Everything you ever wanted to know about ‘Hump Day’

Good Day World!

Starting around 1965, Wednesday began being referred to as “hump day.”

Smack dab in the middle of the traditional work week, arriving at Wednesday symbolizes that we’ve made it over the hump and the weekend is in sight.

Did you know that the name Wednesday derives from two mighty but distinct gods?

The Old English word for Wednesday indicates that the day was named for the Germanic god Woden.

In Romance languages, the name is derived from the Roman god Mercury. (For example, Wednesday is mercredi in French and miercuri in Romanian.)

Woden (also known as Odin) and Mercury have  been associated since Scandinavian and Roman cultures crossed paths. Under Woden’s supervision, the earth and sky were created from the dead body of a giant named Ymir.

Woden also created the first man and woman from an ash tree and an alder. As if fashioning the human race wasn’t enough, Woden also established the laws of the universe.

Mercury was the messenger to the gods, along with being the patron of science, the arts, travelers and athletes.

Today, he is one of the most widely recognized gods. Usually, he’s depicted wearing a winged helmet and sandals.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

A leprechaun told me to wish you a Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Aye, and it’s a fine day Lassies & Lads!

Every year on March 17, the Irish and the Irish-at-heart across the globe observe St. Patrick’s Day.

When Irish eyes are smiling,
Tis like a morn in spring.
With a lilt of Irish laughter
You can hear the angels sing
When Irish hearts are happy
All the world is bright and gay
When Irish eyes are smiling
Sure, they steal your heart away.

NEWS

For the first time in its 115-year history, South Boston's St. Patrick's Day parade will include groups representing the LGBT community. 

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Video: Stories and poems attached to St. Patrick’s Day – told by an Irish poet

Go mbeannai Dia duit (May God Bless You)

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Senator/Soldier violates Iowa State Code of Military Justice

Good Day World!

There’s a senator who is also a lieutenant colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard who could, and should, be court-martialed for her seditious actions.

When Lt. Col. Joni Ernst, the junior senator from Iowa, joined 46 other treasonous senators in going over the president’s head and contacting Iran, she violated the Iowa State Code of Military Justice.

Her signing of the seditious letter to Iran is a clear and direct violation of Chapter 29B.85 of the Iowa State Code of Military Justice.

29B.85  CONTEMPT TOWARD OFFICIALS.
Any person subject to this code who uses contemptuous words against the president, the governor, or the governor of any other state, territory, commonwealth, or possession in which that person may be serving, shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.

This is very serious infraction.  We are a nation governed by civilians.Our Commander-in-Chief is a civilian.The government officials that hold ultimate authority over our military are civilians. 

This is true at the federal level and the state level.This has always been the case since George Washington was president.He resigned his military commission to accept the position of president.

We have never in our history had a military ruler.Military obedience to civilian authority is critical and essential if we are to maintain the democracy we inherited.   That is why "contempt towards officials" is such a serious matter.

Lincoln enforced that discipline during the Civil War.Even with the imposition of martial law, Lincoln remained a civilian commander. Truman enforced the same discipline after WWII when he relieved Gen. MacArthur of his command.

Obama enforced the same discipline recently when Gen. McChrystal was relieved of his command.There is nothing anachronistic about this fundamental principle.

In the federal armed services, this is handled under Article 88 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

“Any commissioned officer who uses contemptuous words against the President, the Vice President, Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of a military department, the Secretary of Transportation, or the Governor or legislature of any State, Territory, Commonwealth, or possession in which he is on duty or present shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.”

Reading the federal version, it is obvious where Iowa got the wording for its law.  It's not an accident or a coincidence.  The importance of enforcing the requirement for military obedience to civilian authority is universally applied at every level of governance, from the federal to the local level.

In the Open Letter to Iran, which Lt. Col. Joni Ernst freely signed,  it says:

“…we will consider any agreement regarding your nuclear-weapons program that is not approved by the Congress as nothing more than an executive agreement between President Obama and Ayatollah Khamenei.”

The fact of the matter is the president, under Article 2, section 2, has always been recognized as uniquely empowered to speak on behalf of the nation. After all, the president is the Chief Executive.

This principle has been in place for over 200 years.  Secretary of State Jefferson -- as instructed by President Washington -- made this point in writing to Edmond Genet in 1793, explaining that no one but the president could speak for this country.

