Good Bye 225727

Epitaph: The world is a better place without you.

FLA. DC Number: 225727
Name: HENYARD, RICHARD
Sex: MALE
Hair Color: BLACK
Eye Color: BROWN
Height: 6'02''
Weight: 170 lbs.
Birth Date: 06/26/1974
Initial Receipt Date: 08/19/1994
Current Custody: MAXIMUM
Current Release Date: DEATH SENTENCE
DOD: September 23, 2008

CLICK

John has a great idea!

Give him his due:
McCain says that no executive of any company rescued by the government should receive greater compensation than the highest paid government executive. Bravo! That sounds like a great idea.

And if they don't like that and they quit, so much the better!

Roger Maynard is an Alaska cartoonist. More of his work can be seen here:
CLICK

Monday Morning Friends Report, Sept. 22, 2008.

When people get together these days, they are talking politics and football. Oh the weather gets in there,too, but mostly that's been excellent this week in Michigan.

Here's what some of you are saying about Sarah Palin, the topic that seems not to go away not matter what.

PAM - sent a reference to an article about Palin and Obama. We loved this quotation: She is the reverse of Barack Obama, in essence his shadow, deriding his idealism and exhorting people to obey their worst impulses. In psychological terms the shadow is that part of the psyche that hides out of sight, countering our aspirations, virtue, and vision with qualities we are ashamed to face: anger, fear, revenge, violence, selfishness, and suspicion of "the other." CLICK


SPARTY - sent this wonderful quotation: "Sarah knows how to field-dress a moose. I know how to castrate a calf. Neither of those things has anything at all to do with this election. But since we know so much about Sarah's special skills, I wanted to make sure you knew about mine too."( Iowa Lt. Gov. Patty Judge (D), quoted by Iowa Politics.)

DASHMANN - emails that there's an old saying that applies to Palin: "And then she opened her mouth."
====

BILL FROM WNNCO - Grandpa goofing off with granddaughter. Lots of you will recognize BILL.



FELIX - reports that the Mellencamps of Indiana sponsored a boxing match that featured their own son. Felix himself was the ring announcer, and Felix's lady, PILOT, was the ring doctor.

BILL FROM WNNCO - sent this site which shows a woman doctor who was caught in a mass shooting, talking to Congress about gun control. She's against it! You can see it here: CLICK

DASHMANN - says he had a chance to cheer up his brother-in-law who has been a strong UM supporter. In the process, he says some pretty great things about the University of Michigan. Here's a quotation: "... UM is special ---it’s where everyone wanted to go and really wants to go-- Wish I had been smart enough to be accepted and succeed there. Keep supporting it, and revel in it. Hoping this encourages you."

ALICE - says this is the proper way for a woman to weigh herself. She says she's been doing it wrong up to now.

Teachers responsible for more gun deaths

Shawn Roe, 36, was a convicted criminal and had "an active criminal history," when he was shot dead by police in Washington state on Saturday. The suspect shooter was in possession of three handguns and had murdered 2 people, including a conservation officer. He also fired at least one shot at sheriff deputies who confronted him in a convenience store.

Yes, yes, of course, there ARE laws against crazy people having guns. Yes, there ARE laws against convicted criminals having guns. So, don't get all excited. It wasn't the guns' faults.
==

We at BIRCHES blame this on the teachers. If the schools would simply educate students about gun ownership, when the kids grew up and went crazy, they wouldn't run around with guns. And a properly educated child will not grow up to be a gun carrying ex-convict.

As Dashmann has often said, "We need to teach more of that there triggernometry."

CONGRATULATIONS to:

DASHMANN - for Western Michigan's win.

MARSHA - for South Carolina's win.

SPARTY, IRISH MIKE, AMY, and others - for Michigan State's win.

Welcome

Welcome back to Alice who has been offline for a long time. Glad to have you return to our community of sages.

Sunday Morning silly Sites

Watch a mushroom grow. Luckily, it's not in real time. click

Alaska Safaris: Learn to shoot and field dress a moose just like some great politicians say they do. click

These are sites that people have found on the internet, very often when looking for something else, or following an inspiration they had. So far, a number of readers have sent in examples they've found, and those often get printed, with credit given. So, if you run into a silly site, send it on.

