This Was My Dog Day Of The Summer!

Remember that little fuzz ball? The one on the right not too sure about the big guy next to him? It was about this time last year and I haven't seen him since. His Mom and I and Dr. Prince had lunch together and talked mostly about dogs. What else!

How I've missed that over sized bundle of joy that is a Saint Bernard! The scent of the fur, the softness of it. Even "the look" of saintly tolerence while receiving hugs for which he really wasn't in the mood. Too hot!

Sigh. It was a great change of pace for a summer day. Great memories and a short nonsensical piece of video by which to remember a close encounter with a furry kind.

Charlie The Wrangler

In a last ditch attempt to save face it's reported Charlie Rangel agreed to a last-minute plea deal which will probably go nowhere, nor should it. I'd like to think Congress doesn't even need an ethics committee, but of course they do. It is one arena where partisanship cannot be claimed. Both sides err. Even the likes of John McCain faced accusations during the Keating five investigation.

What irritates me is the contempt shown to we, the people, who elect them, put our trust in them. I am especially irritated by a man like Rangel who has been in Congress for 40 years! I'd think he'd have the 'can' and 'cannot dos' down by this time! But no. And when caught he drags his feet for two years all because he's worried that his legacy and career may end on a "tarnished note". Well, it should if he's indeed found guilty. And since he's been dragging it out I'd cautiously assume he will be.

Another thing that irritates me, my I am irritable these days, is the plea deal ploy. That's like trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear! Why should he even be allowed? After thirteen, thirteen violations! He even gets to choose which violations he will accept!

I have absolutely no sympathy for members of Congress who get themselves into these pickles. To blame their accountants or even their wives is nonsense. I had to laugh when Rangel chided young Luke Russert last week about showing him a lack of respect. I'd say the one with the lack of respect is Rangel toward his constituents and the public in general.

He should step down. He won't. Fortunately the ethics panel is made up of an even number of Democrats and Republicans so the Democrats can't bail him out. It's probably naive on my part to think if the evidence against him was truly shaky, he'd not be in the position he finds himself and even numbers wouldn't matter. Heck, he wouldn't be in this position in the first place.

His legacy? Tarnished? He should have thought about that before he decided to shine up to the wrong side of ethics.

If We All Looked The Same We'd Still Have The Illegal Immigration Problem!

Is anyone besides myself disgusted with the way the illegal immigration problem is playing out?

I find it thoroughly offensive that the Mexican President dare take us to task for the way his people, here illegally, are being treated. How dare he! This country that prints "how to" comics for those who wish to leave. I find it thoroughly offensive that U.S. citizens of Hispanic descent, attorneys, stand before judges defending illegals by claiming they're just people like the rest of us. No they aren't. They're breaking the law.

I find it thoroughly offensive the Federal government won't enforce the law for political reasons. I find it even more offensive that no one in Congress has the guts to shout it out!

Profiling Hispanics is not a personal affront; it's because they are the ones streaming across the border! Just like people of middle eastern descent are the Islamic terrorists. If they were French or Canadian or Chinese they'd be the ones we'd be scrutinizing! Or should be.

Why must we play politics with everything? So Obama can win the Hispanic vote? What's the matter with the Hispanics? The ones who are here because they did it the right way? Again, it's like the American Muslims. Why aren't they putting together a loud cohesive voice condemning radical terrorism? The Hispanics condemning the illegals? I say hooray for Arizona for their effort. That parts of their law have been shot down isn't surprising. It won't be surprising either when the government's promises don't play out.

Why is it we can't accept the simple truth as reality? There aren't two truths we have to decide between. Why can't the House ethics committee go ahead with their trial against Charlie Rangel rather than playing politics with it? What kind of country have we become?

Totally political. Totally dysfunctional.

Vets Lose Their Pets Too

I weaned myself from that infernal Facebook zoo game last night with the express purpose of visiting the pages of my friends. Most are far better at posting on them than I am. A one sentence snippet of what I'm cooking for dinner doesn't strike me as being of much interest to anyone - so I play zoo.

I should check the pages of my friends more often though. Good, bad or indifferent, there is usually news. Last night it was bad. Both Bacchus's local vet and his cardiologist have both lost "kids" of their own in recent weeks. I'd not met any of the dogs but I found myself tearing up anyway. I know their Moms.

