Picasso's post war peace art available through WalMart

Yes, you can buy a post WWII Pablo Picasso peace artwork through Walmart.  I am reading a book Dreaming in French  Jackie Kennedy, Susan Sontag and Angela Davis's experience in Paris during a "college abroad" experience during their young years.   Its a good insight into France post war, emerging through the 50's into the 60's, the changes of politics, economics, and even the appearance of Paris itself.  But also an insight into the lives of these three amazing young women who would have such an impact on American culture, politics, art.  Anyway, one thing mentioned is Pablo Picasso's artwork, his peace artwork, post war in Paris, how he would lend a hand designing Posters that were put up all over Paris organizing Parisian Youth for peace rallies ("never again" i guess).  So i did a google search of Picasso peace artwork WWII, and this picture came up, available through Walmart on line.

You can buy a classic Picasso print, post war peace artwork, through walmart:  already framed.  I dont know if Picasso ever met Andy Warhol (I did a quick search on google but the results were confusing, imagine a search containing both words "picasso" and "warhol.").  But this is certainly a "warhol moment" for me, finding a picasso peace print at walmart.

BTW, here is a portrait. of what someone thought Picasso would make of Warhol, if Warhol ever sat for a portrait.  

Dan Richards - Asshole of the month

The head of California's Fish and Game commission was FIRED after killing a cougar in Idaho, as part of a free $7,000 hunting trip provided by lobbyists.  He says he followed the law: its illegal to kill cougars in California, but not in Idaho.

hey Dan, who's the "Ho?  You a Ho?  Yes you are, you are a whore of the hunting lodge that paid for your trip.  Of course, Dan paid back the lodge once it was publicized.  and he didnt break the law.

But look at the picture:  what a beautiful cat.  You are a heartless murderer Dan richards.  If you are ever out hiking in one of California's parks, where cougars live in the wild, watch out:  you have the scent of dead cougar on you.

Jenna jameson endorses Mitt Romney

Well known LDS porn star jenna jameson has endorsed Mitt Romney for President.  She really looks terrible here: anorexic, bleached, orange tan.  She says if you're rich you want a republican in the white house.  great reasoning.  doesnt she have a lot of gay friends?  I thought she preferred doing lesbian porn, in order to be faithful to her husband.  dear god.....

cheetah breaks world land speed record

11 year old Cheetah (77 in human years) runs 98 mph, but receives no Olympic medal.  cheetah ran on a special course created by national geographic.  3 times as fast as faster human.  

Chik fil A: about as gay as it gets

Ok, so here is a milk cow, artifically kept milk producing with hormones, long after her calf was born, riding cowgirl style a large floating phallic symbol.  "Eat more chikin."  the term, "eat mor chikin" i believe is from the song "Backdoor Man" by Muddy Waters.  the song is about a black man, who has to use the "back door" when seeing his girlfriend. or its about a black man having anal sex with his girl friend (the chorus is "I'm a backdoor man!!!!")  and another lyric from song is "I eat mor chikn any man ever seen"  i dont think he was referring to chicken, but to cunninlingus (Col. Lingus from SNL).  So the whole idea that a fried chicken chain, featuring waffle fries, would adopt a slogan that is about anal and oral sex, is humorous, given that the same chain is against gay marriage.

So these guys who run Chik fil a are back door men who eat more chicken any man ever seen, then close on sunday to go to church, hopefully after taking a shower after their extremely hetersexual sex.

Chik fil A success is based on expansion: first, they started in malls, low overhead. then, they went the franchise route, but only sold operator's franchises - the operator runs the restaurant, has a profit after expenses, but the corp owns it, makes decisions about marketing etc.  It only takes $5000 investment to be an operator, if you are chosen.  they expanded quickly, and kept expanding.  Can they operate successfully once their expansion stops?

They were sued in Calif for selling steam cooked chicken- supposedly, the plantiffs argued that high temperature causes the chicken to become carcinogenic (or more so), the suit was thrown out.  chik fil a can cook a chicken sandwich as fast as a hamburger, supposedly.  they are all precooked, sit there on the warmer, look awful.  they probably taste good:  fat, deep friend, spices, lots of salt, then waffle fries, more fat, more salt, then milk shake more fat and sugar and so forth.

So all those back door lovin, chikin lovin, conservative evangelical men and women who love steamed and deep fried junk food are lining up to show their support against gay marriage.    get me out of this country - societal insanity.  a bunch of lemmings running over the cliff of pure reason.

