out of order sign, only an escalator temporarily stairs. Sorry for the convenience." 
       -- Mitch Hedberg
"The enemy is anybody who's going to get you killed, no matter which side he's on." 
       -- Joseph Heller
"Everything happens to everybody sooner or later if there is time enough." 
       -- George Bernard Shaw
"Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." 
       -- Edgar Allan Poe
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Thursday, July 12, 2012

Things to Know - 12 July and some time beyond

I think I bit off more than I could chew on this sitting in front of a Monitor, reading and drafting up Stuff to Know.   My limitations are:
1. Don't sit in a chair position longer than 45 minutes (joint locks up at that point)
2.  Stay close and familiar with your pain killers at the beginning of this recovery.

I kind of ignored those yesterday, and coasted on the meds I had out of the hospital after I got home.   It's not going to be as easy as I thought it was.  It's taken a long time just to draft this.  I'll checkin later....thanks

--
Juan




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Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Things to Know - 12 July

Mike Luckovich

1.  Mitt Romney spoke before the NAACP conventions in Houston  yesterday.  Yup, he did.  Even told the audience point-blank that he would eliminated Obama Care.  Yup, he did.  He did his best to sell his bill of goods that he and the Republican Party are the best thing going for Black Americans.  Yup, he did.  The Great Speckled bird of Truth and Beauty happened to be flying over the event, and immediately changed into an out-of-control buzzard and crapped all over Romney's get-away car as he sped away from the scene.  Yup, it did:

Folks, that's it for today.....I'll may have time and energy for more tomorrow

--
Juan

"Public speaking is the art of diluting a two-minute idea with a two-hour vocabulary." 
       -- Evan Esar
"We do not write because we want to; we write because we have to." 
       -- W. Somerset Maugham
"Everyone has a purpose in life. Perhaps yours is watching television." 
       -- David Letterman
"The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents." 
       -- H. P. Lovecraft


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Monday, July 9, 2012

Things to Know - 9 July

1.  If you have a whole lot of time to waste, and if you like political comic strips (not just cartoons), the NY Times has this series of 28 of them.  Some of them are actually funny:

2.  I would like for all of you to think about investing the 25 minutes in watching Senator Bernie Sanders make his impassioned plea in this address to the Senate.  He is explaining how we got into this economic mess, who is trying to benefit from this mess, and what it going to take to make a fair and equitable recovery:

3.  Perhaps we all should look at the basics of a Capitalist economic system to see that the "War on Drugs" has not worked, is not working, and will never work.  With all the millions (Billions?) of dollars spent, violence, lives lost and petty thefts and burglaries in our neighbor hoods, the price on the streets of a gram of Cocaine is much cheaper than it was 30 years ago.  With all the interdictions, arrests, confiscations, and reports of drug submarines and cargo shipments being thwarted, you would think that the supply has dwindled....right?  No it has not.  There are more drugs, cheaper drugs available now.  So - our ideas and programs to control this problem to not work.   I am not going here to suggest legalizing it all (as was the outcome of Prohibition), but I am going to suggest that we quit what we are doing, and figure out something that takes the money value out of this issue, so that it does not become the only visible example of a pure Capitalist market.  So, what are the suggestions?....and you don't have 30 years to come up with an answer:

4.  An interesting piece by EJ Dionne.  Romney is basing his economic campaign strategy on the hopes that the situation is still looking less than good, while Obama is speaking to the workers who take pride in their jobs and can appreciate the stands that he has taken to actually support ideas that Romney left to go bankrupt.  Who has the better faith in America...you think?

5.  Back to Romney's personal finances issue.  Paul Krugman lays out what he know about it and what we don't know about it.  Furthermore, Willard's defiance in releasing any more tax returns (which would probably reveal his multimillion dollar Swiss bank accounts, and his off-shore piggy bank in the Cayman Islands) just leaves us with the impression that he is hiding stuff that is very embarrassing.   I maintain that anyone who is running for public office who has Swiss Bank accounts and Cayman Island corporations has the lack of character and DNA that is not fitting for running for President:

6.  The coal miners in Appalachia have been indoctrinated into believing the line from the mine owners that Obama and his policies need to be scrapped so that coal miners can work.   That campaign to actually have coal miners vote and act against their self-interests has worked before and is working again.  An impoverished lot of people are at the mercy of the mine owners once again:

7.  The lipstick on the pig can only last so long before it fades away.  Such is the warmth for Romney (not glee, elation, or enthusiasm - just warmth).   He is dogged with this persistent nagging reputation that he is "just not the right guy'...or "he needs to shake up his staff"....or "he's just in momentary stall".   Romney is so boxed in on issues, that all he can say is that  "Obama is not working"...while trying to kick his tax return issues under the carpet...or dodging comparisons between Obama Care and Romney Care.   Plus, he's got the threat of Ron Paul making him look like a wimp at the GOP convention in Tampa to worry about:

8.  Doyle McManus is going to do us a favor.  He is going to watch all the political ads that will hit the airwaves, and give us a review.  Please......that does me no favors.  However, I live in a state that is NOT a "swing", so California should not be inundated with all of the Super Pac money campaigns.  I will be feeling sorry for all those big cities in the targeted swing states - it is going to by annoying.  My advice is to watch all your programming by DVR recorded playback, or kiss it all off and read some good books between now and November:


I will be off for several days - getting a hip replacement.  I should be back by Thursday of Friday.

--
Juan

"Every great advance in natural knowledge has involved the absolute rejection of authority."  - (take that - Texas GOP !!)
       -- Thomas H. Huxley
"With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion." 
       -- Steven Weinberg
"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody." 
       -- Bill Cosby
"Always be nice to those younger than you, because they are the ones who will be writing about you." 
       -- Cyril Connolly
"Before I met my husband, I'd never fallen in love. I'd stepped in it a few times."
       -- Rita Rudner


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Saturday, July 7, 2012

Things to Know - 8 July

"I used to be for for Flip-Flopping, now I am against it"

1.  You want evidence that racial profiling exists - Big Time - in Arizona. Here it is.  A 96-year old Hispanic, and former governor of the state, fits the profile - whatever it is:

2.  The austerity minds of legislators will inevitably drive this country into permanent mediocrity.  Actually, their austerity agenda is hurled towards programs that invest in education, health, and social programs so that tax breaks for the well-off can continue.  To that end, we wind up looking back at things like this:

3.  Those of us who lived through or who can recall the social upheaval of the 60's and 70's can and do understand the misery of the youth of today. College graduates without job, high school graduates discovering that they are already at the dead-end.  Through their eyes and ears, they are experiencing the glaring faults of our present-day failures of government and our basic social and economic systems.  What is going to happen?  There are many ugly things happening on the horizon as the wealthy are gating their communities, and insulating themselves into isolated bunkers, and buying up all the political protection they can muster.  This article speaks to what the changes in the future might be based on:
http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/10125-the-aftermath-of-occupy-will-surpass-the-sixties?tmpl=component&print=1

4.  You'd have to research all the perverted social anarchists in history to come up with the worst-of-the-worst who could write a book of fiction that could rival the content of the Texas Republican political platform - seriously.  "To end the teaching of critical thinking skills at the college or university level" .....how's that for openers?:

5.  CNN is not one of my usual resources for pieces in this work.  However, I was struck by the leading line that "Romney is not a Flip-Flopper"..so I had to investigate it.  I pass this on to you, and hope you find it as interesting and true as I did:

6.  In all the noise and distractions in the world, one way to judge the success of a foreign aid program, is to look at a micro-economic benchmark.  In this case, a coffin maker in Africa, who used to manufacture about 20 per month, is now just doing about in the same period.  Why?....you may ask.  The success of many institution, countries, and the USA included.......in fighting AIDS.   Yes, it has worked to save lives, and improve what is considered life:

7. The development of the transit system in Metro LA is taking form and is playing catch up with all of the other cities who have already done it.  To do it, visionary planning and leadership that is able to think in terms of the far-off tomorrow are necessary.  It is working to overcome intractable attitudes based on yesterday's thoughts:

8.  Financing an education in the mode that Willard Mitt Romney envisions is easy; just be able to afford it.  If you want to continue your education to be a medical doctor, that is easy too.  Just be a family that has been saving a baseball hit by Lou Gehrig 84 years ago, and sell it to the highest bidder.  Wouldn't it be fantastic if everyone had such a baseball or sports souvenir.....but that is not the case; not even close:

--
Juan

"The deepest definition of youth is life as yet untouched by tragedy." 
       -- Alfred North Whitehead
"Machines take me by surprise with great frequency." 
       -- Alan Turing
"In archaeology you uncover the unknown. In diplomacy you cover the known." 
       -- Thomas Pickering
"I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts." 
       -- Will Rogers


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Friday, July 6, 2012

Things to Know - 7 July

Ben Sargent
1.  This issue of Romney's wealth, and how it is protected from taxes that the rest of us pay, how it is all hidden, and the fact that he is hiding all of this so no one can nail him.....well, that keeps on coming up from the back to the front burner, and won't go away:

2.  In a state where closed minds are an enduring tradition, the narrow view presents hazardous gotchas when bigoted laws result in unintended consequences:

3.  LIBOR - London Interbank Offered Rate.  You've heard of that lately?  You should know about it.  It's another banking rip-off scan even bigger than what was exposed a few years ago.  Just makes you wonder how bad the financial institutions make Capitalism look.  Capitalism, is a fine example of one good way to run an economic system.  The problem with Capitalism is that it involves people, and people get powerful and greedy. In doing so, they corrupt the whole system.  Read about how Robert Scheer describes LIBOR as the "crime of the century".  The only defense that has been offered by the banks is "well every one else was doing it".  Capitalism sucks:

4.  Thom Hartmann has his news show for you to enjoy a few tidbits of information:

5.  The Large Hadron Collider enabled scientists to find evidence that Higgs boson could be the "God particle".  Now, how do you expect this momentous news to be received on our campaign trail?  Gail Collins takes a humorous look:

6.  In reference to #3 above, Joe Nocera offers his story in LIBOR.   Between the two, maybe we can understand just exactly what was going on, and why it is necessary to heavily regulate the banking industry - think Glass-Steagall:

7.  I spent yesterday in San Pedro, California, which is now the home to the USS Iowa battle ship.  I really think it will revive the Ports of Call and the San Pedro downtown area, and hope it is a success.  Here is an article that looks at other cities that have attempted to boost their attractiveness to as a tourist destination; some with and some without success:

8.  Struggling Best Buy is going to axe the Geek Squad.  I have no idea what impact this has on the business, but I put it in here just because the business news after the 4th of July break is just plan slow, and I have a slot to fill:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-best-buy-geeks-20120707,0,5432554.story
--
Juan

"Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely." 
       -- Auguste Rodin
"Don't ever take a fence down until you know the reason it was put up." 
       -- G. K. Chesterton
"I told my psychiatrist that everyone hates me. He said I was being ridiculous - everyone hasn't met me yet." 
       -- Rodney Dangerfield
"It is even harder for the average ape to believe that he has descended from man." 
       -- H. L. Mencken
"The future, according to some scientists, will be exactly like the past, only far more expensive." 
       -- John Sladek


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Things to Know - 6 July

Rob Rogers
1.  This article is intended to let you know that we are made to feel that the FDA or someone or some laws are out there working for us.  Big Pharma get fined for peddling their medicines in improper ways that either deceive or harm the public.  The fines look large, compared to our own personal finance.   However, in my opinion (am I getting to be an op-ed guy now?), this is nothing more than the cost of doing business for these companies.  Without going into deeper into this, Big Pharma should be subjected to the same system of justice that the average thief on the streets should get - jail time.   CEOs or governing boards should do the perp walk on TV and sit in the cooler for a few months, plus the fine.   However, that may just be video-candy for prime time TV news, while maybe suspending an FDA license to manufacture or sell would really get their attention. Big fines only mean that Big Pharma will just jack up prices to ensure and continue obscene profits:

2.  Having had some thoughts about the Supreme Court, decisions, issues, and the interpretations of "our founding fathers", I think this is a good time to think about the efficacy of our Constitution.  What would you do to improve it?:
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/44139/


This is all for today.  Even though I said that there was going to be nothing for Friday, .......I realize that withdrawal is hard.   Going to a USS Iowa banquet tonight at the Los Angeles Harbor.
--
Juan

""In journalism, there has always been a tension between getting it first and getting it right." 
       -- Ellen Goodman
"A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." 
       -- Mark Twain
"I would rather be a coward than brave because people hurt you when you are brave." 
       -- E. M. Forster
"There is only one difference between a madman and me. I am not mad." 
       -- Salvador Dali
"Some problems are so complex that you have to be highly intelligent and well informed just to be undecided about them."
       -- Lawrence J. Peter
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Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Things to Know - 5 July

