A Greenleaf Note: Climate

Scot posted over on ARBORETUM (Click) that the berry seasons in Michigan this year are starting about 2 weeks earlier than usual. People argue about whether this is just a fluke. After all, temperatures and winds may cause one spring to be a little earlier and winter to start a little later in one year, as opposed to another year.

Some people, however, are certain that this is a trend and a result of global warming. We tend to agree with that assessment, but then we're not scientists studying the problem, only on-lookers like you.

One strong reason for our position is that there's warmer weather in the frozen areas of the world. Polar bears have been found drowning. Where there should be ice to support them, the ice has been disappearing. Now comes more evidence. Scientists have found that spring is early in the Arctic north by weeks. This is not just a 2007 phenomenon, it has been on-going for several years, and dozens of "signs of nature" indicate that it is not a fluke.

You can read about it here: CLICK

Here is an excerpt:
Arctic Spring Comes Weeks Earlier Than A Decade Ago

Science Daily — In the Earth's cold and icy far north, the harsh winters are giving way to spring weeks earlier than they did just a decade ago, researchers have reported in the June 19th issue of Current Biology, published by Cell Press. The finding in the Arctic, where the effects of global warming are expected to be most severe, offers an "early warning" of things to come on the rest of the planet, according to the researchers.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070618110013.htm

A Green Leaf Note: Environment

Global Warming will result in a rise in sea levels.

According to a recent report, North Carolina beaches will disappear.

CLICK FOR STORY

Republican Humor (prt. 21)

This is a first time event.

Before this, we've never done a Republican humor that was simply a picture, but here it is anyway! We do this as an educational gesture. Isn't it disgusting? Isn't it low-class and sophomoric? You have to agree that sometimes, those GOP jokesters stoop pretty low.

=====================

'Deadeye Dick' needs a good swift kick, right in his constitution.

Vice President Scary is up to his eyeballs, once again, in hiding what he does:

"For four years, Vice President Dick Cheney has resisted routine oversight of his office’s handling of classified information, and when the National Archives unit that monitors classification in the executive branch objected, the vice president’s office suggested abolishing the oversight unit, according to documents released yesterday by a Democratic congressman."

NEW YORK TIMES STORY

Here is a general rule of thumb for behavior by democratically elected representatives of the people: "The People's Business is Public Business, to be done in the open."

A Light Through the Leaves

Happy the man, and happy he alone,
he who can call today his own;
he who, secure within, can say,
'tomorrow do thy worst, for I have lived today.'
( John Dryden)

WELCOME TO SUMMER
Here in Mid-Michigan,
the forecast for the day is Perfect!

SUNNY, 80, NE wind 5-15

US wins semifinal against Canada

The US Men's Soccer team defeated Canada in the semifinal match of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, on Thursday evening.

They will play in the finals game on Sunday.

if it were not so ...

When you contemplate the Gallup poll results that about equal numbers of people believe in and don't believe in evolution, you have to be "awed." My mother used to say "there are none so blind as those who will not see," and this seems to me to be a great example of just that.

SOURCE

I don't believe that most people know what the theory of evolution is. Or what "theory" means. Or what "evolution" means. I think they've been instructed by someone to suppose that if you believe in evolution, you're a monkey's uncle, so it's better to believe that God made us all like Jim Carrey. I know perfectly intelligent people who don't understand the theory, and they generally admit it.

One reason why I make these judgments about people is because once -- and for quite awhile -- I was a teacher. I've seen minds at work in the sweat shops of education. Most people aren't stupid, but there are limits to how far most will stretch their minds trying to grasp a complicated notion. So, when corrupt Christians or stupid Christians peddle the dogma (not theory) of creationism, lots of people swallow it. That's much easier than trying to grasp some other formulation of our "rise".

Still, it's not a comfortable thought that almost half the people in the country are so unwilling to believe that which is true. In telling you this, I want you to be careful: I did NOT say that God didn't create you. I only say that evolution has been proved.

A town stuck in dumb mode since 1998

I think we can conclude that these people are very slow on the uptake.