Wacko-of-the-Week, September 20, 2008

For a very toxic week:

Frankly,
here under the BIRCHES we take our job of awarding Wacko-of-the-Week quite seriously. We really want to find the most outstanding idiots we can to recognize, aside from ourselves, of course.

This week, like the markets in New York, we feel overwhelmed. We feel like doing what Bush does: come out with a cocky look on our faces, make a short statement that doesn't seem to mean anything, and then run and hide. (We detest that man, so we won't emulate him.)

========
THIS IS A THREE PART WACKO:

DICK FULD who did so much to destroy the economy of the world. PRIDE is an awesome force, and sometimes it can be an awful thing as well. As the Bible sayeth: Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. READ ABOUT HIM HERE, CLICK
===

RONALD REAGAN, post mortem, for the deregulation, for the trickle-down (supply side) economics, for the huge budget deficits, for the
silly war against unions, for the tax breaks for the wealthy --- all policies whch did so much to bring us to this week.
===

THE AMERICAN VOTERS - who have done so much in their foolish behavior, to return this pack of scoundrels again and again into power. They seem always to fall for the clever words and images and never go for the serious thought. In both political parties there are serious well-intentioned people, so why do we always seem to prefer the liars?

Evil

Some areas we know the Reagan and Bush governments have seriously cut government services:

1. Stock market operations and rules.
2. Financial market operations and rules.
3. Airline operations.
4. Food quality inspections.
5. Meat inspection
6. Gun ownership rules.
7. Land use regulations.
8. Air pollution control.
9. Water quality regulations.
10. New product inspection
11. Trucking rules and inspections.
12. Road and bridge inspection and funding.

Most Democrats I know, and I DO know a lot of them, don't oppose capitalism or entrepreneurialism. What they oppose is letting capitalists run freely through the economy, scraping in all the money they can and ignoring the evil consequences of their uncontrolled lust for money and power.

When you let this stuff go on, bridges will fall down, and children will be poisoned by toys, and folks will die from their lettuce and cucumbers, and people will have raging diarrhea from their contaminated hamburgs, and the stock market will trample all over people's savings and their pensions that no one has yet found a way to steal entirely, and trucks will be blowing up on expressways, and rivers will produce fish no one should eat, and the mercury levels in the air will be poisoning children in their playgrounds, and your taxes will go for things you can't even imagine while the roads are crumbling, and the schools are seething.

Capitalism is fine. Unregulated capitalism is disaster.

Republican Humor (60)

[Thanks to CHRIS and to BILL for sending this on to us. Very much appreciated. ]

The Republicans are assuming that y'all out there can do what their Presidential candidate cannot do: work a computer, send and receive e-mail. This is not something BIRCHES is claiming just out of the clear blue sky. McCain himself has said so. Anyway, you're here on a computer looking at this, so you will appreciate it.
=====

How To Start Each Day With A Positive Outlook

1. Open a new file in your computer.

2. Name it 'Barack Obama'.

3. Send it to the Recycle Bin.

4. Empty the Recycle Bin.

5. Your PC will ask you: 'Do you really want to get rid of 'Barack Obama?'

6. Firmly Click 'Yes.'

7. Feel better?

GOOD

Orchard Time

It's apple orchard time in Michigan again. 

CLICK HERE TO FIND ONE 

Thursday Morning Smile-Maker (#61)

Still Learning 

that Mussolini thing again

What I found on 'WONKETTE" --- here: CLICK WONKETTE

The only reason I copy it is because it seems so appropriately snotty. Sometimes, I'm a snot. Sometimes I'm not.


Oh look what Alaskan numbskull Sarah Palin is wearing now: It’s an Imperial death smock, just like what’s his name, Peter Cushing, wore in the fascist movie Star Wars.

Gov. Sebelius - quoted without further comment

Sebelius: Obama’s race ‘may be a factor’
 9/16/08 The Iowa Independent 

IOWA CITY — Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius publicly considered the possibility that Sen. Barack Obama’s race might be a factor in this year’s presidential election during an appearance here Tuesday.

“Have any of you noticed that Barack Obama is part African-American?” Sebelius asked in response to a question about why the election is so close. “That may be a factor. All the code language, all that doesn’t show up in the polls. And that may be a factor for some people."

CLICK

Guillotine Time

For What It's Worth, one guy's opinion.



