No More Dinner Invitations To the White House for Turkey

Good Day World!

It wasn’t that long ago when we thought Turkey was a friendly country. We even thought they liked us. Our politicians held the little country up as a role model for the Middle East. 

But to the surprise of the United States, they think we’re part of a conspiracy to overthrow their government. They’ve been talking trash more often recently so President Obama has taken them off the guest list in Washington, DC.

Via The Christian Science Monitor:

“Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) handled antigovernment protests last spring and their resorting to anti-Western conspiracy theories, blaming everyone from business newspapers and bankers to Jews and Americans.”

I have to admit I’ve not been following our government’s relations with Turkey that closely and it got me to wondering what else I might not know about the country. So I took the following test:

Test your knowledge about the history and politics of Turkey

How did you do? Hopefully, better than I did!

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

GOP record stuck playing same old tune again: attack Obamacare

Good Day World!

Have you seen the movie “Groundhog Day?”

Bill Murray played a great part as a man who wakes up every day and experiences the same routine. Kind of an eternal life (or damnation depending on how you look at it).

The Republican Party is stuck on a hamster wheel over ObamaCare with no end in sight.

That’s because the GOP-led House of Representatives voted on (and passed) their 50th effort to repeal, defund, or dismantle the health-care law Wednesday. Amazing isn’t it? The worst part is they’ll probably continue to try and dismantle our health care system forever if someone doesn’t make them face reality.

It’s like watching Alice fall down the rabbit hole but not reaching bottom. How can these clowns go to bed at night knowing that people voted for them to help advance this country? And, to serve the people?

The morons are so stuck tilting at windmills – a law is a law, get over it for God’s sake – that they’re willing to waste time and money on behalf of special interests and draconian ideologies – and not worry about the people that voted them into office.

It’s no wonder that the House of Representatives has become a playground for politicians playing up to special interests and idiot ideologies…voters just haven’t woke up yet, aren’t paying attention, or they just don’t give a damn anymore!

Time for me to walk on down the road… 

Financial whores or worse? American Company Distributes Russian Propaganda

Good Day World!

Have you ever heard of the US Public Relations firm Ketchum?

Maybe you should have. The Putin government exerts most of its behind-the-scenes influence in America though this company which received $1.5 million in the most recent six-month reporting period for its work on behalf of Russia.

What does Ketchum do for all that money? Mostly distribute press releases, according to official documents. But according to a document filed in November, Ketchum is also involved in "preparing, disseminating or causing the dissemination" of the website ModernRussia.com, a URL that redirects to ThinkRussia.com.

Breaking News: An anchor with the U.S. network RT — or "Russia Today" — dramatically quit on the air Wednesday afternoon, saying the Kremlin-funded outlet "whitewashes" the actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Why doesn’t Senator John McCain – who is spoiling for a war with Russia – spend more time here at home looking into this obvious Russian influence in this country? That would be a better use of his time, which he currently likes to waste by attacking President Obama for every foreign decision he makes.

Ketchum also has a separate contract, paying more than $3 million between June 1 and Nov. 30, to represent the interests of Gazprom Export, the natural gas exporting subsidiary of the Russian energy giant Gazprom, which is itself controlled by the Russian government.

If you ask me, Ketchum is a company without a trace of patriotism, using greed-driven tactics that promote our enemies in the Kremlin. Talk about toadies. Don’t those guys have a sense of morals or respect for the country that allows them to serve a foreign power with impunity?

Do you want to sell out America? See the folks at Ketchum; for a price they’ll get you Putin’s autograph and a beginners guide to communism.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Find Out About the Vietnam Veterans Who Still Haven’t ‘Come Home’

Good Day World!

 That time of the year is coming for me again.

Unwanted memories of my time in Vietnam and Cambodia materialize like ghosts to haunt me. Unbidden vignettes of violence slip into my nights and my nerves are live wires writhing during the day. 

 Most people think about spring –still weeks away – with fond memories and feelings of joy. For me – in 1970 - it meant crossing into a foreign country that wasn’t at war in pursuit of an elusive enemy whose secret headquarters we discovered and destroyed.

To Americans back at home however, it looked like we were invading another country – like we were expanding the already unpopular war. I saw the worst war had to offer that April and May. I lost my best friend in an ambush. I lived, he didn’t. I saw too many men die in those terrible weeks.