Crossing guard faces sexual abuse charges

BERWICK, Pa., June 21 (UPI) -- A Pennsylvania school crossing guard faces more than 1,000 charges of sexual assault involving seven children, police said.
...

The alleged abuse took place between 1998 and 2007, the Times-Leader reported.

...
Dale Hutchings was charged with 305 counts of raping a child, 356 counts of aggravated indecent assault against a child under 13, and 356 counts of indecent assault against a child under 13, the Times-Leader reported.

CLICK FOR STORY


Here's a simple but brilliant rhyme I've written for your enjoyment.

The people who live in Berwick,
Have a cop crew that ain't very slick.
When searching for clues,
It's the children who lose,
Cause they cannot tell Dale from dick.

Thursday: As promised

Home From Philadelphia

Thursday Morning Smile-Maker (3)

Her horse lost at Ascot Downs

CONCACAF semi-finals

The U.S. Mean's National Soccer Team will play Canada tonight in Chicago. We have a very good team, by the way.

enough to make you weep

The bodies of five dophins washed up on a Southern California beach. Four had been shot to death. This is a federal crime, and fortunately, is highly unusual even in a culture that values guns.

A reward of $2,500 has been offered. This sum will probably grow, and may help lead to an arrest. The crime probably happened several miles off shore, but Federal jurisdiction easily extends that far.

You can read more about it HERE

Wacko of the Week -- 06/016/07

*NOTE: Mike Nifong, that crackerjack prosecutor from North Carolina who made war on the Lacrosse team, deserves mention this week, but we're not giving him the award. He had it once before, and we try to reserve the Wacko Award for new candidates, George Bush excepted.
------

"Come Watson, the game's afoot ..." --- (Sherlock Holmes)

ERICK HEINRICH, of Waukesha (that's pronounced 'Walk-eesha') Wisconsin who stole, allegedly, 1500 pairs of women's shoes, many of them from girls' high school lockers, is our award recipient. Actually, the evidence against him seems pretty solid, at first impression, but he pleads innocent anyway, for what's that's worth in the modern world. I mean, after all, O.J. pleaded innocent too. So did Hermann Goering.

If we don't handle this case very carefully, this suspect might walk, so let's insist that he is "alleged" to have committed these crimes. However, it's hard not to notice this:

"Heinrich has a previous conviction for stealing shoes from Kenosha Tremper High School in 2005. He entered no contest pleas to felony burglary and misdemeanor counts of obstructing an officer, disorderly conduct and theft.

And it's hard not to notice the keys he has to schools, the bolt cutters, the broken locks, and, naturally, the 3000 shoes.

Let's admit that petty theft does not signify Wacko-ness, although the combined retail price of 1500 pair of w0men's shoes must be astronomical. Also, bear this in mind:

" 'He liked to smell them,' said Lt. William H. Graham of the Waukesha, Wisconsin police."

I can't say with any certainty that the Lieutenant's depiction of Mr. Heinrich's proclivity is accurate, but let's say this: Whatever the guy was doing with 1,500 pair of stolen shoes, he was doing it OFTEN!

You cand read more about it HERE or HERE
------------------



* Another note: I don't have a picture of the culprit,-- ahem, the accusd culprit -- so I'm substituting a picture of another Wacko., If you can identify him and the name of his character, I'll give you a gold star for the day.

Goodbye to "The Mandarin"

The Mandarin was a blogger whose words I respected very much. I never knew him except through his blog writing. I have quoted him several times in the past. An event noted.
THE MANDARIN

Wal-to-wal thievery

When I first saw this Associated Press headline --

Theft Rising at U.S. Wal-Mart Stores

...I thought they were talking about the Walton family. Turns out they meant the public in general are stealing. See how it spreads? I think this is called "trickle down" economics.

Some may be stealing because the only jobs they can find are at WalMart. It's hard to buy that Chinese made stuff on Chinese type wages.

A Light Through the Leaves (2)

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.
--la Rochefoucauld

A Green Leaf Note: Environment

Many people do not know that under the Bush government, the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency] has been almost hopelessly incompetent. More often than not, it has catered to the interests of the companies and interests it's supposed to regulate.