“He being the only channel of communication between this country and foreign nations, it is from him alone that foreign nations or their agents are to learn what is or has been the will of the nation; and whatever he communicates as such, they have a right, and are bound to consider as the expression of the nation.”

That principle has been ratified numerous times across the centuries. Undermining that authority is sedition. Undermining the authority of the president while you are serving as an active duty officer in the Iowa State National Guard is clearly contemptuous.

At the federal level, an officer is in violation of this law (Article 88) if their behavior meets the following tests:

(1) That the accused was a commissioned officer of the United States armed forces;

(2) That the accused used certain words against an official or legislature named in the article;

(3) That by an act of the accused these words came to the knowledge of a person other than the accused; and

(4) That the words used were contemptuous, either in themselves or by virtue of the circumstances under which they were used.

This brings us to the case of Lt. Col. Joni Ernst. I assume the same elements, or similar elements, are used to determine compliance at the state level for Section 85 as they are at the federal level for Article 88.

In this case, Sen. Joni Ernst is a commissioned officer.(1)

She did use words against the president.(2)

These words were published to MANY people besides the president.(3)

The circumstances of these words are contemptuous of the president and his authority.(4)

That's four strikes.

By her behavior, Joni Ernst has disgraced her commission and tarnished the reputation of the Iowa National Guard.  Her behavior reflects poorly on her and her chain of command.  It also provides a poor example of leadership to those men and women entrusted to her command.

Because of her actions, Lt. Col. Joni Ernt appears to have willfully violated Iowa Code 29B.85. The only reasonable course of action is to subject Joni Ernst to court martial and punishment in proportion to the severity of her infraction. (this article first appeared in Alternet)

Time for me to walk on down the road…

When my time comes, celebrate my life in music

Good Day World!

We are born, and eventually we die.

What we do in-between defines us.

I’ve got 20 tunes that I’d like played when it comes time to bid adieu to my friends and family.

(Photo-The Love of my life, and wife, Shirley)

In that final celebration of my life let music tell my story:

The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced front man Eric Burdon. Three of their hits really spoke to me. They are:

"The House of the Rising Sun." "We Gotta Get out of This Place", and "It's My Life."

Another one of my favorite groups is The Doors.

From the Strange Days album (1967) I really related to “People Are Strange.” I also like, “Break on Through (To the Other Side)” from “The Doors” 1967 album.

One of those defining life moments for me happened when I was in a chopper flying to Cambodia. A boom box was playing “Paint It Black” while I wondered if I’d survive the incursion into another foreign country. It was upbeat and scary.

This anthem song “Where Have all the Flowers Gone: Eve of Destruction” by Barry McQuire is another song that has a lot of meaning to me. The music is highlighted with real films from the Vietnam war.

When it comes to Love Songs my favorite one is “Brown-Eyed Girl,” by Van Morrison, because it’s my song to Shirley – my wife, and love of my life.

One of my favorite singers is Joan Baez. Everything she’s done is magic. In particular I love “In The Quite Morning.”

Favorite traveling songs:“I’m On The Road Again” by the Canned Heat, and their classic “Going Up The Country.”

These musical hits all ring memory bells dear to me:

White Rabbit, by Grace Slick & The Jefferson Airplane.

That’ll Be The Day by Buddy Holly.

American Pie, by Don McLean

Seasons in the Sun by Terry Jacks (1974 – the year I got married)

Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce

Run Through the Jungle by Creedence Clearwater Revival

 

Someday Never Comes also by Creedence Clearwater Revival

Mercedes Benz by the great Janis Joplin.

I Did It My Way by Frank Sinatra

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Staying Forever Young at Heart

Good Day World!

Let’s set the tune for today by listening to Forever Young by Joan Baez…

and by other artists such as

Bruce Springsteen, Pete Seeger, or The Band.

The lyrics to this song speak to me. It’ my life’s anthem.

I may be 64 years-old, but I don’t feel like an old man. I may look like one, but the “real me” is much younger.

I laugh easily. I love passionately. My sense of humor remains unmarred over the decades. I can still remember being five years-old.

When I look in the mirror that young man in my mind stares out from behind my wrinkles and silver mane. Yet youth, unlike one philosopher's suggestion that it’s wasted on the young – can be eternal…

in your mind, heart and actions. 

I am as curious today as I was 64 years ago. At times, I feel old when by body fails me. Then I remember; I chose to be

forever young!