I saw enemy bodies stacked like cordwood with rats, their bloody whiskers a mockery of sanity, slithering over the mangled corpses.

I have PTSD from my experiences overseas. The VA recognized this a long time ago.

But not all my brothers who also served over there have been given the same consideration. Find out why, when you read this article about the Vietnam veterans who still haven’t “Come Home.”

 PTSD Before It Had a Name: Vietnam Vets Sue DOD

“Five Vietnam veterans who claim they became afflicted with combat-related anxiety –- decades before PTSD became a common term –- assert in a new, class-action lawsuit that the Pentagon should upgrade the less-than-honorable discharges they and “tens of thousands” of other troops received during that era.

The lawsuit, which includes a three retired Marines and a second Army veteran, seeks the milltary's record corrections boards to “implement consistent, medically appropriate standards” under which discharge upgrades can be considered for PTSD-afflicted Vietnam veterans, said Thomas Brown, a law-student intern with the Veterans Legal Services Clinic at Yale Law School. The suit was filed by Yale Law School.”

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Reflection on Stupid People, or ‘Stupid is as stupid does’

Good Day World!

Regardless of the way some of us act, no one is perfect. That's where stupidity comes in. Because we know we're not perfect we often try to cover up our mistakes, or even the mistakes of others.

That's stupid because everyone knows their time to screw up will come. It's as inevitable as taxes and death. I won't even attempt to number the stupid mistakes I've made in my life. I sometimes talk about my stupidest failures and joke about them, hoping to get a smile or laugh that could help take away the sting.

James F. Welles, Ph.D, the author of "Understanding Stupidity: an Analysis of the Unnatural Selection of Beliefs and Behavior in Institutions and Organization," wrote that not all failures are stupid.

It seems in a behaviorist's universe, there is no such thing as stupidity. Behavior, Welles asserts, "is simply (or complexly) caused, and the corruption of the learning process and limitations on a living system's ability to adapt are inherent in the process of life."

An understanding of how stupidity affects us could make us better people. We call self-deception stupid because we ignore facts that could help or hurt us. For example, say you're a politician arguing there's no such thing as "Global Warming" and you find new relevant information that proves otherwise.

What do you do? Change your position to reflect the truth or ignore it to further a political agenda? If you do the latter, you are stupid, greedy, or you have a broken moral compass.

Facts enlighten us and result in clear thinking. Accepting facts is acknowledging the truth. To turn away from facts is stupid. But not everyone is interested in the truth.

Researchers at the University of Michigan conducted a series of studies in 2005 and 2006 and found that misinformed people, particularly political partisans who were exposed to corrected facts in news stories, rarely changed their minds.

You want to hear something even more scary? People often become even more strongly set in their beliefs when confronted with facts. It was clear to the researchers facts do not cure misinformation. In a real twist, they found that facts could actually make misinformation even stronger.

Brendan Nyhan, a political scientist and lead researcher on the Michigan study said, "The general idea is that it's threatening to admit you're wrong." In my book, that qualifies as stupid and vain. Most Americans lack even a basic understanding of how our country works.

A bold assertion, but Princeton University's Larry M. Bartels argues, "the political ignorance of the American voter is one of the best documented data in political science."

Combine that information with the fact that misinformed people often have the strongest opinions, and you have the ingredients for being stupid and proud of it.

James Kuklinski of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign refers to this kind of response to reality as the "I know I'm right" syndrome, and considers it a "potentially formidable problem" in a democratic system.

It implies that stupid people resist correcting their beliefs. I believe people with good self-esteem are more able to accept it when they're wrong about something.

People who are insecure or feel threatened can't move on when confronted with facts. Researchers have found these people are less likely to listen to dissenting opinions, and they are more easily controlled.

If you have the time, check out "Stupidity: Exploring the Nature of Stupidity in Western Society -- and our Perception of It," a documentary film made in 2003, and directed by Albert Nerenberg.

Finally, we have institutional stupidity where we let lawmakers lead us into stupid wars that drain our economy. The cruel thing about all of this is the poor people who suffer through one stupid failure after another as our politicians continue to raise the bar in being stupid.

As It Stands, as Forrest Gump so aptly put it, "Stupid is as stupid does."

-By Dave Stancliff

(This column originally ran in The Times-Standard on August 1st, 2010.)

Reflections on Mannequins, Puppet Rulers, and Revolutions

 Good Day World!