One of the things it has done is fail to enforce the Clean Water Act passed in 1972 overwhelmingly by both Republicans and Democrats. In fact, the EPA has helped people find ways to get around the law.

Now, there is a law in Congress to overcome some of this nonsense. It's the Clean Water Authority Restoration Act. If you get a chance to talk to a Congressman .. tell him/her to vote for it!

What the Audubon Society feels about the law: CLICK HERE

What the Sierra Club feels about the law: CLICK HERE

Here's a form to fill out if you do such things: CLICK HERE

Thursday Morning Smile-Maker

Here is a picture of the terrifying Russian army.

What are they thinking?

There are things I just don't understand. I may have put my best brain cells to work on these things, and still, I don't get it. As time passes, I find more and more things that I have to concentrate on in order to catch them. When you have a severely limited supply of brains to begin with, and then you ruin most of them with stuff like cigarettes, cholesterol, wild-living, excessive drinking, work, etc., as I have, you're in deep doo-doo when it comes to comprehension. This is my pathetic condition.

For example, one of those things I don't understand is calculus. My life has managed to wend its way onward without calculus, but still, it would be nice to at least know what the word means.

Another thing I don't get at all is the whole Shiite-Sunni conflict. The mass murder for the sake of salvation. What in the hell are these people thinking? I've read about it, but I don't get it. How long has this been going on? Are the differences worth blowing up children for? How can any mind so distort a religion that it can justify the slaughter of thousands of innocents?

By what twist of religious fervor does blowing up a market full of old women make sense?

Today, I read that someone has blown up some minarets. These stood proudly in the rubble left from a former explosion which took out one of "the most sacred Shiite shrines in Islam." What? What profit falls to anyone in the whole damn world by blowing up someone else's shrine?

I have no doubt that there is, lurking in this country of ours, similar possibilities for widespread religious violence. All you need is the certainty that you know what God is and wants, and the other guys don't. And the other guys wish to take exception to your certainty. Now it's an even smaller step to bloodshed. I'll never understand it, I hope. This is the calculus of religious violence.

Here are some things I DO understand: The Freedom of Religion, and the Separation of Church and State. Both! Not just one, both! This I get.

blah -- blah --- blah

Who Talked the Most During the Republican Debates?
WOLF BLITZER !! This speaks for itself, doesn't it?

"I was there"

NOTE:
Over at ARBORETUM, Scot has posted a wonderful account of a historical event. CLICK HERE

Goodbye Mr. Wizard

DON HERBERT ---

Watch Mr Wizard: 14 seasons on television

"Over the years, Don has been personally responsible for more people going into the sciences than any other single person in this country," George Tressel, a National Science Foundation official, said in 1989.

testimony to my innate goodness

I was sitting on the swing in my backyard resting between naps, heard the side gate open, and saw the neighbor woman come into the yard. "Have you seen a bag blow into your yard?" she asked.

I immediately thought of a couple of great smart ass answers to that question, but I didn't use them. See how nice I am? People misjudge me so often.

Folksy Stuff (2)

Felix from Indiana - is coming to Michigan. The place may never be the same.

Jerry - sends what is being called, "Maybe the best quote for 2007." It's from Chris Rock, supposedly, and I like it, so here it is:

"You know the world is going crazy when the best rapper is a white guy, the
best golfer is a black guy, the tallest guy in the NBA is Chinese, the Swiss
hold the America's Cup, France is accusing the U.S. of arrogance, Germany
doesn't want to go to war, and the three most powerful men in America are
named Bush, Dick, and Colon."


Alice- the teacher, who is very very kind-hearted, is finally done with school for the summer. Now maybe she'll have more time to read blogs. Like mine for example. She owes me a meal at a restaurant for my birthday present, but I think she's avoiding the subject.

Marsha in Carolina - is disappointed that two of her favorite baseball teams, the University of South Carolina and the University of Michigan, have been knocked out of the College World Series of Baseball. And so are we here in the forest. We've cheered for both teams this year. We're going to meet Marsha in Philadelphia next week to have an "adventure."

