Who are the “lunatic fringe?”

They ignore facts. They are always afraid of something. They view President Obama as a black man whose taking over “their” country.

They wear Confederate belt buckles, and share stories of the “good old days in the south” when “darkie” knew his place. They are angry women, and men, who saw their party voted out of power last year. They ignore little facts like that.

They are the conspiracy crowd. The lunatics suspect we are all going to be Communists, because our president is a liberal Democrat. They ignore facts.

The lunatic fringe will always feel disenfranchised because they are a minority. Even so, they are a loud emotional minority that babble jingoisms. They call on “God and Country” and tell lies like our president wasn’t born in the USA. They seriously ignore facts.

It’s really easy to spot the lunatic fringe, because they like to draw attention to their beliefs while re-defining reality. They are adults dressing up in colonial era clothing and calling themselves “Tea-baggers.” They like to ignore facts.

They claimed that Obama would be the worst president ever, when it came to gun control - violating our rights as Americans. It didn’t happen. It hasn’t happened. He wouldn’t dare to defy the NRA, and the gun and ammunition industry. Their lobbies rule Congress and the House. They can afford to ignore facts about record sales of automatic weapons going to Mexico’s drug cartels.

While the lunatic fringe may be small in numbers, they have the backing of the NRA and gun and ammunition industry lobbies. They do have some power. Probably more than we can even imagine. Ignoring facts is their cup-of-tea. 

Technorati Tags: lunatic fringe,President Obama,tea-baggers,NRA,gun and ammunition lobbies

Take a close look and tell me if this is real

  I was “Stumbling” through the web when this photo jumped out. It was alone, and had no explanation. No photo credit.

 My first reaction was – can you say “Photo Shop?”

 Then I looked at it closer. Was it possible? Could it be like one of those Lincoln Log Homes painted in childlike colors?

 It’s something to ponder this Friday, before this Labor Day weekend.

 If you’re going somewhere, be careful. If you’re not, then stop by this blog again to see what I’ll be posting for you. TGIF

Technorati Tags: photo Shop,labor day

Obama's back-to-school address touches off a new confrontation with conservatives

  If anyone wants proof that this country is in political gridlock, then this controversy about our president talking to school children about staying in school, should make the argument.

The Republicans have once again solidified their mission as the Obstructionist Party by trying to make hay over something past presidents have done without any problems from crazed conservatives.

Click here to read more about those conservative obstructionists at AlterNet.

After reading the above Link and the article below ask yourself, “Is our President trying to spread socialism?” Or, is this just another tempest in a teapot by conservatives? I’m interested in getting your comments on this issue.

By LIBBY QUAID, LINDA STEWART BALL /AP Writers

When kids all across the country return to school Tuesday, some will see a welcoming message from President Barack Obama and some won't.

Obama's planned address to students has touched off yet another confrontation with Republican critics, who have battered the White House over health care and now accuse the president of foisting a political agenda on children.

The president will speak directly to students Tuesday about the need to work hard and stay in school. His address will be shown live on the White House Web site and on C-SPAN at noon EDT, a time when classrooms across the country will be able to tune in.
Schools don't have to show it. But districts across the country have been inundated with phone calls from parents and are struggling to address the controversy that broke out after Education Secretary Arne Duncan sent a letter to principals urging schools to tune in.
Districts in states including Texas, Illinois, Minnesota,Missouri, Virginia and Wisconsin have decided not to show the speech to students. Others are still thinking it over or are letting parents have their kids opt out.

Click here to read the rest at The Chicago Tribune.

Technorati Tags: political agenda,socialism,president obama

Observations on the town hall meeting held in Eureka yesterday…

  I watched the whole meeting on television, which was nice because I didn’t have to be too close to some of the wackos that showed up there!

President Obama’s health care reform proposal was defended last night by Congressman Mike Thompson, who showed up at Redwood acres and stayed longer than expected.

It was obvious that some people, who just wanted 15 minutes of fame, were there to protest issues totally unrelated to the topic at hand. Time and again, I winced as they babbled about their personal agendas.

I lost count of how many times Thompson had to shut people up while someone else was trying to speak. My only surprise at this kind of behavior was that the “big mouths” weren’t wearing tinfoil hats!