It got me to thinking about what wonderful, special people my veterinarians have been. I can't think of a one that I had a long term relation with that didn't develop into a first name basis. I treasured those who seemed to love my dogs as much as I did. Of course they didn't, not on the same level. It was my dog, not theirs. Empathy seems to come naturally to them, even though they see sick animals day in and day out and must harden to the losses that inevitably occur. It's that they love animals, pure and simple.

I don't know of one who didn't have pets of their own knowing full well that they too would one day lose them. Lucky dogs - and cats, horses, fish, mice, birds - whatever. They received the very best care in the world.

As the person belonging to my dogs, I had the responsibility for their well being and quality of life. We always sought the best vets we could find and in turn placed our trust in them. Sometimes it's easy to forget they too are people like me with the same sense of responsibility, the same fears, the same emotional range. What they have that I don't is the expertise to do more than I could.

I know that both these ladies did everything possible for their dogs. And they agonized, just as I did with Bacchus. This time I had the empathy because I still bear the pain of loss. As bad as it remains, I know Bacchus had the best care we could give him because of the dedication and guidance of both these professionals.

I just hope they know they are the best and nothing better could have been done for theirs than they gave. It has to be a question that occurs, a question that penetrates grief. Rest easy ladies. Your "kids" had the best Moms in the world. They surely knew it. You need to know it too ~ and believe it.

Is There A Place At The Keyboard For Us?

I wish I could have been a fly in Vegas this past weekend, flitting between Netroots Nation at the Rio and the Rightonline folks at the Venetian! It surely would have been an interesting study in contrasts.

I caught glimpses of Al Franken and Harry Reid trying to rally the liberal troops and having a hard time of it. On the other hand there was Mike Huckabee doing his show at the Venetian belly laughing along with his audience at the sexual innuendos coming from guest Rita Rudner and Robin Leach as a man in search of a country! Remember his Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous?

As I read about the origins of the netroots movement and how they've stolen the march on the right, I'm wondering where the heck the independents are in this community. It's interesting to learn the networks blogosphere is at war with their own political elitists. It's also interesting to note how poorly the right has been at adopting the same technology for their own ends.

I have a few thoughts however. One, they are too fragmented and technologically behind the curve. The tea party movement is a prime example. I suspect if you sat down the titular head of tea party movements from a dozen different areas you'd get a dozen different answers as to just what it is that they want. I don't see this fragmented approach doing much more than making re-election easier for what should be mortally wounded Democrats. This is truly political theater in the making.

There is an element missing in all this. At least I have yet to find it. How about the feared yet sought after independents? We're told we wield a great deal of sway, yet how? Do we have our version of the Daily Kos or are we mostly single, basically insignificant voices like myself wringing our collective hands because no one sees things our way?

Both sides want to win our votes, but what do we want. I see myself against a lot from both sides, yet I've done little to articulate what I'd like to see happen and what manner of candidate I would surely support. It isn't that there aren't any out there. I feel I just haven't asked the right questions of them. Do independents even have a platform? One that we could coalesce under and work toward? To say to the others, if you want us, this is what you must do?

I've watched my readership swing like a pendulum as I voice my dissatisfaction. When I was pro Obama I had a slew of readers, mostly gone now. Why? Because they were die hard Democrats. Now I have more readers that lean right, because I do - for the moment. How many, however, look at both sides and say un uh. None of you measure up and I'm no longer willing to compromise how I feel! If there is a third movement out there please point me toward it. If not, I don't think we can ever get beyond the partisanship we are now experiencing.

The battle for the heart of the Democratic party is in full swing. They have savvy and experienced bloggers leading the charge. The Republicans have a huge chore ahead just to catch up. I don't expect to see a third party, but what about the independents? If we can't find our own common ground along with the ability to give it voice, we might as well get used to being on the outside looking in hoping along the way we'll have a crumb thrown to us as the price of a vote.

I'm Still Here!

Summer is in full bloom. The heat is in the nineties. Yard work, which is plenty on five acres, has to be done in the morning. Then, with pain in tow, there are the doctor appointments.