Stuart Carlson
(To all my friends back in Georgia)
1.  A quiz to play with.  Warning, if you fail, you may wind up on the Tea Party recruiting call list:

2.  This buzz will just never go away.  The subject of Romney refusing to release the history of his IRS tax returns, and where he hides all of his wealth.   I am of the opinion that the apparent practice of off-shore finance and hiding money in Swiss banks is not the patriotic DNA that is admirable or wanted in anyone running for elected public office, especially the office of President:

3.  Fareed Zakaria points out that getting most people insured does not automatically take care of our national health problems, by any means.   There will have to be a concerted effort to have people take better care of themselves, eat better foods, and practice good health.  This also means that something is going to have to nudge, propel, encourage, demand, or require all of this to happen.  Is this going to come from the private sector, or will government have to do this as well?:

4.  As most writers of op-ed pieces, EJ Dionne is no different, and offers his insight on the wisdom of the "founding fathers" who created the documents upon which our governance is based.  However, rather than just take that group's work as pertinacious gospel, we need to recognize that the Constitution was a result of many compromises and not all issues and problems were known or anticipated.  As such, we need to legislate on what is right, and does it fix a problem, rather than stick strictly what those guys wrote 236 years ago and did not anticipate:

5.  This NY Times editorial on the Olympic Games could not be published here if the games were in the USA; no probably not.  It's all about the accommodations for the elite, sponsors, and the money-folks who dominate and rule the event every 4 years.  It's a political and marketing bonanza for those who run the store.  It seems that the athletic competition is run as an after thought at times:

6.  Gail Collins and her humorous take on the election and how to understand and put up with al the angst and confusion:

7.   If you've heard about Cap and Trade and Carbon Tax, and don't know what they are or how they work, read this.  Up in the Canadian Province of British Columbia, they are doing it now, and are just waiting for the rest of Canada and the States of America to catch up:

8.  Not much of a news day on the 4th, so you get this to close up on.  Abalone, ever had any?  I did once back at Emerald Bay on Catalina Island as a Boy Scout.  They were pried off the coastal rocks, shells were removed, and then battered and fried, and eaten within 5 hours or sooner.  Real good.  Now, they are almost gone:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-abalone-20120705,0,3253855,print.story

--
Juan

"A painting in a museum hears more ridiculous opinions than anything else in the world." 
       -- Edmond de Goncourt
"Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday." 
       -- Don Marquis
"I believe in equality for everyone, except reporters and photographers." 
       -- Mahatma Gandhi
"This book fills a much-needed gap." 
       -- Moses Hadas


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Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Things to Know - 4 July

lucko-web


1.  Bill Moyers, and his piece on Thomas Jefferson, and the revelation that his own personal behavior was the same person depicted in the documents that he authored; not so - a betrayal:

2.  I kind of like this little story about KFC.  It's all about the manufactured crap that is pawned off to look and taste like the the original intended item (honey sauce, mashed potatoes, etc).  It's not just KFC, they all do it, well, not all, but most of the junky fast-food enterprises are just the delivery systems for the chemical companies to pass off cheap and unhealthy knock-offs made from stuff that you and I would not eat if we really were able to get the information on the chemical make up:

3.  Willard Mitt Romney is not really behaving in public (or private) in a manner that does his campaign well.  He can appear in jeans, a bus, and pretend to snack in casual restaurants, but he really is not made of the same fabric that one would prefer a political standard bearer to resemble:

4.  There is a Chicken Hawk Tea Bagger who is trying his version of a swift-boat assault on a military veteran, his opponent.  It is so morally disgusting, that you just wonder what makes this guy think he has the material to be an elected public servant:


5.  Here are 8-points to consider as to how the political and economic environment today resembles the situation and conditions similar to the "gilded era" in the 20's.   If history does repeat itself, novels, movies, and political and economic upheaval will be attempted again to cast it all off.  The question to consider in what form the rejection of the gilded will be attempted; peacefully or with violence?:

6.  I rather like this article.  It has nothing to do with topical politics, governance, or other opinions.  In the research, gathering, and drafting of this daily work, I often struggle with the use of various punctuations and keyboard gizmos to introduce the various articles; yes, struggle!  So along comes this piece, which gives me comfort in knowing that I can take liberties in compacting and compressing ideas and sentences without being held to any standard of literary protocol - cool:

7.  I really like this contribution from David Brooks.  He is taking exception from all the bashing meted towards Roberts and the ACA decision from the Court.  Rather than just bad-mouthing Roberts. Obama, and ACA, Brooks suggests that that what should be discussed is the plan that replaces Obama Care, ACA, or the Patient Protection Affordable Care Act.  We are not hearing any of that from the leadership bashers - nada - zip.  So - put up or shut up:

8.  A few days ago, Bill Keller wrote a column that supported the idea of a National ID card.  The blow-back to him must have been considerable....to the point that he found it necessary to explain it through this follow-up:
http://keller.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/03/afterthoughts-on-a-national-id/?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print
--
Juan

"We are confronted with insurmountable opportunities." 
       -- Walt Kelly
"Last night I stayed up late playing poker with Tarot cards. I got a full house and four people died." 
       -- Steven Wright
"It is impossible to experience one's death objectively and still carry a tune." 
       -- Woody Allen
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Sunday, July 1, 2012

Things to Know - 2 July


Stuart Carlson
There will a few days this week that this publication will not be issued.  Tuesday 3 July, my good high school buddy is getting married, and Friday the 6th.  I have an iPad, but researching, drafting, and compiling this on the iPad is akin to weeding the lawn with tweezers.

1.  The NY TImes has an interesting perspective as public policy pertains to entrepreneurship and immigration and how the Republicans get it wrong:

2.  Both House and Senate Republican leaders, being questioned by news reporters, are in lock-step replies with answers to what the Republicans would replace the Affordable Care Act if they repeal it.  First, Chris Wallace of Fox news with Mitch McConnell:
Now, Laura O'Connell of NBC News with John Boehner:

3.  George Carlin, as has been mentioned before, belongs to that small group the comes before us now and then, with wit and sarcasm, to clarify our human condition and to make their commentary understandable as to how things are wrong.  In this particular piece, he really does not give much hope, by which we have to insinuate that we must find the carry on and find the answers and action ourselves:

4.  Romney's bona fides and grasp of foreign policy are very suspect, light-weight, and dangerous.  He better stick to something he's more familiar with like......, well Massachusetts health care...but he does not want to talk about that.   Old Silent Mitt:

5.  Bill Keller proposes the adoption of a Federal National Security ID card, which in itself, will open up a flood gate of discussion.  It's probably a good idea in some way, since it will put to rest all kinds of clumsy and cruel methods of trying to establish identity:

6.  Paul Krugman points out that the "Great Illusion" of Europe in 1910 was that conditions and feelings were to the point that war was regarded as pointless, and that country would never venture into it again.  We know what happened there.  Now, the same illusion may exist 
as the Eurozone makes adjustments to survive as a valid plebiscite:

7.  Steve Lopez, whose own father suffered from dementia and passed away earlier this year, was invited to pass some time with  Dr. Arthur Rivin, 89, professor emeritus of medicine at UCLA who has found what has helped him survive and actually improve from the onset of Alzheimer's disease:

8.  Dead Heads Alert!   Yes, I confess, I am a fan of the Grateful Dead.   This is to let  you all know that the University of Santa Cruz will be the location of a museum and repository for all of the Dead's memorabilia, works, poster, and bling.  It is now known as Dead Central - how fitting.   So, when you are visiting California, you can head north from Los Angeles, and visit the Presidential Library of one Ronald Reagan - and I dare you to find anything, picture or literature, that mentions his first wife - Jane Wyman.   After that, you head on up the coast, to Santa Cruz and Dead Central - for something a lot more inspiring and wonderful than the Cowboy from 20-Mule Team Borax Wagon:


--
Juan


"To punish me for my contempt for authority, fate made me an authority myself." 
       -- Albert Einstein
"The future is here. It's just not widely distributed yet." 
       -- William Gibson
"She got her looks from her father. He's a plastic surgeon." 
       -- Groucho Marx
"The art of medicine consists in amusing the patient while nature cures the disease." 
       -- Voltaire
"Women who seek to be equal with men lack ambition."
       -- Timothy Leary


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