85 billion dollars in bailouts for the richest insurance company in the world, AIG.
Who will pay this off if the government's gamble fails? Your children and their children.

If the American middle class could understand what has been done to them in the last few years, they would be setting up guillotines on Wall Street.

Will the Republican Party Now Get the Depression it Has Worked So Hard For?

The "Reagan Revolution" is ripening now. This may be the week of the next great stock market crash.

The fat cats, who Reagan and the Bushes wanted to free from regulation, are now about totally in control of the economy, the Republican Party, and the fate of America (which is not good thing).

They have basically stolen the Treasury of the United States in the form of tax cuts to themselves at the expense of the rest of us.

They have almost bankrupted the United States by giving it an incredible debt.

They have been collecting billions from the government in "bailouts." (All borrowed against the credit of the American people.) When business could not borrow, they got the government to do it for them.

They have made Americans hopelessly dependent on a technology (oil) which is a thing of the past, not of the future.

They have paid themselves obscene salaries, severance benefits, and pensions as their companies go under.

They are now on the brink of re-electing themselves to office, all with the cheerful enthusiasm of a huge share of the American people who cannot see past their own noses (or wombs). While the ship goes down, the people scream: "Drill, drill, drill!" and "Sarah, Sarah, Sarah!"

=======
All this, and the Democrats have numbly aided them.

IRISH MIKE likes to say that the Republican Party is evil. All Republicans are not evil, but the batch of corrupt people who now control that party are evil. And the Democrats are nearly as bad.

Monday Morning Friends Report, Sept. 15, 2008

What People are Talking About
Politics is dominating the talk these days around these parts. Maybe this is because Michigan has become a "battleground state," full of politicians and commercials all over the airwaves. A lot of people are getting pretty disgusted with this election, even though we know how important it is to pay attention.

Some people who used to admire John McCain (such as this blog) are amazed at the man who now is running for president. McCain seems to have turned into a plain old-fashioned liar. He's not the man we used to recognize. For one thing, there is that ad about Obama wanting to teach sex to children in kindergarten before they can even read. This is such a distortion that it doesn't belong on the air. Here's more:

JERRY - has sent this YouTube comparison of things McCain says. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: CLICK

MARGARET and SPARTY - have both sent references to problems with voter registration in some states. Is someone trying to steal an election? Who could it be?
from MARGARET: Obama Doesn't Sweat. He should. CLICK

and, from SPARTY, this: CLICK

DIG S. - Is skeptical about the government's claims in Iraq: "So the surge is working. Instead of 1000s being killed we're down to 100 per month. Doesn't change the fact it was the wrong decision to go into Iraq and ignore f**#ing Afghanistan/Pakistan."

SCOT - has been reading Anna Quindlen, from this week's Newsweek: "I never thought I would live long enough to see the day when the Republican presidential candidate would cite membership in the PTA as evidence of executive experience, when the far right would laud the full-time working mothers of newborns, when social conservatives would stare down teenage pregnancy and replace their pursed-lip accusations of promiscuity with hosannas about choosing life."
Says Scot: Well put, I thought.

PAT C. - was an enthusiastic supporter of Hillary Clinton. She says women will not be fooled by the Republican vice presidential candidate. Asked if she would vote for Palin, Pat C said: "God, no! After a while, no one can stand that screechy voice."

SPARTY - Highly recommends this article from liberal magazine, The Nation. It concerns the collapse of major financial institutions and companies in America, while the two major party candidates don't even bother to discuss it in their campaigns. Maybe the rest of us are too stupid toi understand it? CLICK

VODEA - forwards a commentary (source not stated) that the McCain-Palin ticket is talking constantly about an "unblinking" foreign and military policy. The commentary suggests that unblinking goes along with unthinking, and what we need now is someone who can not only blink occasionally, but think also.

CHRIS: McCain works magic at the convention:

====

What's happening with some of you folks

IRISH MIKE - in a steady rain, the rowers of the Saginaw Rowing Club joined a flock of similar craft from Ann Arbor and traveled all the way to Bay City. The event was a great success.

SKUZZA - celebrated a birthday, though she would rather not discuss the age question. She reminds us that women get more beautiful with the years.