Time for me to walk on down the road… 

 

Who said, ‘Help me?’ When 1st Responders Arrived at Accident

Good Day World!

I’ve run across many mysteries in my life, both personal experiences, and in news stories. I find them fascinating, and whenever I run across one I enjoy sharing it with my readers.

The most recent example of a mysterious story is about a car accident that happened recently outside Salt lake City, Utah.

For reasons unknown, Lynn Jennifer Groesbeck, 25, went off the road and crashed in the Spanish Fork River. She was killed (massive trauma), but her 18-month-old daughter, Lily was still alive in the back seat.

The car was upside down and partly submerged in the icy river when first responders arrived. As three police officers and two firemen surveyed the situation they heard a mysterious voice say, “Help me.”

Officers Tyler Beddoes, Jared Warner and Bryan Dewitt told Lt. Matt Johnson they heard an adult voice before being aware of the infant trapped upside in a car seat. Johnson relayed their report to ABC News.

He said the two firefighters, Paul Tomadakis and Lee Mecham, also heard the voice before realizing there was a toddler in the submerged car.

"To me, it was plain as day," Warner told KSL.com. "I remember hearing a voice that didn't sound like a child, just saying, 'Help me.'

Of course, the voice couldn’t have been Groesbeck – she was dead. But whose voice did the five men hear?

Some might say it was Lynn Groesbeck’s voice – coming from the other side to save her child. I don’t know. It’s an interest theory.

Who do you think the first responders heard?

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Racist remarks, treason, and lack of class – GOP on a roll

                                           Good Day World!

You’d think that after last week’s controversial House speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who denounced the president’s negotiations with Iran, that Republicans would show a little class and get off Obama’s back.

You’d be wrong.

Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell (R) of Kentucky, tried to rush the bill to the floor but had to reverse course, after Democrats threatened to block the move.

This week, Republicans doubled down on their destructive rhetoric. 

Republican Sen. Michael Willette refused to resign over a series of offensive Facebook posts. In the posts he suggested President Barack Obama's family members are part of the Islamic State group.

When the Maine Democratic Party called on him to step down over what they described as a "prolific online history of racist and bigoted remarks," Willette backpedaled, said he was sorry, and that he won’t continue to post lies.

His history says otherwise.

Willette also posted a photo of Obama on Facebook pretending to use the president's words, saying of the Islamic State group, "I'll deal with them at the family reunion."

It’s more than not having any class that makes Willette a problem. He’s admitted having animosity toward Muslims and suggested that members of Obama's administration are part of the Muslim Brotherhood.

It’s apparent he hates the president, and that’s he’s graduated from hateful rhetoric to downright lies. Willette has gone too far this time.

Speaking of going too far..

More than 155,000 people have signed a petition to the White House (yesterday) urging charges be filed against 47 Republican senators who they say committed "treasonous" offenses by writing Iran's leaders about ongoing nuclear negotiations.”

When those 47 Republican senators sent  a letter to Iran’s leadership Monday warning them that an international nuclear deal with them could be scrapped if they didn’t like it, they went too far.

According to the petition, the 47 senators "committed a treasonous offense when they decided to violate the Logan Act, a 1799 law which forbids unauthorized citizens from negotiating with foreign governments."

Those 47 senators – including three potential Republican presidential candidates - broke the law, or at least violated the traditions of Congress, by directly engaging a foreign power on US foreign policy.

Even some Republicans realize that the letter went too far.

Negotiations with the Islamic republic "are tough enough here and I didn't think it was appropriate to add another element that makes it more difficult," Senate Republican Jeff Flake told National Public Radio.

In both cases, there’s a total lack of respect for the president of the United States.

Meanwhile, the world looks at the political dysfunction festering in Congress and wonders how united we really are.

Time for me to walk on down the road… 

 

Senators Introduce Amazing Bipartisan Bill To Legalize Marijuana

Good Day World!

Congress introduced the most comprehensive legislation on medical marijuana ever Tuesday.

And surprise…surprise…it was a bipartisan effort.

Will wonders ever cease?

The Compassionate Access, Research Expansion and Respect States (CARERS) Act would remove federal penalties and restrictions for producing, distributing and possessing marijuana for medical purposes, provided there is compliance with state law.

It would give military veterans access to medical marijuana in states where it is legal, and it would crucially allow financial institutions to provide banking services to marijuana businesses.

It would also reclassify marijuana from "Schedule I" to "Schedule II," eliminating current barriers to research and recognizing the acceptable medical use of the drug.