Dig----- S. - is writing about the new court decision in the al-Marri case in which a Qatari citizen living in the United States has been in military custody for 4 years without proper court proceedings. He has been ordered released on the grounds that he is not a prisoner of war and so is caught in one of those Bush legal traps which are more-and-more turning out to be ILLEGAL. D.S. says: "A return to reason and the rule of law."

Dashman - is still involved in that jury trial, and as a member of the jury, is making a lot of mental notes for a later report which we plan to cover, here under the birches. He is also complaining about the ending to the Sopranos. Or is he? So many people are unsure.

Scot and Trase - are planning a trip out east sometime this summer with family and friends. The Adirondacks. Maybe we'll be dog sitting again? They chose at the spur of the moment to go to the Tigers game last night and watrched Verlander pitch a no-hitter, the first in 23 years by a Tigers pitcher. They are elated

Mike Carroll, almost from Carrollton, an original signer of the Declaration of Independence - is looking for adventure. Stand back, no one's safe.

gun update: Bad Temper

For an update on the exercise of Second Amendment freedoms in Delavan, Wisconsin which resulted in the deaths of (so far) 6 people: CLICK

"The guy had a temper ..."

great days in Michigan

These are the great days. These are the days of Michigan summer. There's nothing to brag about in any of our winters, and our springs are slow, cold, gloomy and long. But the summer! This makes life worth continuing. No wonder fewer people die in good weather.

For those of you with a religious compulsion, days like this make the Biblical instructions so easy to follow: "This is the day the Lord has made. Rejoice and be glad in it!"



Tuesday...Sunny. Highs 83 to 87. Northeast winds 5 to 15 mph.


Wednesday...Sunny. Highs 84 to 88. Northeast winds 5 to 15 mph.


Thursday...Mostly sunny. Highs 82 to 86. East winds 5 to 15 mph.


Friday...Mostly sunny. Highs 83 to 87.


Saturday...Partly sunny. Highs 85 to 89.

A Bulgarian Cartoonist's view of the Bush-Putin meetin.

Cold Dead Fingers

"Six People Including Children Found Shot to Death in Wisconsin"




CLICK FOR STORY

A Light Through the Leaves

"If you wish to be brothers,
drop your weapons"

Pope John Paul II:

Monday Morning Thoughts

1. COLIN POWELL: You have served several Presidents very well. You have served America quite well in many ways. You fulfilled "The American Dream."

But, you betrayed us on Iraq. You went to the UN and talked us into this war. Then you took a hike and disappeared. Now you show up on the Sunday talk shows to tell us it was a mistake?

Sorry. Go back into retirement.

2. GARY SHEFFIELD: I saw you play in Lakeland. I wasn't too happy with what I saw. I put you on probation. Now, officially, I want you to know I took you off probation. You are a Tiger, with all the priveleges. Don't let my generosity go to you head. :)


3. PARIS HILTON; You say you got religion now. Wow! That was a quick conversion. Does this mean you're going to stop showing us your ass? Don't get carried away here. A sudden burst of morality isn't good for your complexion.



4. GEORGE BUSH; I have an idea. They love you in Albania! Why not stay there and soak up the love. Let's say for about 2 more years?

I don't care if you called the Pope "sir". Fine with me; but did you really expect him to start calling you, "Your Holiness"?

Wacko of the Week -- 06/09/07

Oh, sure, I know, everyone thinks it must be real easy to pick the Wacko of the Week each time. But not so. Sometimes there are some really tough choices.

Now take for example the cops in Annapolis who forced their way into the wrong house and when opposed, kicked the male resident in the testicles, arrested him, then arrested his wife. Out on the street they realized they had made a mistake. Wrong building, wrong suspects, and now, naturally, the folks at the right place had disappeared. A police force that talented ought to have some award. But, I decided to pass on this one, because after all, there's no sense offending the minions of the law if I don't have to. They might visit me next.
CLICK FOR STORY or HERE


Then there was, as Alice has commented about below, the Arkansas legislator, Sen. Charles Bishop, who hit another member on the head because he was called a son-of-a-bitch, thus proving that he is. These are the people, mind you, who make the laws -- like the assault and battery laws for example.
CLICK FOR CNN STORY

PHIL WELLMAN
Here is our real Wacko of the Week. If you have not seen his tirade against the umpire in a minor league baseball game, you must click on the YouTube video link below. It is the best baseball manager meltdown I have ever seen. Phil is with the Mississippi Braves, affiliated with the Atlanta Braves. He has been suspended for 3 games.