Nothing good on that front. The Botox didn't make a dent so after much consultation with all my attending physicians, I agreed to move on to stronger medication. Funny, the stronger it is the less expensive. Go figure. Anyway, the next stop is a neurologist. A new possibility has popped up which I don't care to discuss. I'm going to enjoy being in denial until that appointment next month.

Hub has been cleaning the office. Today is the first day I've had access to my computer for days. I feel like I've had a limb removed. But then, it's too hot to be in here; today I'm having a warm fix for my addiction to this thing.

With all the hoopla about the Netroots conference in Las Vegas this weekend, I picked up the book which my niece sent me for Christmas. Autographed by the author to me no less! Seems his daughter is a classmate of one of my great nieces. It's a very interesting read. It's giving me some thoughts on some structural changes in what I do here. I'll be interested myself to see if I can make them play out!

That's what I'm up to these days. The heat isn't scheduled to break for at least a week so unless we miraculously get this office, which is in our shop, air conditioned, my presence will be a bit sporadic. For those of you who hang around, thanks. As I said, I'm still here and the old thought processes continue!

Is Ignorance Bliss?

Yesterday, just before the news at noon, I caught the tail end of the Ellen DeGeneres show. It was a quiz segment for a stack of hidden prizes. Three young ladies were called from the audience. They were, I'd say, at the very least in their mid-twenties if not early thirties. When you get to be my age everyone looks like a child so this is just a guess. They were not in their teens.

Dressed in what I suppose is considered casual chic these days, they ran squealing to the stage, jumped up and down and hugged one another knowing full well they were in competition. Okay, it was fun and games. Why not show some enthusiasm.

The questions were pure silliness, which is perfectly fine for such a segment. What holiday falls on December 25th. Really tough stuff. You can be sure they all knew the answer as to whom Katie Holmes was married. But wait. Oh my. Ellen threw in a couple of real tough ones. The first that sent the contestant through the floor to the depths of despair was "Who is our Vice President?"

The look of shock before becoming totally blank was fascinating. Ellen gave her longer than I suspect was usual. Nothing. The contestant hadn't a clue. The next to fall victim had another toughie, "Who was our second President?" Okay, maybe U.S. history wasn't foremost in the young lady's mind. But our Vice President?

I won't single out those who visit the Ellen Show in particular. You hear far too many young people drawing blanks at such questions be it a man on the street quiz for print or on air. One wonders if these people vote!

If so, it isn't the Democrats or Republicans we need fear. It's those who walk among us. If every vote counts I have to wonder just what they are voting for!

The More Things Change The More They Stay The Same

I wrote recently about the difficulty the women activists of Afghanistan are having in making women's rights part of the negotiations their government is having with the Taliban and how there is really nothing we can do about it. It's not an Afghan problem in particular, it's the problem of every woman living in a country that follows Muslim law. Forget the movement afoot in the country to have that double standard!

In Iran a mother of two sits in prison awaiting her fate for allegedly committing adultery. She's been there since 2006 and has already suffered through a 99 stroke lashing. If the court has it's way she will be wrapped in a white shroud, buried up to her chest in a dirt pit and pelted with rocks large enough to hurt but not kill her instantly. It may take a half hour or so. Efforts by her now adult children have gotten the sentence put on hold due to intervention from the West. Hanging may be the alternative - if there is one. There are at least ten others, seven women and three men, awaiting the same fate for their "crime against God." Who's' merciful God might this be?

Intervention from the West. Hillary is off to Afghanistan to refine our goals. According to the press, and that's the only resource available to me, the agenda is to include plans from the Afghan government "to improve security, reintegrate militants into society and crack down on corruption." She is to reaffirm our commitment to Karzai, while pressuring him to follow through on pledges already made. No small task to be sure. Nine years and we're still cajoling him.

The one thing missing from all the talks? Women's issues. The Muslim women cannot do it alone. We cannot do it for them but as with China and North Korea, why are not human rights on every agenda? Of course we're not going to change any minds. Their religion and their laws are one and for better or for worse they abide by them. At least we should be on the record as objecting to the inhumaneness of them.

In the meantime one woman awaits a decision on her fate. Ten others know theirs. We need to remember that being "stoned" in a Muslim country is not getting high on drugs!