Uncle Charley's sausage business for sale

Uncle Charley's is for sale.  Uncle Charley lost his son in plane crash, tragic, and now is reluctantly running the business again (age 79).  His remaining kids dont want the business (stupid).  he says business expanded with his own profits, no debt.  Business has been good, steady sales.  Local distribution, but internet sales too.  good product.  made in Pittsburgh (Vandergrift) not china, has no sawdust in ingredients.  undercapitalized, can it expand, compete with national brands?  i think so with right financial backing.  unfortunately, a successful local company, with no debt, is a prime candidate for Bain Capital takeover:  sell the business to some national brand, move it to mexico, fire everyone, pocket the profits.

I am a vegan, but i would love to own this business. Lots of potential.  good food if you're into local sausage, food made by pittsburghers.  

We lose so many businesses here in pa:  The Clark bar - sold.  Rolling Rock beer - sold.  Iron City beer - sold.

Alan Furst new novel Mission to Paris

This is a 1938 Panhard Dynamic, featured in alan furst's latest "night soldiers" book, Mission to Paris.  Unlike other historically based novels, Furst gets his history correct, and grasps the mood of the time.  i have read, and re read, his novels many times.  Other authors attempt to write novels combining history with fiction, like Newt Gingrich or Bill O'Reilly, but they fail because of (1) poor history, history manipulated for their own purposes or (2) they have a hidden agenda, packaging history for a market that has been researched for its political values.  thus, Lincoln's assassination takes on a new meaning for O'Reilly, namely terrorism, and Gingrich's novels portray Grant et alia as moralistic southern evangelicals fighting for our traditional values (and the Yankees, as it turned otu).  anyway, Furst's latest novel is great, not as great as the others, but a pleasure to read.  I prefer Alan Furst's espionage novels to health science textbooks anyday!

Black Bears in Pittsburgh Mills Mall

"The black guy is up to no good...."  a black bear was spotted near the pittsburgh mills mall, and one actually got inside.  Finally, that mall is attracting some business.  the bear probably wanted some cappucino from starbucks.  so now everyone is going nuts about bears, bear attacks, 'are we safe?"  the above black bear is the one that inspired Winnie the Pooh, and we all know how dangerous Winnie is.    Black bear attacks on humans are rare, usually related to food, not to humans themselves.  these are omnivorous eaters, they esp like cadavers.  dead stuff.  we have nothing to fear from black bears.  other than our gardens being eaten.  So the township is trying to trap the bears in these big bear containers - why not just leave the bear alone.  some guy photographed a black bear on his deck!  OMG!  the black guy moved into the neighborhood.  he is up to no good.  just leave the black bear alone and he or she will leave you alone.  why is this so hard?

income inequality - trees from space

this is great article, you can see income inequality from Google earth, poor neighborhoods have fewer trees than wealthier.  So "greening of the neighborhood" is directly proportional to income inequality.  Above is example from chicago, top is hyde park, Obama's neighborhood at the Univ of Chicago ("the only neighborhood where whites and blacks join together against the poor....") and Englewood, a neighborhood currently under renovation with a humongous federal grant, but still remains economically challenged (or poor). notice the green difference?

Ann Romney's $1000 shirt, John Kerry's thousand dollar ties

As Billy Crystal would say, " you look Maaarvelous!"  So ann's shirt is $1000 - how much do you think mitt romney's suit cost?  Or what about john kerry's thousand dollar ties - silk, hand painted by an artist from Provincetown, Mass).  there are Italian suits at Nordstrom for $3000, on the rack.  My british shirts cost couple hundred dollars, same with ties.  Look at the members of congress when they appear on cable, on Fox - look at their suits, their tailored shirts - seriously, a $1000 shirt for a woman is nothing controversial.  Voters need to take a closer look at how our politicians are dressed, the expensive clothes they wear - they are from the 1%, no one complains about Speaker of the House John boehner's clothes (they are mucho expensive, like the fake tan he wears - what is his tanning monthly cost do you think?)  Besides, the falcon on the front is the symbol of the US Air Force academy.

how much do you think Mitt's tailored shirt cost?  Or Obama's suits?  BTW, they look maaaarvelous too!

