One of my favorite Lakers is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. I was surprised to see that he has a rare form of cancer this morning.
Apparently, it’s not the worst kind of cancer you can get, and chances of survival are good.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is being treated for a rare form of leukemia, and the basketball great said his prognosis is encouraging.
Read the story at Yahoo Sports
AP File Photo
With Thanksgiving coming up the smarter turkeys are already practicing their imitations of other animals….
cartoon via Marbella text by Dave Stancliff
Coroner John White is presiding over a sad tally in this northern Indiana county, tracking rising numbers of suicides he believes are linked to the lingering recession.
Read the whole story at msnbc
Data on every U.S. county
You can see the suicide rate for U.S. counties for 1979-2006 in these PDF files:
Photo by Jennifer Shephard / The Elkhart Truth
I’m back…it’s time to start posting stuff again. I wonder if you missed me as much as I missed blogging?
Here’s today’s offering:
By Dave Stancliff/For the Times-Standard
Posted: 11/08/2009 01:27:25 AM PST
Remember comedian George Carlin's 1972 “7 Dirty Words” monologue? It's still controversial, but every one of those words can now be heard on cable TV. I wondered what words would cause such a controversy today?
Then it came to me. Not words; subjects. The following subjects are guaranteed to cause controversy. If you don't want to start a heated argument, don't mention any one of them. Of course, if you're bored with a dull conservation and looking for a stick to throw in the fire, then toss in one of these subjects to warm things up. Click here to read the seven subjects.
I’m going to recharge the batteries that tickle my brain with ideas.
I’m doubling my walks and I’m going to read a book (fiction).
Shirley has taken the week off and we’re going to explore the nooks and crannies of this beautiful area we live in.
Just because.
Hopefully my meandering will motivate my muse and sharpen my views. Don’t let that stop you from exploring the archives listed on the left of this page.
Feel free to leave comments about things you like or dislike, or things you’d like to see. I’ll make answering you my duty.
Peace be with you. May the wind be behind you - and the truth always before you!
Dave
Here’s an interesting read about the health care debate. Dingell (I should say his researchers and staff) has made some good points regarding a public option in this Op-Ed piece today.
I do believe our current health care system is in shambles and something has to be done about it. The research in this article is accurate (I did take the time to check quoted stats).
I’m not suggesting you read this Op-Ed piece because a Democrat wrote it. If a Republican would have brought up the same stats and logic I would have run it. I’m not interested in promoting either party. I am interested in trying to get out as much accurate information on this subject as possible.
What do you think about this Op-Ed piece? For or against?
By Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.)
“We have the best medical professionals in the world, but fewer and fewer Americans can afford to pay for the care they can provide. The trends indicate that problem will get much worse.
About 17 percent of our $14 trillion dollar economy is dedicated to health care. We pay more for health care than we do for food. Too much of what we spend on our care does nothing to improve our health. We pay for our highly bureaucratic and unwieldy health care system not just with dollars, but with the lives and well-being of millions of Americans. The Affordable Health Care for America Act will reform our health insurance industry so companies prioritize policyholders’ health instead of investors’ profits.
The insurance industry has done everything possible to make you think otherwise. This summer’s massive disinformation campaign – exposed by Tim Dickinson in Rolling Stone magazine last month – has distracted millions of honest, engaged citizens during this debate. During two town halls in my District this summer, I witnessed first hand how fear hijacked a much-needed serious conversation.
But the facts scream louder than even the angriest protester – and the data tells us the current system could literally destroy our way of life.
Consider these statistics:
• The top ten health insurance companies made $8.2755 billion last year and they stand to make more when medical costs go up.
• The average annual premium for employer-sponsored health insurance is $13,375 for family coverage.
• Approximately 45,000 people die each year because they lack health insurance.”
Go to News.Yahoo.com to read the rest of this Op-Ed piece.
AP Photo of Rep. John Dingell (Mich.)
“Two years ago, the Tennessee legislature put into statute what most people assumed should go without saying — it is illegal to have sex with an animal in this state.