I Should Have Voted For McCain

Governor Joe Manchin of West Virginia expressed my sentiments exactly when he said, having appointed the man who will be the youngest in the Senate replacing the oldest, "We passed this torch to another generation." That's how I felt about Obama. He was young, well educated and energetic. Traits McCain lacked. He was sharp where McCain was often fuzzy around the edges.

There were two things I put on the back burner for which I am now sorry. Policy and experience. I neglected to research beyond the broad brush strokes of hope and change into the substance. Had I done so, or been able to since little was actually put forth, I'd not have voted for Obama. As for experience, well, that speaks for itself. One area where he has shown no progress is in curing his tin ear. His current vacationing in Maine while exhorting the rest of us to vacation on the Gulf coast is but one example.

Is it enough that I'd have actually voted for McCain? He was the alternative choice so I'd say yes. Knowing the Democrats were likely to hold the House and Senate, as they have, he'd at least have been a counter balance with the power of the veto. While there is little the far right proposes that I agree with, there is even less from the far left. I'd have looked for some issues to lean toward the middle, something we don't have now.

As for Sarah Palin as Vice President? She'd have not been my choice and it surely made me wonder what McCain was thinking when he chose her. One of his fuzzy areas. Had she been in office, howeve, seeing what she has become, she would surely be out there rallying the constituency. Anything in governmentese that needed translated so everyman and everywoman could understand it, Sarah would have been the one to explain it. She has an uncanny ability to state the obvious and have it become a rallying point.

Youth and inexperience are not synonymous any more than age and tired ideas are. Our next President, be it Obama or someone new, will be a younger man than McCain. The torch has been passed, that's for sure. I'm going to have to get used to ideas and thinking that often leave me befuddled. On the same hand, however, I don't have to buy into personality over substance.

I Wonder How Hillary Would Handle It - Or Sarah

I hate war! That's not new information. What makes them even worse than we see on the news is what goes on behind the scenes. I'm referring to the coziness between Hamid Karzai and the Taliban. Supposedly to get lower level members to switch sides and join the fight against al Qaeda. I figure it's little more than a pact with the devil.

There's an evil, sordid side to it. When one chooses to deal with the devil they know versus the one they don't, it's sometimes forgotten both are devils. Such is the case, according to The Wall Street Journal, with the Taliban when it comes to women. While they are no longer throwing acid in the faces of schoolgirls, women are still facing peril. In what are being called "night letters" because they are delivered at night, women who have jobs are being told to stop working or die. Those who have resisted the bullying have indeed been killed.

Activists are trying to get explicit guarantees for women's rights into the negotiations but even if successful it's doubtful anyone will abide by them. Such is the nature of the culture. We can no more do anything for the rights of women than we can make Islamic extremists like us. Yet we continue to try as our young men die.

I find it interesting that even technically savvy and civilized Japan is but beginning to level the playing field when it comes to women. Just recently they have appointed the first branch manager of a bank and announced the first female pilot! They have been hovering with Malaysia and Cambodia when it comes to gender equality. Two you'd expect to be near the bottom of the barrel. But Japan? With truths like this how are we going to help Afghan women? Realistically.

One the bright side, those with the highest ranking are Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Cold. Tough climate. If a woman were up to the task as President I'd have to give the nod to Hillary. Cold. Tough. Warm and fuzzies won't cut it.

Seriously though, I don't think a woman, no matter how able in our culture, could sway the likes of these people who feel just as strongly about their stand as we do ours. It's perhaps better left to the men. They seem to like tilting at windmills. Where, however, are we going to find one who is cold? And tough. And will actually fight for the issue.

What A Future!

Recently the Nethercutt Foundation sent students from six colleges to Washington D.C. to visit everyone from lobbyists to think tanks to members of Congress to get a grasp of how it works and why the tone is such as it is.

What they came away with should give them pause for the task of "fixing" it will be in their hands. We're all aware that the approval rating of both the President and Congress is less than desirable. So what happens. The blame game. The blame game perpetuates partisanship. No one will budge.

What must are these young people think when a Democrat actually admits to them that the current stand off with the Republicans is no more than payback for when the Republicans held the power?