Tom Mix jumping Beale's Cut in Santa Clarita

Tom Mix was a real Oklahoma cowboy who ended up in hollywood pictures.  Above is the famous picture of him jumping Beale's Cut.  Supposedly, impossible.  the myth is that he did it, but several stunt men have taken credit, and there is some question if the picture is a composite or fake.  My read:  Mix was a stunt man himself, he jumped it, the picture might be touched up because of the poor focus, but its him and its real.  I dont doubt other stunt men jumped it.  Only Mix would be a "ham" enough to wave while jumping.  The cut isnt all that wide, i mean it is wide, but the horse is proportionate to the actual cut.  so the picture is "real." or as real as pictures were in the 1920's before photoshoot.

below is the type of car, a a1937 cord phaeton, in which he was killed.  supposedly, he was driving 80 miles an hour over a road with the bridge out, he swerved, went over the edge, was killed when his metal suitcase hit the back of his head.  what a way to go.  80 miles an hour in a Cord, at night, over a collapsed bridge.  maybe if he was on his horse he would have made it.

The Tom Mix Museum in Dewey Oklahoma.  I was there once with my sons, a former grad student was city manager there.  Small town, nice museum.  the only thing that ever happened in Dewey, other than some oil wells.  and steers.

whatever happened to Malcolm X's message?

so now i work in nursing, and i see black men coming in to the emergency room, after a crack binge, with track marks on their arms, dehydrated, needing fluid, food, sleep.  prescription drugs.  every week there are drug murders in pittsburgh, in the hill district.  sometimes in daylight - i mean, in the afternoon.  some teenage guy running across vacant lots in the lower hill, guy with gun chasing him, shot repeatedly, dead, murderer arrested, two lives lost.  black on black crime. home invasions.

What happened to malcolm X's message?

Is it possible for a young black man in america to grow up not hearing about malcolm x?  reading his autobiography?  seeing spike lee's movie even?

I had a student in my political film class, black man from the hill, we watched Spike Lee's film, Clockers.  "Another stain on the sidewalk."  black men selling crack to pregnant women, killing each other, ending up dead or in prison.  turns out, my student was dealing weed on campus, got pulled over 2:00 am in his smoke filled car, had 3 lbs of marijuana in the back and a loaded gun under the seat.  It was his last semester of college.  he almost graduated.  he is in in state penn now.  convicted drug dealer, felon.  is life is f'd.  what happened to him?  no hope after graduation?  easier to sell weed?  he wasn't paying attention to clockers movie?

Its not like the message isnt out there.  Black man shows up in ER last week, 1:00am, paramedics brought him and his sister, he passed out after smoking crack, drinking, he was overweight, awful circulation in his extremities. with him was his pregnant younger sister - she was with him while he was smoking crack?  What does this guy do for a living?  Can you have a job and drink booze and smoke crack at 1 am?  He wanted to eat (he couldnt, he was nothing by mouth because doc wanted to do stress test asap in morning), he wanted this, he wanted that, is the ER a freakin' hotel room?

I know, white folk do crack, meth, and of course they can afford cocaine and they have health insurance and  doctors who write prescription pain killers (legal addicts).  and i know, black folk get sent to jail for crack, white folk go to Betty Ford clinic.

But my point is, aren't these black brothers buying into the same slave mentality that brother Malcolm was talking about?  At the end of his life, Malcolm X preached universal acceptance, love, and saw his struggle as part of a global struggle against dominating power, the post colonial powers, what we now call "globilization" --  isn't his message still powerful?  relevant?

I am a 60 yr old white man and i am wondering....WTF?  What happened to his message?

Gray whale that died had swallowed golf ball

reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Kramer was using the ocean as a driving range......

SEATTLE — A gray whale found dead in Washington state’s Puget Sound had been feeding on shrimp and also had some debris, including a golf ball, in its stomach, but scientists don’t know what killed the animal.

The stomach examination Monday found the shrimp, woody debris, algae, pieces of rope and plastic, the golf ball and some flat spongy material, NOAA Fisheries said.

Cancel USPS service: Cosmo Kramer versus Sen. Susan Collins

Sen. Susan Collins from Maine  defends the US Postal Service.  There was a Seinfeld episode about Kramer deciding that the USPS was outdated, because of email, and he resented getting Pottery Barn catalogs constantly.  the USPS is outdated, its an elephant for politicians who want to satisfy an older population who sees the local USPS office as the identity for their community.  Fact is, the sense of community has become so fractured in today's society, that the USPS office is about the only thing many small communities have for their "sense of place."  My opinion:  shut the whole thing down.  Contract out for delivery.  It would save billions of dollars. the example below is the problem: why should the federal government subsidize a national enterprise so someone in small town maine can send a letter to someone ten miles away?  Heard of email?  Phone?  send an attach file?  Facebook?  come on.....