But prosecutors across Middle Tennessee have cause to be glad that someone spelled that felony out. No less than three bestiality cases have come up in separate counties in recent months.
Three people stand accused of engaging in sex acts with farm animals in Maury County. In Humphreys County, a youth football coach was already under investigation for child rape when police reportedly found images of bestiality on his cell phone.” Read the rest at USA Today
That makes their language one of the strangest in the world -- and also one of the most hotly debated by linguists.
Go to Spiegel Online International to read the whole story.
If you’re not a “real American” as defined by Sarah Palin or Glenn Beck, then you’re going to hell buckaroo!
The crazy get crazier, as we watch the religious right continue to dress up and interrupt town hall meetings.
What do they really want? You can go to their "Tea Party" website and read all about their “Tea Party Express II:Countdown To Judgment Day."
Snippet from AlterNet:
“What will happen on their predicted "Judgment Day"?
If you buy the biblical spin of the Religious Right folks -- that make up the bulk of the Tea Party movement -- the implication is clear: Jesus will soon return, send all Democrats, gays, blacks, progressives, liberals, college-educated unbelievers, etc., to Hell, while saving what Sarah Palin calls "us" "Real Americans" -- in other words unreconstructed frightened and resentful white lower middle class Americans.”
Read the rest here.
ABOVE IMAGE FROM: teapartyhandbook.com/
Just think; while you’re enjoying your first cup of coffee this morning your also learning about a little known fact about baseballs.
What a way to start a day!
“Nobody knows this is where I get the magic mud," Bintliff says.
Out of nine brothers and sisters, Bintliff was the one picked to carry on the family business -- Lena Blackburne Baseball Rubbing Mud.”
Read the whole article at CNN
Snippet of story:
“The Lakers begin the season tonight against the Clippers, but not before they receive their championship rings from last season's successful playoff run.”
Read the whole story here.
Image above via Bright Star Images
I’m so glad that it doesn’t snow here in Humboldt County! I’m originally from Cleveland, Ohio, and I know how miserable scraping ice off your windows is.
I haven’t been back there since 1972, and don’t intend to ever go back. Look at the guy in the photo. Imagine doing that every day?
FROM USA TODAY WE HAVE:
Police watching for ‘peephole drivers as winter nears
ABOVE PHOTO CAPTION: David Michael scrapes ice from his car during a Jan. 27 winter storm in Nicholasville, Ky. In some states, police can cite drivers for obstructed vision.
Photo By Charles Bertram, AP
From MindCafe today…
“The brain is certainly the most amazing part of human body. It becomes more interesting when it does not work the way you expect it should. Psychology frequently establishes our intuitions about how human mind works, but it reveals a number of surprises as well…
Although some psychology students will have heard one or two of these before, here’s a list of brain habits you probably didn’t realize you had:
Humans have basically three forms of memory: Sensory, Long-term and Short-term. Long-term memory is just like hard-drive space. Similarly, Short-term memory functions like a very small RAM. This Short-term memory is capable to hold only about five to nine (seven is an average) items at a time.
Retrieving information longer than this will need you to either pack it together into seven units or store it in Long-term memory. Have you observed that the most phone numbers have only seven digits?
Click here to see the remaining eight.
In the United States, more people believe that houses can be haunted by the dead than believe that the living can cause climate change.
Is this simply a scary Halloween tale or our frightening future?
Read this article by: Dave R. at Care2
While working on the road I met several members of the 11th Armored Cavalry. Now, I can’t help wondering if they are dead or alive. Was one of those men honored someone I talked with back in 1970? I guess I’ll never know.
After 39 years, Alpha Troop is awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for its heroism during 'The Anonymous Battle' in 1970.
(Above photo) President Obama, at a ceremony honoring Alpha Troop, says the treatment of Vietnam veterans has been a "national disgrace." (Tim Sloan / AFP-Getty Images / October 20, 2009)
Read the whole story at The LA Times
By Dave Stancliff
For the Times-Standard
Posted: 10/25/2009 01:27:19 AM PDT
August 2009 -- Nancy Maltez fell 1,000 feet to her death while hiking in Zion National Park. The California woman was with her husband and three children. They were hiking the Angels Landing Trail, one of the most famous and thrilling hikes in the U.S. National Parks.