BILL FROM WNNCO - sent this forwarded by relatives in Montana:



ALICE - got her computer repaired but has still not reappeared on the BIrches blog. This is a form of nagging, Alice. Get with it.

SCOT and STEVE - went out on big ol' Lake Michigan -- which John McCain would like to divert to Arizona, and turn over to the oil companies to drill in -- and came back with a big salmon.

DASHMANN - his kid is in a new band and doing a great job!

LINDA T - has joined the biweekly coffee klatch and is still cheering her decision to quit that job.

FELIX - reports on another foul up with FEMA: "...my father is a truck driver. He loaded a trailer full of MREs on Friday Sept. 5th and took it to Louisiana. As of Monday Sept. 15, he is sitting someplace in Texas, with the exact same load on...waiting for FEMA to tell him where to go."

Felix hiking the Appalachian Trail 

Travel PLans for some of You Folks

MARSHA - has flown to Myrtle Beach. She reports that because of Ike, the pipelines have been shut down and there is a serious gasoline shortage in some places - like her town of Columbia, for example.

PAT C and DR. BOB - leave for Italy on Wednesday.

SANDY - leaving for California for a month.

BUD and PAT W - planning on going to the beach in October.

'President' MIKE T - has gone to Texas with the Red Cross.
=====

What Some People Are Smiling About
from SPARTY and ANONYMOUS :

===

from JERRY: A little old lady was sitting on a park bench in The Villages, a Florida Adult community. A man walked over and sits down on the other end of the bench. After a few moments, the woman asks, 'Are you a stranger here?'

He replies,'I lived here years ago.'

'So, where were you all these years? '

'In prison,' he says.

'Why did they put you in prison?'

He looked at her, and very quietly said, 'I killed my wife.'

'Oh!' said the woman. 'So you're single...?!'
===
from JERRY:

notes on a train crash

The train wreck in California this week illustrates some of the problems of our current outdated rail system. Amtrak, for example, must currently operate on freight lines, because the track is not owned by the government and the freight companies have the first right of passage. Future wrecks like this one, which killed at least 25 people, are no more acceptable than airline crashes. Every effort must be made to reduce these events to near zero.

In a transportation system designed for future fast trains, the following investments will have to be made:
1. Passenger train lines have to be like divided highways. One way only.
2. Passenger train lines will have to be like expressways: no crossings.
3. Passenger trains will have to have a 'sleeping driver override,' so they will stop automatically if the track is blocked.

Recommended -- Saving Our Lakes

Go here to see an interactive map of the Great Lakes showing areas of concern for toxic conditions.
CLICK

Sunday silly Sites

See an idiot get what he earns. click

[Thanks to MARSHA for this site] Some old creepy commercial messages. click

Wacko of the Week, September 13, 2008

This week, a Joint Award
Italian Comedienne Sabina Guzzanti and Italian Prosecutor Giovanni Ferrara 

[Let us pause while you roll those sexy names across your tongue.]

The long arm of justice in Rome is threatening to reach out and snag a jokester, possibly for 5 years in jail!

Why does Ferrara want Sabina in the pokey? Because she said that the way things are going in Italy, within 20 years, teachers in Italy would have to be hired by the Pope. Then she added, of course the Pope would have died by that time and be in hell where he would be tormented by homosexual demons.

Acccording to the Prosecutor who seems not to understand about comedians and their work, Sabina has committed the crime of "offending the honour of the sacred and inviolable person" of Benedict XVI.

This legal beagle is a guy who has obviously not seen Saturday Night Live or Jon Stewart or, God forfend, Chris Rock, all of whom have never met a person they couldn't violate.
CLICK FOR STORY

But, look: Sitting in a Roman jail for a few years is so much better than the old days - being drawn and quartered and having your guts strung on a post where the crows can peck at 'em.

Of course, in jail, they say, you may be tormented by homosexual devils.

Clilck on the cartoon to enlarge it.
You can see more of Pat Bagley's work by following this link: CLICK

Letter from SPARTY: "It's a pig!"

Written September 10.

I was at the Dem hdqrs yesterday afternoon and there were a couple of women making voter ID calls. One of them talked to a woman who said if Obama loses this election she'll never vote again and that her husband felt the same. After the caller hung up she was telling everybody in the office about the conversation she'd just had. Then she said, "You know, I think I feel the same way."