Collins passionately defended a mail processing center in Hampden, a town in northern Maine. Closing it would mean that a letter sent from one town in northern Maine to another town just ten miles away would take a 600-mile roundtrip, she said.

we are NOT leaving Iraq - why?

New report:

A January 31 report from the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, for instance, estimated that the State Department will spend $25-$30 billion in Iraq over the next five years. The panel said that U.S. diplomatic operations in Iraq in fiscal year 2012 will spike to at least $3 billion, roughly a quarter of the State Department's global operations budget. Other State initiatives here--like the large and growing Office of Security Cooperation--will push the fiscal 2012 numbers even higher.

so one more time, why are we in Iraq?  Oil?  we are spending far more than we will ever get from oil.  Geo political influence?  what influence? Iran dominates Iraqi politics.  Does our presence help the Israeli -Palestinian conflict? No, its worse.  Looks like Israel is intent on keeping west bank.  so again: what are we doing there?  Even at the height of the British Empire, the height of european colonialism, at least those countries got something from their colonies.  what are we getting from Iraq? 

Obama cant get out, or wont.  who is keeping us there?  what is Obama facing?  some kinda cabal of industrial-military contractors, sunk cost military-diplomatic thinking that we just cant leave?

Australian think they should "cull" sharks: why not "cull" dumb ass divers?

here is a story about another shark attack in australia, this time a young boy was lost.  Tragic of course.  but why was the boy's dad diving in water known to have sharks?  What precautions did the dad take?  Sharks live in the ocean, duh.  Its not like they crawl up on land and attack us while we sleep.  we go out into their playground, in a black dive suit, dive underwater, act like we are seals or prey, and the sharks attack us.  Its out fault, not the sharks fault.  Sharks play an important role in ocean ecology.  there are plenty of places to dive without fearing shark attack in australia.  and there are ways of diving in shark waters and still be safe, like having spotters, calculating the time of day sharks are active.  Easiest just to avoid shark infested water.

and BTW surfers know there are sharks in the water, surfers paddle far out, in deep water, even in shallow water there can be sharks, when there is a shark spotting surfers feel safer because at least someone SAW the shark.  Sharks are there, we just cant see them.  Sharks wont attack a surfer while surfing, because the surfer doesnt look like prey when surfing the board on a wave.  but when a surfer is paddling, waiting for a wave, they look like a seal.  and you dont necessarily see sharks if they are swimming around you.  the whole dorsal fin thing (da da, da da, the shark soundtrack with the dorsal fin) is a myth.  sharks are invisible usually, they stay under water. you see the dorsal fin only in shallow water.  but surfers love to surf, so sharing the ocean with sharks is part of the challenge of surfing. Like jean paul sartre said:  "No complaining!"  (but i dont think he surfed......)

Wyoming wants to shoot wolves on sight: why does Wyoming even exist?

Here is a story about how Wyoming wants wolves to be off endangered species list, listed as predators, and killed on sight.  They would still be protected in yellowstone and grand tetons parks.  Says some in Wyoming dont think federal gov understands people out west blah blah.

First, wolves shouldnt be allowed to kill cattle being raised by ranchers.  If a cow is killed, rancher should be reimbursed by fed gov.  I dont believe wolves are that big of a problem.  Ranchers never liked the idea of reintroducing wolves to national parks to begin with, this is just excuse to kills stuff.

What this raises a larger question: why do we have states in which the federal government owns much of the land?  If we eliminated the states of montana, wyoming, idaho, north and south dakota, wouldnt we save money?  No expensive state governments.  No more right wing nuts from those states in the US Congress (Dick Cheney).  the fed government owns about half the land in those states anyway (altogether as a territory) so why not just make it a US territory?  Appoint a territorial governor: Pres Obama could appoint Dennis Kucinich (he just lost his congressional seat).  Appoint a liberal environmentalist as territorial governor.

People in these states complain about the federal government - hell, they are lucky to even have a government.  I think we should make them all part of one big US territory, call it Dakota Territory,  or Satchquach territory, or just Northwest Territory.

Nissan van is new NYC cab of choice

new york city has new cabs, but they wont all be hybrids.  Bloomberg has tried to mandate hybrids, but the federal courts have shut him down.  Here is a story about hybrids and ford's attempt to create  a new cab.  looks like nissan won out, the cab shown here.  its not a hybrid, but a 4 cylinder.  dont know why its better than the ford van.  curious.  with the global car market i guess its doesnt matter, but NYC was known for its fords and chevys, esp the ford crown vics.