It wasn't a trail for the weak of heart. Or the inexperienced. It slithered along a narrow rock slice with dizzying thousand-foot drops on both sides. There were chains embedded in the rock to give hikers extra hand-holds.
This was a trail for experienced hikers and climbers. Maltez was neither. Should she and her family have gone on this trail? I don't think so. When I read about this terrible accident it took me back to another time.
November 1965 -- I was 15 years old. I held on to the chaparral for dear life. Only minutes before I had been at the top of the trail with my two friends, John and Chuck, brothers who wanted an adventure. We all had empty canteens and were thirsty. Strong winds made it hard to hear each other.
Read the rest here.
image viawww.wausaukee.com
Nate is fighting in the 155 weight class. It’s considered the most competitive weight and usually the Big Event of the night. A two-time champion will be among Nate’s opponents.
Eli is fighting in the heavyweight class (200 and up). Eli weighs 210 and is the lightest heavyweight to compete. There’s one guy in his class whose 6 foot-eight inches, and weighs 250 pounds.
Neither of my sons have ever entered a contest like this. They were both varsity wrestlers while in high school, but this type of mixed-martial art competition is a whole different ball game. Neither one of them even trained for it.
Their wives are both worried about their safety. So am I, and their Mother even more so. You can’t help it. You worry when a loved one gets involved in a violent sport. The wives went to the contest to support them.
Shirley and I stayed home, and are both trying to stay busy until this thing is over with tonight. Until we get that phone call telling us they are both all right.
My feelings are mixed however. I remember boxing while in the Army and I enjoyed it. I have to admit that there is a savage joy in pounding someone into submission in the name of sport. You know you’re not going to get in trouble, so you can let it all “hang out” in a display of fury and fists.
I want my boys to survive this contest. If they win it, I hope they don’t do it again. I hope one last fling will be enough. They’re both in their 30s, and really too old to be involved in this kind of competition for younger men. But, like I said, I understand. Deep down where words have no meaning. Where you find yourself testing your limits just because.
Good luck boys!
Love, Dad
Image via Google Images
UPDATE: Both of them survived without serious injuries last night. Nate ended up fighting the two-time champion (wouldn’t you know it?). His brother Richard (my third son) recounted the action to me: “Nate was kicking the crap out of the champion for most of the round. He knocked him down several times and busted his eyebrow open, but made a mistake when he went to the ground to finish him off.
The guy was a belted ju-jitsu fighter, and managed to slip a choke hold on Nate…and Nate had to tap out or pass out. He tapped out. The crowd was stunned. It looked like his fight until that sudden skillful move turned the tables.
Eli’s fight was one of the biggest crowd-pleasers of the night. Eli is five-foot, ten-inches tall and weighs 210 pounds. His opponent was six-foot two-inches tall and weighed 250 pounds. He looked like a midget next to the guy.
Eli was the smallest heavyweight of the night. In the first two minutes Eli tried to take the big man to the ground and absorbed numerous powerful punches while doing it. In the last minute Eli switched tactics and started slugging his opponent. With a dramatic round-house right Eli dropped the big man to the canvas! He then jumped un him and pounded away as the guy tried to cover up. Then the bell rang! The judges awarded a split decision to his opponent (who by the way went on to win the heavyweight championship).
Apparently the crowd was on their feet cheering Eli, and Richard said it was like watching the first Rocky movie! The crowd booed the decision.
I’m glad it’s over. But it looks like I have to worry again next year. Both of them have decided to fight again. Eli’s coming down to his natural weight class of 185-200 lbs.the next time around. Theyre actually going to train this time around and both fully expect to win their weight classes next year.
Okay…I’m proud of them. I see myself in both. I just wish they didn’t want to do this again. I’ll have to sedate Shirley next year!
Just in case you never heard the negative stereotype " Ugly American" here is a quick summary of where the term comes from. The...