Congratulations Mr. Wellman, you are the most creative apostle of Billy Martin I have ever seen. And what an inspiration to the youth!

You are Wacko of the Week.

CLICK FOR STORY
YOUTUBE (CLICK)

Bush goes to the summit

*Photo from BBC

Oh, relax. Everyone's saying it's non-alcoholic beer. And we believe what everyone's saying.
Right?

I've often heard that Germany is the greatest place for non-alcoholic beer.

Storms in Australia

We're hoping to hear soon that Irene, our Aussie correspondent, and her family, are all right after the terrible storms which have hit that country.

a simple rhyme

Here's some news to give us hope.
"Bush in Rome to meet the Pope."

Talk of peace and talk of power,
Afterwards in about an hour,

Pope says, "Jesus! What a dope."

CLICK FOR STORY

soccer note

Clint Dempsey lifts U.S. past Guatemala 1-0 in Gold Cup

Next game, Saturday, June 9

harumph

NEWS ITEM;
Bush suffers stomach ailment at G8

HEILIGENDAMM, Germany, June 8 (UPI) -- "A stomach ailment Friday kept U.S. President George Bush from attending morning sessions of the Group of Eight in Heiligendamm, Germany."

===========

Interesting way to describe what you or I would probably call a hangover.

The Comfort of Old Friends

Last evening, Pat and I went to a picnic. Here were a lot of old friends, people I knew from my days as a teacher, and many of whom I've kept contact with since. There is a good comfort in having old friends, people who will come to meet you sometimes. If we just let our mind slip past that ordinary state of simply carrying on, past simply surviving each hour, we do reach another more transcendental realization that not only have we once mattered, we still do.

I think we're like Birches, bent by the winds and by the kids swinging from our lives, but still standing here.

I guess your "Rights!" grow from a gun

*click on the picture to enlarge it so you can read the writing.



See more of Matson's work CLICK HERE

Republican Humor (prt. 20)

A woman
walked into a bridal shop one day and told the sales clerk that she wanted a frilly white fancy wedding dress and veil for her fourth marriage.

The sales clerk said, "Please don't be offended but that kind of dress is for a first-time bride.
Perhaps ivory or sky blue would be nice?"

"Well," replied the customer, a little peeved at the clerk's
directness, "I can assure you that a white gown would be quite
appropriate. Believe it or not, despite all my marriages, I remain
as innocent as a first-time bride. You see, my first husband was
so excited about our wedding, he died as we were checking into
our hotel. My second husband and I got into such a terrible fight
in the limo on our way to our honeymoon that we had that wedding
annulled immediately and never spoke to each other again."

"What about your third husband?" asked the sales clerk.

"That one was a Democrat," said the woman, "and every night
for four years, he just sat on the edge of the bed and told me how
good it was going to be, but nothing ever happened."

*Bill from WNNCO

Thursday Morning Smile-Maker

Update: New Cold War?

This is an update about the argument over plans by Bush/Condi to put a 'missile shield' in Central Europe, near the Russian borders.

In my opinion, there is a somewhat encouraging headline this morning:

BUSH PLAYS DOWN ROW WITH RUSSIA
Last Updated: Thursday, 7 June 2007, 11:26 GMT 12:26 UK'
The BBC

Here is an excerpt:
"US President George W Bush has again tried to soothe a row with Russia at the start of a G8 summit in Germany.

"Mr Bush said the row over a missile defence shield was 'nothing we ought to be hyperventilating about.'

"Mr Bush, who is to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin for private talks, again urged Moscow to send generals to the US to be reassured about the plan."

==========
However: I also think his language "nothing to hyperventilate about" is juvenile in this context. The Russians are telling us that we are on a dangerous course. Does Bush see why? I'm not sure.
==========

GORBACHEV: The former President of Russia, has warned us not to be so arrogant because it could start a new Cold War.
READ IT HERE

PUTIN: Current "President" of Russia Vladimir Putin has threatened to target missiles on Europe if we try to put a missile shield there.