Odd resemblance? Coincidence? Dwayne Hoover and Robert Smith?

I just watched Breakfast of Champions movie, with Bruce Willis as Dwayne Hoover, great book by Kurt Vonnegut.  I couldnt get over the resemblance to bob smith, former pres of SRU.  Or was it the paranoid behavior?  Either the behavior or the hair and glasses.  

santorum about to get kicked out of race

the reason GOP elites want Santorum out?  First, Romney has the nomination wrapped up, so why spoil the party?  Second, he doesn't have $ to win.  Rick's problem has always been a lack of money.  Romney has outspent him every race.  Rick doesn't have money for the TV ads to counter Romney's.  Its all about money.  Money might not buy an election, but it does buy a nomination.

Obama was a long shot in 2008 because......the Clinton's had the money.  it wasn't until Obama was convinced he could attract some loyal Clinton contributors that he got into the race:  the FOB (friends of Bill) turned out to be not so loyal, and they jumped to Obama.  First a few brave souls, then more.  The clinton's of course threatened revenge, but if hillary didnt get the nomination and Obama won, then there would be no revenge.  and there has not been any revenge.

Money.  its all about money.  A schizophrenic patient of mine tells me every time I see him: "Hey, have you heard the expression, Money talks, and Bullshit walks?"  he thinks that is so funny.  but it is so true.  

Cheney gets new heart, but new soul rejected

they tried to transplant a new soul into cheney, only his new heart rejected it.....Fire bad, cheney good.......

Who's better dancer, george W or Pres. Obama?

Here is george, dear god, make him stop dancing with African performers.  And here is Pres Obama on the Ellen show dancing, after he throws a right overhand.

Ok, Obama's got my vote. he sings the blues, "sweet home chicago,"

Romney sings America the Beautiful (all the verses) and Santorum sings.....god only knows...but Obama sings the blues, "Sweet Home Chicago."  and "Let's Stay together" the al Green song.  And, he shoots long jump shots too

this guy is Thomas jefferson, we are in for the 21st century Era of Good Feelings, he will be followed by Madison and Monroe,  the Republicans have nothing on this guy.  

will the real Rick Santorum please stand Up???? Republican culture wars are back!

Ok from the top: rick santorum in high school disguised as "McLovin."  Rick preaching in a turtle neck and sports coat.  Rick in his sweater vest - smoking'    and finally, Rick as a radical hippie college student (not really, the beard and long hair thing was popular with the babes).  so who do we get?  McLovin?  the hip roman catholic priest in a turtle neck?  Mr. Sweater vest, or Mr. frat from Animal House?

One thing Rick has taught Romney and Obama: its not about the economy, nor is it about jobs.  its about culture.  rick has brought back the culture wars of the George W. years.  Remember?  It was all about culture, not about iraq war, wall street, mortgage back securities and housing price inflation, not about the deficit, not even about mis management of Iraq and Afghanistan military action ---- it was about morality, culture.  Bush's cowboy boots, his phoney southern accent, his phoney shallow right wing born again brain injured pseudo faith (his mother DID drop him on his head as a child, true story).

so here we are: Obama isnt a Christian, obama wants amniocentesis funded by health care reform act so more mothers can abort their genetically deformed children (yes, Obama is looking for ways to increase abortions and have the american people pay for it with deficit spending), - all this culture stuff, even the sweater vest is culture statement.  

Leaving for Nicaragua in 4 days

I will be in Nicaragua for about 10 days over spring break, doing health assessment in Managua and some rural areas.  we are mostly undergrads, with myself and another 2nd degree nursing student, and several faculty.  We are staying in a hotel in managua for most of the time.  We get at least part of one day on a beach, so it won't be all work.  I am looking forward to this:  i have never been in a 3rd world country before, and this is something i think i want to do in the future: international nursing.

Here is daniel Ortega, current PM of Nicaragua

He was elected once before, then the US tried to overthrow him by supporting a right wing contra army.  US congress eventually shut off funding they didnt like overthrowing constitutional democracies in latin america, i mean whats the alternative?  Somoza family dictatorship that ran Nicaragua like a plantation system?  Controlled by American fruit companies?  So Reagan decided to fund the Contra's by selling surface to air missiles to Iran during the Iran-Iraq war (we were supporting both sides, selling arms to both sides, fuck em all i guess) and then taking the profits, laundering the money, and sending it to the contras.  Ah, democracy.