 If you’ve been following what’s happening in the Ukraine you know the country is on the brink of a revolution.

A puppet-ruler for Russia has fled the country, and now Putin and pals are preparing to take military action against the people of the country who don’t want to be a Russian satellite like they were during the Cold War.

The world is full of ironies to savor, if we’ll but take the time. I think the progress of mannequins in society is often reflective of the culture. for example: 

 Russia and Ukraine have the creepiest mannequins which is only to be expected, I suppose, since many department stores there are often left abandoned for years (not to mention whole post-communist-era industrial towns) - and those mannequins that are still in service are not normally renewed for many decades.

Time and decay step in to do their inevitable part, putting the "final touches" on many superb examples of Communist kitsch.

Finally, here’s a history of mannequins and how they’ve evolved:

A mannequin is an articulated doll used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, window dressers and others to display or fit clothing.

Traditional Mannequins have evolved, and now have many new uses never dreamed of before.

 This board I created explores the use of mannequins in the past and today’s high tech mannequins.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

What’s your Sunday routine, or do you even have one?

                                     Good Day World!

My Sunday routine is reminiscent of the other six days of the week:

I get out of bed and stumble into the kitchen hoping my wife already put a pot of coffee on. If not, I somehow manage to make it even though my head and eyes are still fuzzy and I can’t form whole words yet.

We all have our ideas on how Sunday should be spent. If you’re religious, you go to church on Sunday to worship God. If it’s your only day of the week off, you may religiously try not to do a damn thing other than kick back and relax!

Then there’s people like me who treat the day the same way I treat the other six; with respect. By that I mean I try to get the most out of the day – every day. No one day is more special than the other. When you realize there’s no guarantee of a tomorrow…it makes sense.

Taking a positive outlook with you throughout your day is one of the stepping stones to happiness. One of these days I’ll mention another one. Meanwhile, what are your thoughts on the subject?

While you’re thinking about it could you pass me the coffee pot?

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Word struck? Don’t let it bother you, there’s probably a good reason

    
Good Day World!

Have you ever been struck speechless? Momentarily stunned by a comment or something you saw? At a complete loss of words? Tongue tied? I have.

On my first date in junior high. It was really pathetic. I searched for words to impress my date and made croaking sounds that scared her instead!

The first time I had to stand up in front of a class to make a speech, I lost my voice. I stood pointed at a chart and coughed. And coughed. Words barely discernible as human came out of my mouth mocking my efforts at communication. The teacher took pity on me, pretended I made sense and gave me a passing grade.

I once saw a little Vietnamese boy carrying a lizard so big he had it wrapped around his neck. He held the writhing snout with a calm ease born from experience. The lizard looked like a miniature Godzilla to my inexperienced Western eyes.

There we stood in a rice field. The boy was in a hurry to get home but willing to stop and chat if he could “souvenir” something off me or one of the other guys in the platoon.

I pointed at the squirming lizard and held my hands up in the universal gesture of a question. The boy smiled and said “Numba one chop chop!”

I smiled back and tried not to gag. I really didn’t have a thing to say. I’d recently tried a local fish head stew that smelled so bad I stuffed my nose with Vicks vapor rub in order to eat it.

When I think about it, I’ve been wordless many times in my life:
“Where have you been all night young man?”

No response.

“Who said you could take that last piece of pie?”

No response.

“What were you thinking?”

No response.

You get the idea. It’s pretty common to be at a loss for words. I’ve given this a lot of deep thought (about five fully focused minutes) and I think it’s a survival instinct. If you say nothing, it’s better than saying the wrong thing.

Think about it:

“Where have you been all night young man?”

“None of your business…” This is where harm comes in.

“Who said you could take that last piece of pie?”

“Grandma…she appeared to me in a vision…” This is the where you get to stare at the wall for the rest of the afternoon.

“What were you thinking?

“That I wanted to get fall-down stupid drunk and tell you…” This is where your mate locks the front door and lets you sleep it off on the front step.

Sometimes silence is golden. Or better than a truthful alternative. Then there are times when words can’t describe what you’re seeing. For example, when I watched each of my three sons enter this world I was without words. My world tilted each time, but no fine speech sprang forth to honor the birth.

No mere words could describe those moments of new life I was shared with my wife. I saw my past and my future. Life and death often leave us speechless. The passing of my sister and brother, both so young, left me mute with misery each time. Words were dust in my mouth.