They had the opportunity to visit sources that are but dreams to the rest of us with an interest. They found how lacking they were in American history as well as current events. They found the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are not going to have a quick fix. They found how serious the threats are to security within our borders. They got a good idea of how ill prepared we are to respond. All one needs to do is look at how the oil spill is being handled and the Arizona immigration flap. The government will not be able to sue it's way out of a terrorist attack.

The times are interesting and the stakes are high. Should the Democrats hold both houses of Congress after the mid-terms they will own everything that comes to pass good, bad or indifferent. There will come the day the people will no longer accept that Bush is to blame for everything gone wrong.

Probably most sobering to these young people is the idea that not so far down the road the governance of the country will be in their hands. One would hope they've something positive to take away from their experience. I certainly hope it won't be the constant of "getting even"!

What Manner Of Men

It was late in the afternoon as we passed the Medical Lake entrance to I-90. A group of middle aged bikers merged into traffic. They seemed in no hurry, just fell in with the rest of us. I wondered out loud if they might be some of the honor riders who had been in town for the burial of a young Marine.

He was a good looking young man. All of 23. He was killed by an IED while on patrol. This young man who was liked by everyone who knew him and wanted some adventure in his life. Had he but chosen a different route. He joined the Marines and was promoted to corporal in record time. He dove into everything he was assigned with enthusiasm and commitment. As a reward his family was given the Purple Heart he was awarded for his service.

I wonder how much comfort that was to the young wife he left behind. The pregnant young wife. She and her yet to be born child represent a whole class of citizens left to fend for themselves while ill equipped to do so. They are basically a welfare class unto themselves. Because a soldier died too young.

Every small town newspaper in the country prints stories such as these. The loss of all these young men who have barely had time to live. To be husbands. To be fathers. Little else than soldiers. And they die.

His arrival home affected a whole plane load of people as they were asked to remain seated while his escort deplaned. They watched in reverent silence as the coffin was unloaded and placed in the hearse. I'm sure each had private thoughts about loved ones of their own.

The young Marine is one manner of man in my fantasies. Another is a young man, looking to be of a similar age, bragging about how he was going to use illegal fireworks over the Fourth. "It's America," he said, "We like to blow things up." I wonder if he ever served in the military. Then we have the Marine General who is going to take General Petraeus's place as head of the U.S. Central Command. Odd, since he has been reprimanded for loose language just as was General McChrystal! With typical Marine bravado, he once told a crowd in San Diego, "Actually it's a lot of fun to fight. You know, it's a hell of a hoot - It's fun to shoot some people. I'll be right up front with you. I like brawling." Bully for him.

I wonder, had the young man at the fireworks stand or the General been at the young Marine's funeral if they would have felt the same as taps sounded and rifles fired in salute and friends and family wept. Especially a young wife and her unborn child.

Beware The Tub!

This is one of those news items I had to catch twice. That's why I embedded the video from KREM 2 News. So you too can relish the full impact.

You readers who know me know how I love to find obscure studies that one wonders how they ever got funded. This one is an Australian study that found men over 40 who use erectile dysfunction medication are more likely to get sexually transmitted diseases, especially Aids, then those who don't, including younger men.

The rationale they found was that older men were less likely to use condoms than younger men. Okay. I'll buy that. But could it also be because if the older men weren't taking the likes of Cialis and Viagra they wouldn't be having sex in the first place? Safe or otherwise?

Now, if they really want to do a study to clear up one of the great mysteries of life, what's the deal with Cialis and bath tubs? Unless there is a way to engage in sexual activity I'm unaware of, and that is certainly possible, I see no way those men could possibly get an STD with or without a condom!

Just saying...

Why Just The TSA?

Once upon a time long, long ago I worked for my living. In an office. For a major corporation. We began work at 8 a.m. and finished at 5 p.m. Not 4:30 or 4:45. Five. We had a 15 minute coffee break in the morning and another in the afternoon. Staggered with other employees so the office was always manned. Lunch was one hour. Period. Personal calls were discouraged; if the privilege was abused we heard about it. Computers were unheard of except for huge mainframes doing work that had nothing to do with mine. As I said. A loooong time ago!

Today I read where the TSA is to block "controversial opinion" on the web. It's a very misleading headline. Actually they're planning on blocking access of certain types of websites on agency computers.