So Ortega held another election, lost, became the opposition, and he won election again, as a new, recycled candidate (how American!)  here are some murals, very cool:

I am leaving my two che Guevara t shirts home, i dont want to wear them in Nicaragua, might give wrong idea about Pittsburgh catholic nursing students.  But i am looking forward to this adventure.

I am going to Sams Club today to buy boxes of multi vitamins, and childrens shoes and clothes.  I plan to pack both my suitcases with extra nursing supplies contributed by my fellow nursing students and shoes and clothes.

I keep thinking about Fielding Mellish in the movie Bananas.......might i end up like him?????

Or like this guy?

Sarah Palin: tanned, rested and ready for the GOP Convention

above is sarah palin with her husband's dog sled team.  She is the real deal, I mean, she dog sleds in Alaska.  Hunts Elk, bear.  Ok, she also hunts wolves from a helicopter (I think wolves should be armed if they are going to be hunted from the air, at least make it a sporting event).  here is sarah announcing sports earlier in her career. She is a good shot:

she really does fire automatic weapons, but this is not a real photo.  could be though.  So i have this strange attraction to Sarah Palin.  Maybe it lies deep in my childhood, some traumatic event, who knows.  But the latest news is that she thinks the GOP convention maybe brokered: that means, no one will have a majority of delegates, so there will be more than one vote.  Kinda like the GOP convention of 1860, where Lincoln eventually won after his supporters "sold" cabinet positions for votes.  Anyway, she doesnt rule out a future run for office.  Does this mean she is throwing in her hat for President at a brokered convention?  Could she be the next GOP president to deal with a "team of rivals" like Lincoln had to deal with?  Hey, we all know how that turned out: "Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?"  Ok, sick joke.

So what is this about?  I know:  LOW RATINGS for ROGER AILES cable news shows!  Yes, sarah is a paid media celebrity, and the more controversy she can generate the more people watch FOX news.  This is the ultimate is bullshit journalism (which is all we have lately) - not only do the networks MANUFACTURE news, but they hire politicians as reporters-celebrities, and then instruct them how to make news to increase ratings, sell more advertising, make more money.

So what is politics in the USA today?  A way of making lots of money.  Its not unlike third world nations that have no real economy other than foreign investment and foreign aid and UN relief money:  you run for office, get elected, and divide up the loot.  I mean Richard cheney did that as VP- he was our first contractor who was in the Executive Branch.  You can make alot of money when you control the contracts.  Did cheney get paid by contractors while VP?  Kinda.  he had blind investments that benefited from his policies.  But he obviously made money after his stint as Sec of Defense - hes making lot of money now too.  I listened to a patients heart with a pump valve like cheney's - thump whooosh, thump whooosh.......the guy literally has a strange heartbeat, of course, we knew that about cheney even before his operation.

Ok, Sarah, make your money.  You can spend it all in the next life, right?

latest news: Romney DIDNT win Maine, Ron Paul won

Now we know that Romney didnt win Iowa, Santorum did (he surged from behind). Believe it or not, breaking news is that Romney now didnt win Maine, Ron Paul did!  Unbelievable.  We dont know who wins these damn dumb primaries until weeks later.  Dont you love voting in a democracy?  Trouble is, we dont know how to count votes.  Maybe Castro should send some Cuban electoral watchers here to make sure our elections are fair, and the votes are counted properly!   (Castro volunteered to send observers to Florida in 2000 to help oversee the vote recount, to make sure it was fair - funny!)  

this is BS - the purple states are Obama states

this horse race crap has got to end.  Dan rather was on the news, yes he is still out there, and was covering the republican primaries like horse races.  most have no delegates at stake so they are beauty contests and meaningless in terms of nominating convention.  Dan is known for his horse race analogies for presidential elections:  once he used a metaphor about a hot texas night in a parking lot.....i cant remember, it was way over the top.  I mean, we need excitement here, people.  So the above map shows a dead heat!  a neck and neck horse race to the finish line! give  me a break.  Obama will get re elected unless......he is found in bed with a dead girl or a live boy.    those purple states are obama states.  the republicans are doing everything they can to self destruct.  Santorum is the next Reagan;  we thought George W was the next Reagan.  the republicans are looking for their next Reagan, fact is, Reagan is dead, he had one crappy term, his second term was scandelous.  remember the savings and loan fiasco?  George HW Bush bailed us out of that.  then we put up with George W and the housing inflation loosey goosey wall street bundling of mortgage backed securities (junk bonds in disguise, they were sold with insurance policies!!!).  I think we are entering a period of the Era of Good Feeling II:  like the one after Jefferson.  We'll get madison, monroe, and then....John Quincy?  well at least madison and monroe.  thats 16 years after Obama's second term.  maybe there is hope after all.  So contribute money to Santorum ( he is surging!) or to Gingrich, pour gas on the fire.