Looking at the scope of the whole meeting I can only conclude it was a “dog-and-pony show” that did not result in anything but a chance for people to blow off steam. How many intelligent questions were asked about the issue at hand – health care? While you’re trying to count them, how many sane alternatives to the proposed problems did you hear?

I had the sense of a crouching beast (as opposed to a human audience) threatened to engulf Thompson at any moment. It’s a good thing he’s a military veteran, because he needed to show some balls to back off the crouching beast at times!

This inability to no longer have civil discourse in so-called town hall meetings is reflective of society today. Polarization goes beyond the Republican’s and Democrat’s inability to agree on anything. Our whole country is polarized by people who live on “sound bytes” and who avoid facts that may go against their emotional beliefs, and what the political pundits say they should think.

I heard, and read on some of the local blogs and TV station, that some people thought the meeting went pretty well. Hmmmmm….now there’s a sad statement. There was actually a time when public meetings weren’t dog-and-pony shows that had clowns interrupting every five minutes.

As It Stands, welcome to the breakdown of our country. Chaos creeps in with cretins leading the way!

Technorati Tags: town hall meetings,health care,congressman mike thompson,polarization

Here are some of the Worst Designed Websites In the World

And I thought mine was ugly!

We all come across some seriously bad websites in our day-to-day lives on the Internet. It’s just an unavoidable fact of life, like coming across monsters on the way to the market in video games. When you come across these things, you should approach them with a modicum of fear, for it is something you don’t know, after all. But, more than that, you need to be brave, and you need to relish the experience with full sense of humor employed. These are the 20 worst websites from across the world.

Bella DeSoto

Bella DeSoto deserves special recognition for creating what may possibly be the absolute worst page in the history of all bad web pages. This site is so amazing, so incredible in its evil genius, that it nearly crashes most browsers today – in 2009. That being said, be careful, because you absolutely must experience this site yourself – It’s too large for most screen-capture software to handle. Both vertical and horizontal scrollbars will seem unfit to handle the vast distance they will have to travel. I postulate that no man has ever full explored the entire site, as it would likely take more years than he has in him. Did I mention the unstoppable soundtrack?

View the rest of these sites at Manolith

Technorati Tags: web sites

The 20 Craziest Party Hostels Around the World…

Meet… 

Matt Kepnes who gave up the cubicle to pursue a life of adventure, hoping to avoid an office for the rest of his life. You can find his daily musings at Nomadic Matt.

Now on to the hostels…

“Everyone wants to party on the road but with a million hostels in the world, where should you go?

I’ve searched high and low, drank with the best of them, and endured sleepless nights by the toilet to find the best party hostels out there.

Here are twenty that will keep you drinking, dancing, flirting, and hugging the porcelain goddess until the sun comes up:”

 Kabul -Location: Barcelona, Spain

Located in the center of Las Ramblas, Kabul has a very open second floor where all parties happen. Happy hour officially begins at 7, which is usually a few hours after everyone wakes up.

With a reputation for partying, this place keeps drawing those who start partying at 2 a.m. and sleep until 2 p.m. This place gives new meaning to the term “late night.” I was called a quitter for sleeping at 5 a.m.

Click here to read about the rest.

(Picture above by foraggio)

Technorati Tags: the best hostels

Pre-teen pole dancer? She looks like it

Move over Barbie! This hot chick is coming into your neighborhood!

She may look like a refugee from the 1970s, but don’t be fooled…this is probably some cheap Chinese knockoff!   

Is it a real product? Something photo-shopped perhaps?

She looks like she’s maybe 12 or 13 years-old.So far no one has come forward to say this sick little pedophile’s delight is a phony.

Just another argument for the Fall of the New Western Civilization.