Let’s hope this groundbreaking legislation survives and becomes law. It would be the right thing to do.

Senate Bill Would Effectively End The Federal War On Medical Marijuana

Senate Bill Would Ease Federal Prohibition Of Medical Marijuana

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Republicans warn Iran not to make a deal with Obama

Good Day World!

Imagine if the Democrats would have tried to micro-manage the START talks in the 80s by sending an open letter to Gorbachev.

It just wouldn't have been viewed as an acceptable political move while the talks were still happening.

As the United States, western nations, China, and Russia are negotiating with Iran to curb its nuclear ambitions, 47 Senate Republicans led by freshman Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) have made an extraordinary -- if not unprecedented -- countermove:

They've sent an open letter to Iran to suggest they can undo whatever President Obama's administration agrees to.

"First, under our Constitution, while the president negotiates international agreements, Congress plays he significant role of ratifying them.

Second … President Obama will leave office in January 2017, while most of us will remain in office well beyond then—perhaps decades."

This is extraordinary, because for a GOP Congress that objects to Obama overstepping his bounds, the president is commander-in-chief and conducts the nation's foreign policy.

Just asking, but what countermove is more over the top -- Netanyahu's speech from last week, or this letter trying to scuttle a deal before it even happens?

Imagine how the world views this political drama. We are not a united country – especially in our government - and it’s obvious.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Congressional members don’t have the power to rule a presidential act unconstitutional

Good Day World!

It’s apparent that some Republicans in Congress weren’t as aware of the Constitution as they claimed to be.

What other reason would there be for challenging the president’s acts as unconstitutional?

A quick look at Constitutional Law shows that issue was decided over 100 years ago by the Supreme Court in 1803.

They never had a chance of prevailing over Obama and the Democrats in their attempt to condition funding for the Department of Homeland Security on a repeal of the administration's immigration directives. 

The bottom line:

However heartfelt the rhetoric, members of Congress don't have the power to rule a presidential act unconstitutional.

Only the courts can do that.

As Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho pointed out in a recent AP article, "When there are differences of opinion as to what is constitutional and what is not constitutional, a court makes that determination.”

Simpson was giving a gentle refresher course on the Constitution to those on his own side of the aisle.

The tea party-aligned, bitter-end Republican losers had outrage, and in the House, an unbending unwillingness to compromise that some of their own rank and file judged counterproductive.

The result was a rout.

Republicans can expect the same result the next time around if they try to bend (or willingly ignore) Constitutional Law. The irony, of course, is that those ultra conservative House members are always talking about upholding the Constitution.

Yet, when you look at – or research – the so-called tea party crowd’s twists on the Constitution, it’s obvious their interpretation is flawed and not the original intent of the Founding Fathers. 

Time for me to walk on down the road…

A Killer Buzz: Lawsuit Filed Against Distribution of Pure Caffeine

Good Day World!

One of the simple joys in my life is drinking coffee when I wake up in the morning.

That caffeine “buzz” seems to clear my head and set me up for the day.

The scent of those coffee beans distilling makes getting out of my comfortable bed bearable.

I only drink two cups every morning. There was a time when I drank two pots of coffee daily. But that was decades ago.

I’ve learned some things about coffee – and caffeine – over the years. Moderation has it’s merits. Especially when it comes to consuming caffeine.

Because caffeine can kill.

The family of a Northeast Ohio high school senior who died of a caffeine overdose last year filed a wrongful death lawsuit on Friday against several companies including Amazon.com Inc, which shipped the supplement.

Logan Stiner, 18, died last May of a cardiac arrhythmia and seizure due to acute caffeine toxicity shortly before he was set to graduate from high school.

The lawsuit filed by Stiner's father says the companies promoted, advertised, offered for sale and sold Hard Rhino pure caffeine powder on Amazon.

The lawsuit said Hard Rhino should have labeled the caffeine powder as an over-the-counter stimulant and not as a "dietary supplement" and inadequately warned of the difficulty in differentiating a safe dose from a lethal one.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December warned of the dangers of consuming powdered pure caffeine, which can have the rough equivalent of 25 cups of coffee in a single teaspoon.

I don’t understand is why the FDA regulates all forms of caffeine - except pure powder form? It doesn’t make sense.

Someone at the FDA better get their head on right and address this lethal issue before more deaths are reported.

Time for me to walk on down the road…