US Marines recruiting video - funny but very effective ! do you like pistachios?

US Marines recruiting video, not used.  With some editing i think it would be very effective.  very funny but it gets creepy with the jessica lynch stuff.  but i can see lots of guys wanting to serve with Jupiter Jones. he cool.

i think the actor is Ricky Lomax, who supposedly is a real US marine veteran.  He is member of screen actors guild, listed as a veteran.  he is very convincing.   

Memphis Tenn, 2nd dangerous, 12 th most miserable city in the US

Way to go School of urban Affairs, univ of Memphis !!!
2nd most dangerous city
12 the most miserable city.

map of binge drinking

I wrote a book chapter celebrating (?) the 75th anniversary of the publication of Andrew Carnegie's commissioned book, "Alcohol Control."  His book was written by his commission, funded by him, to show state governments how they could control the sale and distribution of Alcohol once prohibition was repealed.  He was an alcoholic, leading member of the anti saloon league.  (I got paid $3000 for a  31 page chapter, the most i have ever made at writing.) anyway, as you can see from the map, Pennsylvania is one of the biggest binge drinking states in the US.  Who cares?  ATOH (alcohol) is one of the few drugs that can penetrate the blood brain barrier, the only drug i believe that can be purchased over the counter, if you are 21 yrs old, or have a fake ID.  So what?  Alcohol can sedate the vagus nerve, which controls breathing.  so you can die from binge drinking, because you can stop breathing.  as someone who once had an allergic reaction and almost stopped breathing, i can testify that breathing is very important, especially if you ever faced not breathing and lived to tell about it.  Woody Allen once said that his brain was his second most favorite organ:  after my anaphylactic shock, i can safely say that my brain is my third most favorite organ, and my lungs my most favorite.  you can guess at number two.  anyway, binge drinking is a killer, and anyone who binge drinks needs counseling fast.  binge drinking is 5 drinks for a man, or 4 for a woman, drunk in a short period of time.  binge drinking can be minutes (chugging contests) or days.  binge drinking can be a measurement of society's decay, or social depression or social anxiety; for example, after the fall of the soviet union, binge drinking in Russia dramatically increased, life expectancy decreased, diseases of alcoholism (coronary and heart disease, cirrohsis), increased.  So what is wrong Pennsylvania?  how come so many of us are sedating ourselves with over the counter alcohol?  state wide depression?  Social anxiety?  Freud wrote a book, "Civilization and its Discontents" about societal mental illness, how a society can become psychotic (think Nazi Germany, think.....Khmer Rouge, the 700 club, Oral Roberts University, PA state system of higher education....)  can there be a societal anxiety in PA that leads its citizens to sedate themselves?  jesus, just writing about this makes me want to drink, but i am trying to lose the 8 lbs i gained last semester so nooooooo)

Just noticed: binge drinking increases with longitude.  binge drinking increases the further north you go.  this is also true around the globe: highest levels of alcoholism in countries closest to the artic circle.

And south dakota and tennessee have no data, i guess the state statiticians were too drunk to send in the numbers.

The Rabbi's Gift: A Parable about building a culture of respect

The story concerns a monastery that had fallen upon hard times. It was once a great order, but because of persecution, all its branch houses were lost and there were only five monks left in the decaying house: the abbot and four others, all over seventy in age. Clearly it was a dying order.

In the deep woods surrounding the monastery there was a little hut that a rabbi occasionally used for a hermitage. The old monks could always sense when the rabbi was in his hermitage.  It occurred to the abbot that a visit the rabbi might result in some advice to save his monastery.

The rabbi welcomed the abbot to his hut. But when the abbot explained his visit, the rabbi could say, "I know how it is" . "The spirit has gone out of the people. It is the same in my town. Almost no one comes to the synagogue anymore." So the old abbot and the old rabbi wept together. Then they read parts of the Torah and spoke of deep things. When the abbot had to leave, they embraced each other. "It has been a wonderful that we should meet after all these years," the abbot said, "but I have failed in my purpose for coming here. Is there nothing you can tell me that would help me save my dying order?"