In driving around today, listening to NPR and Air America, all I heard was "lipstick on a pig." Tonight I turned on Olbermann to see what his lead story was - "lipstick on a pig." Then I checked CNN - "lipstick on a pig." Now, I know Barack Obama has talked about a number of issues in the last 24 hours but I have no idea what he said about those issues because all I've heard is "lipstick on a pig."

The Republicans stole the election of 2000, probably stole the election of 2004, and in the last two weeks have flat-out lied repeatedly about McCain and Palin's positions on the issues. If this election is lost because the Obama campaign is unsuccessful in getting the media spotlight off the silly stuff and McCain wins, despite the last four years, his flip-flops, his 90% support of Bush, his selection of Palin, and their lies I don't think I'll ever vote in another presidential election, either. (And I haven't even included the malignancy of white racism.)

A McCain win will be proof, at least to me, that our political culture has so poisoned the system that voting in a presidential election is a waste of time.

Footnote from Sparty, September 11

I felt better after my rant last night and enjoyed an afternoon of golf today. Just now I turned on the television to see what earth-shattering events took place while I was playing golf. I checked MSNBC in time to see the beginning of a Chris Matthews interview of two campaign strategists. The first question he asked was, "Did Barack Obama call Sarah Palin a pig?"

Shakespeare was wrong - first, we kill the journalists - at least the t.v. variety.

GOODBYE ASGARD II

Lost off Belle-Île-en-Mer, France, yesterday, with all crew rescued. This Irish friend came to celebrate American Independence in better times.
CLICK

Thursday Morning Smile-Maker (#60)

our leader

I've always been very impressed by George W. Bush's sense of duty, if not his heroism.

When there was a war in Vietnam, he volunteered: to serve in Texas.

On 9-11, when Washington and New York were under attack, he went to Louisiana to watch.

When New Orleans was assaulted by Katrina, he went to Arizona to be with John McCain. Yes, it's true!

When New Orleans was attacked by Hurricane Gustav, he went to Texas to observe the rescue efforts.

NOW: It's Texas's turn. It's predicted that hurricane Ike will assail the Texas coast this weekend. I wonder where Bush will be this time.

concerning pigs

BARACK OBAMA - in talking about JOHN MCCAIN's claim to be a "maverick" and a "change agent" Obama said: "You can put lipstick on a pig -- but it's still a pig."

SARAH PALIN - is all upset about this, evidently. Considers it an insult; or at least her talkers do. We at BIRCHES would encourage her to stop believing that everything is about her. In this case, the pig is someone else.

--another educational failure

The Literate Among You Will Get It

--- seen online

SOMEECARDS

you've been robbed

Here's the only thing you really need to know about Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac:

The U.S. Government has now promised 500 billion dollars to bail out the rich once again.

This is the kind of socialism you don't hear the Republicans bitching about: SOCIALISM FOR THE RICH.

Where will the money come from? Out of the taxpayers' pockets of the middle class.

Right now it will be added to the debt being passed on to your children and grandchildren.

another blow to our rights

Wait til the Supreme Court hears about this abuse of police power.

Police in Washington DC have arrested a home-protecting patriot member of the Virginia militia (disorg.) for carrying an AK-47, a pistol, numerous rounds of ammo and loaded clips, and hand grenades.

If the cops can do this kind of thing, it will severely limited the ability of our militia members to protect their homes and families and keep our enemies out of the country. And this is to say nothing of the approaching deer hunting season. What will the guy do for meat this winter if his guns are seized by the government? CLICK

and furthermore

AND ESPECIALLY CONGRATULATIONS TO FELIX: for Indiana's great win over Murray State!

Apologies for the oversight.  

Republican Humor (59)

This year we are deep into gender politics. Everyone is worried about how the women will vote. For the Republicans, there is also the question about how the men will vote. Here is an intellectual approach to the matter they're sure you will all just love.
=====

Men: Before you vote, consider this:

If you vote for OBAMA, you get this:


But if you vote for McCain, you get this:

I don't know about you guys, but looking at this in a logical manner, McCain appears to be the better candidate.

Sunday silly Sites

Jolly things encountered on the internet. ...