An Act of God

Heads Up! oops, I mean Bowed

While Rudy Giuliani was discussing the Catholic position on abortion last evening, lightning hit the building where the Republican debate was being held. Everyone assumed maybe God was striking at Giuliani.

How do we know who God was after? Maybe it was Huckabee. Or Wolf Blitzer? After all, Blitz in German means lightning.

Haven't Been This Far in 'Forever'

Baseball:
Michigan at Oregon State (NCAA Super Regional)
Saturday, June 9 • Noon PDT, 3p.m. ET • Corvallis, Ore.
Probably telecast on ESPN2

Michigan's baseball team had one of its best seasons in many years. It was invited to the playoffs and managed to defeat Vanderbilt, the #1 ranked team in the nation 2-out-of-3. Now it advances to the next stage. We are happy here and in the Arboretum.


* AP Photo, Russell

Failure of the Democrats

On ARBORETUM, Scot has been posting about the failure of the Democrats to exercise the authority the voting public gave them in the last election. I agree with him.

See it here: CLICK

Now there is a report on a just completed poll that shows that same voting public is mad at the Democrats for their game of shirking responsibility. Here is an excerpt:

"The Democrats in Congress have lost much of the leadership edge they carried out of the 2006 midterm election, with the lack of progress in Iraq being the leading cause. Their only solace: President Bush and the Republicans aren't doing any better.

Six weeks ago the Democrats held a 24-point lead over Bush as the stronger leadership force in Washington; today that's collapsed to a dead heat. The Democrats' overall job approval rating likewise has dropped, from a 54 percent majority to 44 percent now -- with the decline occurring almost exclusively among strong opponents of the Iraq War."

Read it here: CLICK

Update on Wacko of the Week --- include "The Decider"

So far, I haven't believed we should impeach the damned fool, but if he starts a new Cold War with Russia, I'm all for his removal.

What an incredible turn of events.

His idiotic policies have dumbfounded and/or alienated most of our friends abroad, and now he seems willing to start a spitting match with the other great nuclear power.

Click:READ AP STORY
Bush Opens Europe Trip on Jarring Note

Jun 4, 6:20 PM (ET )By TERENCE HUNT Associated Press

Excerpt:
PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) - President Bush's European trip was jarred as it began Monday by deteriorating relations with Russia and threatening words from President Vladimir Putin.
Bush and Putin will see each other at the annual summit of industrialized nations, beginning Wednesday at the Baltic Sea resort city of Heiligendamm, Germany. In a diplomatic poke in the eye at Putin, Bush bracketed the summit with stops in the Czech Republic and Poland - the two countries where the United States wants to build a missile defense system for Europe.

Click for even more disturbing UPI STORY

Good News:The Chewing Gum Myth

"Live Science" reports that there is no credibililty to the old mothers' tale that if you swallow your chewing gum, it takes seven years to digest. My mother once claimed it sat in your stomach forever so that if you swallowed enough of it, you would have no room for food.

Some kid once told me that if you swallowed gum, it could plug up your butt and your guts would eventually explode.

Later, as I recall, my mother owned up to not believing her own story. She had a tendency to 'put one over' sometimes.

update

SAN JOSE, Calif. (June 2, 2007) — In the team’s final preparation match before the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup, the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team steamrolled China 4-1 in front of 20,821 fans at Spartan Stadium in San Jose, Calif. Four different players tallied goals for the U.S., as DaMarcus Beasley and Benny Feilhaber tallied in the first half, and then assisted on back-to-back headed strikes from Clint Dempsey and Oguchi Onyewu.

STORY

JAIL BAIT

Best story line for today? Very brief:

'GOOD !!!!' she's in the slammer

(Let's face it, our readers do have some dignity and respectability, although not necessarily all of you, so we certainly wouldn't want to belabor this story.) However:

"Don't let the steel doors hit you in the ass!"

Also posted at ARBORETUM

Phony Pig Plot Comes Clean

I was hugely relieved to learn that the colossal pig which that 10-yr old kid shot was not a wild boar at all. It was raised in captivity, released into a fenced hunting compound and shot when it wandered by.