"No, I am sorry," the rabbi responded. "I have no advice to give. But, I can tell you that the Messiah is one of you."

When the abbot returned to the monastery his fellow monks gathered around him to ask, "Well what did the rabbi say?" 

“The rabbi said something very mysterious, it was something cryptic. He said that the Messiah is one of us. I don't know what he meant?"

In the time that followed, the old monks wondered whether the significance to the rabbi's words. The Messiah is one of us? Could he possibly have meant one of us monks? If so, which one? 

Do you suppose he meant the abbot? Yes, if he meant anyone, he probably meant Father Abbot. He has been our leader for more than a generation. On the other hand, he might have meant Brother Thomas. Certainly Brother Thomas is a holy man. Everyone knows that Thomas is a man of light. Certainly he could not have meant Brother Elred! Elred gets crotchety at times. But come to think of it, even though he is a thorn in people's sides, when you look back on it, Elred is virtually always right. Often very right. Maybe the rabbi did mean Brother Elred. But surely not Brother Phillip. Phillip is so passive, a real nobody. But then, almost mysteriously, he has a gift for always being there when you need him. He just magically appears. Maybe Phillip is the Messiah. 

Of course the rabbi didn't mean me. He couldn't possibly have meant me. I'm just an ordinary person. Yet supposing he did? Suppose I am the Messiah? O God, not me. I couldn't be that much for You, could I?

As they contemplated, the old monks began to treat each other with extraordinary respect on the chance that one among them might be the Messiah. And they began to treat themselves with extraordinary respect.

People still occasionally came to visit the monastery in its beautiful forest to picnic on its tiny lawn, to wander along some of its paths, even to meditate in the dilapidated chapel. As they did so, they sensed the aura of extraordinary respect that began to surround the five old monks and seemed to radiate out from them and permeate the atmosphere of the place. There was something strangely compelling, about it. Hardly knowing why, they began to come back to the monastery to picnic, to play, to pray. They brought their friends to this special place. And their friends brought their friends.

Then some of the younger men who came to visit the monastery started to talk more and more with the old monks. After a while one asked if he could join them. Then another, and another. So within a few years the monastery had once again become a thriving order and, thanks to the rabbi's gift, a vibrant center of light and spirituality in the realm.r

others, and expects to receive the best from others in return. It is the type of culture everyone deserves, and it is up to us to make it happen. In our daily lives, we can create a culture of respect with every personal interaction we have, whether it is with a store clerk, a dignitary, or a colleague.

Iron Lady: film about Margaret Thatcher, starring Meryl Streep

Meryl Streep never makes a bad movie (wait i will have to research that) and this film, Iron lady, is no exception.  the film is not so much about PM Thatcher and the 1980's, though that is shown, but it is more about maggie, the grocer's daughter, who had to rise up against a male dominated government and prejudice against her modest background (she actually waited on customers at her father's grocery store before going to Oxford.)  Much of the film is about Margaret as a senior lady, grieving the death of her husband, and of becoming slightly (?) dementia prone.  It begins with the Prime Minister visiting the local grocery store for a pint of milk, thoroughly out of touch with the diverse, modern London.  Or so it seems.  I really enjoyed the performance of ms. Streep, but wonder how the director, producers, selected her.  Its a british film, with an
american actor.  then again, I think Meryl has probably appeared on the London stage, and American actors enjoy a good presence in London (I am thinking about woody allen and the three films he made in London).  anyway, great film.  Much better than i anticipated.  And there was no Ronald Reagan appearance in it either - so much is made of Reagan and Thatcher by the reagan lovers - she was uniquely British, ronnie had nothing to do with her policies.  but she was an admirer of the american enterprise spirit.

Karen Santorum, Rick Santorum's wife, and her abortion history

Dr. Tom Allen, an obstetrician gynecologist, was a pioneer in abortion rights in Pittsburgh even before Roe v Wade 1973.  His story is here  So what?  He was the doctor who delivered Sen. Rick Santorum's wife, Karen Garver.  Forty some years later, Dr. Allen and Karen began a live in relationship while Karen was a student at Duquesne Univ School of Nursing.  As the story here tells, Karen at one point accompanied a woman to an abortion performed by Dr. Allen.

Ok, so what? Can people change their opinions? Sure.  Only she has written a "book" about abortion, and she is married to a Presidential candidate who regularly preaches against abortion and alternative relationships.

Why hasn't this been publicized more?  It probably will if Santorum is more than a spoiler candidate.