I found this at ParentDish

Credit: Gizmodo.com

Technorati Tags: pole dancers,barbie,dolls,pedophiles

Walking through the seasons…

      

Fall is slowly settling upon us.
While walking with Millie my pug, we’ve been watching the leaves turn into a riot of color. The tree-lined route we take every day, is changing from green leaves to red, to yellow, to orange. Signs that summer is coming to an end.
      The multi-colored umbrella we stroll through is alive with birds. We see horses, donkeys, dogs, and cats, as we pass through silently, wrapped in our own thoughts. The Ravens and the Blue Jays compete for supremacy of the sky, or perhaps a tree.
      The tree has always been a popular way of suggesting stability. We say our roots run deep, like an old oak, to let others know that our family has lived in an area for generations. The majesty of a redwood tree goes unchallenged, as we strain to see their tops. Their very size suggests eternity.
      There are many fruit trees, oaks, and spruce to see on our daily walk. There are a few redwoods, still relatively young and only a couple of hundred feet high, with thin trunks and limbs. We have a half dozen young redwoods lining our back yard. There are also huge stumps on our route, sad reminders of once majestic giants in their prime.
       I try to fix my memory on the beauty of the healthy trees, hoping it will take me through the long winter ahead, when they will be stripped bare to brave the elements. They whisper, as we walk by each day, about upcoming skies of gray.

Technorati Tags: trees,redwoods,fruit trees

Marvel’s superheros hook up with Disney

I still remember when Marvel Comics came out with Spiderman, Thor, The Fantastic Four, The Hulk, The X-Men, Iron Man, Dare Devil, and Doctor Strange in the mid-sixties.

Every month I would run to the local liquor store with my buddy to buy up the latest editions. We’d go to the nearby park and read them…happy as clams to be caught up in another world where anything is possible.

It’s weird seeing Marvel become a Disney acquisition. I never would have guessed. 

The estimated $4-billion deal would give Disney access to a library of more than 5,000 characters and help it strengthen its appeal to the young male audience. Ike Perlmutter, Marvel's CEO, will work directly with Disney to build and integrate Marvel's properties.

By Dawn C. Chmielewski

The Walt Disney Co. today announced that it had agreed to acquire comic-book giant Marvel Entertainment, creator of such characters as Iron Man and Spider-Man, in a cash-and-stock deal worth an estimated $4 billion.
The acquisition would give Disney access to a library of more than 5,000 characters -- several of whom have inspired major films for other Hollywood studios. Marvel, meanwhile, gains the clout of Disney's ability to take a popular character and make money on it through films, television and licensed merchandise.

Click here to read the rest of this story in the LA Times.

Technorati Tags: marvel comics,superheros,Disney

(Photo via AP / Marvel Comics / Columbia Pictures)

Wow! 35 years married and still best friends, lovers, and proud parents…

I never would have guessed someone could stand me for so long! Shirley is the center of my universe. Anything I accomplished in life thus far is a tribute to her.

As a Vietnam veteran with PTSD, I haven’t been a constant joy to live with, yet she’s always stayed at my side, and “had my back.”

If you know Shirley, you know how loving and compassionate she is. She’s a hugger. She works in an oncology clinic and greets everyone with love and the understanding she will do all she can to help them.

Humor is just one of the things that strengthens our bond of love. We both believe that life is too short to waste being negative about things. We both believe that a positive attitude changes a person’s life, allowing them to contribute to society and be happy.

Happy Anniversary my “Brown-Eyed Girl!”    

Technorati Tags: 35th wedding anniversary

On the Effectiveness of Aluminium Foil Helmets: An Empirical Study

 An alert reader of yesterday’s “As It Stands” column – Space aliens, Satanists, and those who try to Control your Mind – sent me this link about tinfoil hats that were featured in my column. I found it quit educating and very amusing!  

The following research was carried out by the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department, MIT.,
and the Media Laboratory, MIT.

Among a fringe community of paranoids, aluminum helmets serve as the protective measure of choice against invasive radio signals. We investigate the efficacy of three aluminum helmet designs on a sample group of four individuals. Using a $250,000 network analyser, we find that although on average all helmets attenuate invasive radio frequencies in either directions (either emanating from an outside source, or emanating from the cranium of the subject), certain frequencies are in fact greatly amplified. These amplified frequencies coincide with radio bands reserved for government use according to the Federal Communication Commission (FCC). Statistical evidence suggests the use of helmets may in fact enhance the government's invasive abilities. We speculate that the government may in fact have started the helmet craze for this reason.

Click here to read the results and to see more styles of tinfoil hats!

Technorati Tags: tinfoil hats,Satanists,space aliens,MIT study