That's the kind of hunting I like. No dangerous kids running around our woods with elephant guns. Safer for us tree-hugger types. And what a tribute to the ageless game of hunting.

STORY HERE

AND HERE

'Christian' v. 'Christian'

Mitt Romney is both a Mormon and a Republican. Oops, but what about all those other Republicans who are Mormon loathers? This includes, evidently, all those Republichristians who affiliate with the Southern Baptists and the 'evangelicals' and the Focus on the Family folks ------ etc.

=====
For Example
'' If the former Massachusetts governor wins the GOP nomination and the presidency, Keller's message added, it will ``ultimately lead millions of souls to the eternal flames of hell.'

READ IT HERE
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/sfl-601complaint,0,1736460.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines
=====

I confess that I don't belong to either one of these highly-persuaded factions, but I'm tempted to jump in with both hooves. I'll resist that temptation and pull up a lawnchair, instead, on the sidelines. I'll cheer them on.

This sort of reminds me a lot of the days in the '50's and '60's when the Democrats were trying to hold together a coalition of the new black voters and the southern 'Dixicrats' who detested each other and were fighting one another in the streets. Then, I picked sides. My side won!

However, I for one, plan to enjoy watching this new political debacle. Let them quarrel over their ideas of Christ and Christianity. Throw stones, Throw shit! Religious intolerance is another one of those sporting events worth watching, like La Crosse in N. Carolina.

But, beware of the collateral damage.

America's Team: Soccer

REMINDER

US Men's Soccer vs. China
Saturday, Jun.2
8 pm. ESPN2

Wacko of the Week -- 06/02/07

In April, Boris Yeltsin died -- he who did so much for the improvement of relations between the US and Russia; he who ended despotism in Russia, at least for awhile. Yeltsin and Clinton did so much to smooth over the rough spots at the end of the Cold War which Reagan did so much to "win."

Now Yeltsin's successor Putin and America's own Condi Rice have become involved in an argument over missiles and defense systems that may well result in a new arms race and a new Cold War. Rice says we'll put America defense systems in countries along the Russian Western border. Putin says he will overwhelm the system with new missiles. Gee, that sounds a lot like war!

You two easily qualify for Wackos of the Week. It's an honor to give it to you, Your Excellencies.



(Read about it HERE for one of many sources available.


[Footnote of Importance] I know that many of our readers may have preferred Andrew Speaker, who having been told he had tuberculosis, decided to fly all over the world. Thanks, Andrew! You are more than a Wacko, you're threat to the world.

They tell me you're a lawyer, Andrew. If it were up to me, you would get a chance to see the other side of the bars.

Folksy Stuff

Our good friend Marsha from Carolina says that she has gotten tickets to the King Tut display in Philadelphia this month, so we'll be going there soon. We also want to see the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and Sly Stallone.

Felix reports that he has an indigo bunting in his yard. Mrs. Bud says that he's a snot. He just says stuff like that because he wants to make her jealous. Felix lives in a part of the world where there are huge storms, tornados, airplanes falling from thew sky, rednecks rampaging, almost monthly flooding, and all kinds of stuff, but they never bother him.

Dashman is on jury duty and cannot talk about what he does every day, and hasn't spilled a word even to me, his oldest friend (I mean, of longest standing) but he says he can hardly wait to have it over so he can tell people about it. In fact, he says he will write an essay. He says he has a growing faith in the machinery of justice including trial by jury.

Bill from WNNCO has been visiting a friend in a medical care facility and he promises that he will never have to go to one. What do you suppose that means? Meanwhile he's been running his Go-Karts at high speeds and winning races. Wait! Maybe that's what he means.

We're all glad to have TDec home from the north woods where she may have caught a fishing addiction, because she says, the "pike are "beautiful."

*(co-posted at Arboretum)

Darkow's cartoons are published in the Columbia (MO) Daily Tribune and can be found HERE

simulacrum

A study done by the International Society of Reincarnationists and Jinnis has established the above shown individual to be the reincarnation of John D. Rockefeller. The Society reports that all oil executives return as fat cats.