When you're broke and homeless, get one of these. What a deal! click

All about the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and its religion. click

Remember, if you run across silly sites we'd all enjoy, send them in. We'll give you credit when we use them.

congratulations

to DASHMANN on the victory of the Broncos.

to SPARTY and IRISH MIKE on the victory of the Spartans.

to SCOT and TRASE and others, on the victory of the Wolverines.

---Victoria agradable en Cuba---

As Hurricane Ike approaches Cuba this evening, it has thrown forward a line of rain and drizzle. In the dark and gloom of this misty atmosphere, the United States Men's Soccer Team appeared in Havana for the first time in 60 years.

It was a qualifying game for the 2010 World's Cup tournament. The U.S. won the game 1-0 in a fair and relatively friendly contest.

A few American fans who had finagled their way into Cuba against the laws of the U.S., sat in the stands with their faces covered so they would not be recognized and arrested upon their return to America.

some news items we really care about

There is going to be a new women's soccer league in America!

Thank heavens. We need that as preparation for the National Women's Team which hasd been so successful in the Olympics and World Championships the past few years. New teams are expected to be formed in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis, and Washington D.C. for play starting next year. Support the teams, readers!
====


It now takes 10 or 12 hours to travel from Beijing, China to Shanghai.

In 2012, it will take about 4 hours. China has begun building a fast train that will serve the two major Chinese cities.

Wacko-of-the-Week, September 6, 2008

Matthew Fitch, president of the Virginia-based Aerial Adventure company.



He stepped out of a plane carrying a football. Gracefully he dropped groundward in his parachute, into the busy football stadium. Ta-Da! A perfect landing. It was the most interesting thing that has ever happened on a Duke University football field. The idea was to deliver the game ball from the air.

Unfortunately, it was the wrong stadium. The ball was supposed to go to University of North Carolina's game with some patsy, a few miles away. The tar heels had to find their own balls, a feat we know they can accomplish.
CLICK

=========
RUNNER - UP: Patrick Jabbour, Long Island, NY
"I am a police officer!"
Are you surprised that he was unable to pass himself off as a police officer? Are you surprised that he was quickly discovered - he fooled no one?

What might surprise you is that he was recently released from jail on the same charge. In fact, it's his third time.

How often have we tried to tell you, children: If you want to get away with the dirty deeds, you gotta at least look inconspicuous, if not innocent!
CLICK

recommended for you thinkers.

MODERN PEOPLE:

Here, a Canadian blogger, Dave Pollard, presents a chart showing how the modern person, using computers and non-traditional sources of information, is way-y-y ahead of the mainstream media in how they look at the issues confronting our civilization. The suggestion here is that the media are stuck in the past and keeping us all stuck in the past.

EXCERPT:

Are you watching, listening to and reading the news in the mainstream media and just finding it all inane, meaningless? Do the things they tell you are important mean nothing to you? Perhaps you're too far ahead of them.

Be sure to scroll down and see the graphic.
CLICK

more ---

If you have any hesitancy about Sarah Palin, then this is NOT TO BE MISSED:

[Thanks to Dig S. for the site] CLICK

the source of Palin ---(Updated)

Where have I seen that sort of jutting jaw, thrust forward in wicked contempt of ethics? That strutting performance for a speech? Where have I heard that unmodified nationalism, that defiance of the world? Where have I seen that standing before a huge crowd and that making of repeated sarcastic references to one's political adversaries? Where have I seen that sort of substitution of pure sarcasm for real thought? That lifting of slogan over ideas? That planned construction of a cult of personality? That deliberate lying with a smug gleam in the eye? Where have I seen that fawning in front of corporate interest? That willingness to give the monied class whatever it wants? Lets see --- corporate state, nationalism, hm-m-m

No, it wasn't Hitler. I don't see that guy. But who was it? So, familiar somehow. Who?

OK,  Here it is: CLICK 

And: CLICK

Thursday Morning Smile-Maker (#59)

"Who does not love 

Wine, woman and song, 

Remains a fool 

A Whole Life Long." 

I decided to reprint my poem.

A FAREWELL TO BUSH
by Bud at BIRCHES

When your ass goes out the door, we truly will be gladder.
And if you never show again, it really doesn't matter.
Take your whole benighted crew,
Take your ditzy daughters, too,
Take everyone who came with you! Here, let me hold the ladder.