Shouldn't it be standard procedure in every office of every company in the nation? Of course Facebook, Twitter and blogs would suffer, but productivity might improve. What a novel idea.

Just what is meant by "controversial opinion" isn't clear, but the other categories make a lot of sense. Chat and messaging, criminal activity, extreme violence including cartoons, gruesome content and gaming. They neglected to include a real biggie. Porn.

I blurk a local newspaper's blog and am always amazed at how many of the participants making comments are people who are at work. Sometimes the conversations are quite lengthy. These people are being paid for what?

If one wants to Twitter away their time during their own hours, fine. Heaven knows I do enough of it myself regardless of the constant nagging from Hub to get a life. He's right. I'm trying to cut back. Especially on Facebook but I'm not doing too well. No one is paying me for my time that should be spent on other activity, however.

So to the TSA? Cheers! And to every other office that has similar restrictions. If it's too much to ask I'm sure there are some of the 14.6 unemployed who would be more than happy to take those jobs!

One Whale Of A Mistake

Nah. That's not Jonah sitting atop his whale. That's what the Taiwan oil skimmer, A Whale is going to look like after the Coast Guard and EPA are done 'inspecting' her!

Granted, we don't want to make matters worse, but some things my mind just refuses to grasp. Like why Obama has yet to suspend the Jones Act which would allow for foreign help aplenty. Why Washington State won't send it's skimmers. The reason given is they need them in case they have a spill in their waters. Excuse me? They don't have one now and the gulf coast does!

Finally, after 70 some odd days, the Taiwan vessel is in Norfolk. The EPA and Coast Guard are inspecting her to make sure she meets our standards. Some water returned to the sea may have traces of oil remaining. Wouldn't a trace be better than what we have now?

Wouldn't anything be better than what we have now! Why, when an entire region of the country is suffering ecologically and economically, does the government have to study everything to death? The time to do that is before we engage in a war rather than during a time of crisis that grows daily!

It isn't just our government, granted. BP has been inexcusably slow on the uptake also. It would seem common sense and a sense of urgency have been misplaced. To say workers have to wear haz mat suits and can only work in 20 minute stretches seems ridiculous if you actually want some work done! Consider those making an effort to save the wild life. They are under no such regulation. Are they not equally as important?

And just where is our President, our Secretary of Interior and our Secretary of Homeland Security? I'm sure those trying to get something accomplished are just as glad they are nowhere to be seen, but where is their leadership?

While ships are being inspected to see if they are worthy of helping our mess, there is one more that needs inspected. It's our ship of state ~ and it's commander in chief!

Readdressing Independence Day!

Ever since our founding fathers wrote and signed the Declaration of Independence this country was on an upward march to become the most powerful nation in and leader of the free world. We have taken tremendous pride in that and well we should. Now I find myself wondering how we've managed to elect a President who does not have maintaining that achievement as his goal. He wants us to be an equal among equals - or less.

While we were swooning over a young man with a silver tongue and patting ourselves on the back that we had reached a level where we could comfortably elect a minority President, world leaders wise in the way of politics on their level, saw naivety and inexperience. While people around the world turned out in mass to see our President many of their leaders were warming to opportunities newly available for exploitation.

There was a time when allies would not have been openly contemptuous of our President and his ideas. Look at them now. He tells them he wants to be like them yet he tries to dictate how they handle their own business. The message is mixed and weak.

The most egregious, however, is the constant tension between the Chinese and the U.S. The U.S. is angry they won't condemn the sinking of a South Korean ship purportedly by the North Koreans. Of course, to date, there is no proof the suspicion is true. As a retaliation of sorts the U.S. plans joint naval exercises with the South Koreans as a show of solidarity. In response the Chinese are going to conduct their own.

Perhaps it would have been wise to take the comment by the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman when he said, "China borders on the Korean peninsula and we have our own feeling on the issue, different from that of the countries tens of thousands miles away...We have more direct and intense concerns."

Isn't this always the point? Our reality isn't always that of another country and our suggestions are often not appreciated.

At the very least we should get our goals in line. I vote for regaining our status as leader of the free world. Of course to do that we'll need a different administration with clear cut goals and a Congress willing to compromise among themselves to get there. It will be a long climb back.

Of all countries to be sniping at however, China would not be on the top of my list. After all, they own us.