I used to have a friend whose mother always said, “Well hush my mouth!” He’d tell her he got an A in a test at school and she’d squeal, “Well hush my mouth!” happily. He’d describe a fight we witnessed and she’d say…“well hush my mouth” in awe at the description of carnage. I never understood that expression.

After 63 years of experiencing times when words were worthless or needless, I’m still amazed at how quickly they flee in times of stress, pressure, or pleasure. For example, when you get a back rub and are asked if it feels good, words seem unnecessary and a contented sigh says everything!

As It Stands, the next time someone asks you if the “cat got your tongue?” just smile like the Cheshire cat in Alice and Wonderland, and don’t answer.

-Dave Stancliff

(This column originally ran on March 6, 2010 in the Times-Standard newspaper)

New Learnist app has people talking

It’s really been fun watching Learnist grow, and being part of it’s development team. It’s been exciting watching the progress, and now there’s more to report.

The launching of Learnist’s new app for iPod and iPod touch is being noted throughout the tech community.

Here’s some random articles about the rapidly growing learning platform: Learnist

“The big news in the tech world is Learnists’s new app is ready to monetize its roughly 10 million users, but ads are not part of the equation.
Rather, with the launch of its new mobile app for iPhone and iPod touch, Learnist is now selling “learnboards” -- or multimedia tutorials that span the arts, technology, sports, food and fitness, among other topics -- for 99 cents a pop:

Learnist Launches Mobile Apps To Monetize Site

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Technologizer’s, Harry McCracken, reviews the new Learnist app and gives it some love:

Learnist’s iPhone App Now Lets You Learn from Celebs as Well as Everybody

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New Learnist App for iPhone and iPod touch Unveils Digital Bookstore Featuring Premium Content by Notable Experts

Learnist Educational Content App Unveils Digital Bookstore

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Learnist, an app that's grown to three million monthly active users in less than two years, is ready to test the so-called freemium market. For the uninitiated, "freemium" is a tactic in which a mobile app is offered for free before monetizing it through premium content:

Olivia Wilde and Gus Van Zant Ink Deals With Learnist

 

They didn’t kick these cans down the road! Couple finds $10 million in gold coin cache in rusty cans

 Good Day World!

 I’m a treasure-hunter whose yet to find any.

But I do enjoy reading stories about people luckier than I am. It can be about sunken treasure or buried treasure, as long as it’s a hoard of gold and gemstones.

This recent story grabbed my attention. It might interest you too: 

“A $10 million gold-coin cache dug out of the ground by a California couple who noticed a rusty can while walking their dog went on public display for the first time at a currency show in Atlanta on Thursday.

The hoard, which includes a single Double Eagle valued at around $1 million itself, was clearly the main attraction as the National Money Show opened for a three-day run.

A small chunk of the change was shown at the booth for Kagin's, the dealer the owners contacted after they stumbled upon the buried treasure — a total of 1,427 coins minted between 1847 and 1894 — a year ago.

The couple have declined to be fully identified — fearing an influx of prospectors on their property — but in an interview published on the Kagin's website, the husband said he spotted the edge of an old can on a part of his property they call Saddle Ridge.

"John used a stick to dig up the first can," said the wife, who gave her name only as Mary. "We took it back to the house. It was very heavy."

The lid cracked off and exposed the rib of a coin.

"I knew what I was looking at immediately," John said. He didn't think his wife would believe it.

"When I told her, the look of bewilderment — her mouth was so wide open flies could have flown in and out several times," he said.

They went back to the site and dug up more cans.

"It was very hard to believe at first. I thought any second an old miner with a mule was going to appear." the husband said.

They looked up the coins on the Internet and then stashed them in the safest place hey could think of.

"I dug a hole under the wood pile and got a slab of green board to cover it, put the coins in plastic bags, then put them in a box inside an old ice chest and buried them," John said.

"The old-timers had it right. It’s safer than in a bank!"

The couple plans to sell most of the coins, which have a face value of about $30,000 but are estimated to be worth at least $10 million to collectors.

They said they've been having some financial problems and are thrilled they will be able to hold onto their land, donate to charity and enjoy life free of money worries.

Even though they had walked past the coins many times over the years without realizing they were there, they believe there was a clue right before their eyes: an oddly angled rock up on a hill exactly 10 paces away by the light of the North Star.

What they don't know is who buried the coins.” (via NBC News)

Time for me to walk on down the road…