Pack Laura with her smarmy drawl who never gave us much relief,
And take your crooked cronies all from oil, gas and beef.
We'll wave a very fond farewell,
As you go off to Texas hell,
Glad to break the evil spell, that caused us such a grief.

Take your plutocratic pals, your bum Attorneys-Gen'ral.
The Lone Star state'll welcome them or else the Federal pen'll.
Pack up mama Barbara who
Married George and then bred you,
Take your brother Neil too, with blisters on his tendril.

Toss slippery Dick upon the load, and Condolezza Rice.
And don't forget ol' Karl Rove, who gave such bad advice.
Take your whole disgusting crew,
Take Scooter Libby off with you,
Take your wimpy doggie too; we won't remind you twice.

Don't leave behind those hypocrites who came with you in cadres.
Save lots of room for Jesus freaks, pastors, priests and padres.
The ones who preached our eardrums sore,
Then prayed our country into war,
And left us mired in guts and gore of Baghdad kids and madres.

Haul away - we pray - those holy folks who got so full of malice.
The family values 'feet-of-clay' who worshipped every phallus.
Take your jail bait Enrons,
Your diaper wearers, bathroom johns,
The water boarding neo-Cons, all back home to Dallas.

Don't write, don't call, don't send email, we want to quite forget you.
And if you want to visit us, we'll never ever let you.
Take your neo-fascist crew
Take the Skull and Bones with you,
Take your secret meetings too; we wish we'd never met you.

(click on cartoon to enlarge it)
See more of the work of Dana Summers here: CLICK

noted, without further comment

headline:
Gunman accused of Washington rampage that killed 6 described by his mother as 'mentally ill'

What you answered about Sarah Palin

JERRY - I think McCain’s reasons are:
She fits what Americaan women want...a female in a top position (women’s votes)
A slap at Obama for not choosing Hillary as his VP (hoping to get the vote of females who are angry/disappointed)
She’s a mommy....several times over (no abortions for her!)
A fighter... What he’ll need to get anything done with Congress.
She’s got a 90% approval rating in Alaska. (not too many votes but enough to carry the state)
A supporter of his ideas ....I’m not sure he’ll get that 100% from her but if she wants to get anywhere in future politics, she won’t openly fight him on issues.
Rush Limbaugh’s pick for VP...support from his far right listeners

IRENE - I really don’t understand this one. Madness.

PAT C - Because she's young and only owns one house.

GIGI - To try and lure away the disgruntled Hillary supporters, I would guess. But is she qualified to be a heartbeat away from being leader of the "free world" is another issue altogether.

LAURA - It makes for a good campaign slogan: McSameFailin'

MIKE T - Pandering for Hillary votes. With Alaska having a population 670,000, less than Detroit maybe the Mayor has more experience. At least in Defense and Foreign affairs. Maybe McCain is looking for a cooler climate if Al Gore is right.

PAM - As Michael Moore said, it's a cynical choice on his part, but I believe it may work with some. She certainly appeases the far right wing of his party; besides that she is young, her husband works for an oil company, she defends the mass killings of wolves and drilling off the coast of Alaska, and wants polar bears off the endangered species list. It is really scary. She is really scary though beautiful. I don't trust a woman with a 4 month old baby who is not home enough to take care of him. I say that as a feminist. God hlep us all. For 40 years I have been saying, "If that guy wins, I'm moving to Canada". I'll probably say it again this year.

ANONYMOUS - He likes her tits.
(By the way: I saw online there is a clip of McCain who seems to keep looking at her bosom during the news conference. It's pretty funny if you notice it. -Bud)

ALICE - He didn't pick her, someone else did. He didn't even know her before the other day! He had someone find a way out conservative. She was picked by someone trying to get the women's vote with a far right conservative. It won't work.

IRISH MIKE - McCain wanted a pro-life conservative who is a woman. (If Obama won't choose a woman, the broad minded McCain will). We all know McCain's and the Republican Party's dismal record when it comes to women's issues.

SPARTY - Because Angela Langsbury programmed him to select her- or was it Meryl Streep?
(Note: Meryl Streep, The Manchurian Candidate -  Bud)

also - Last night Bill Moyers suggested that he has his own conspiracy theory re: the reason behind the selection of Sarah Palin. At the GOP convention McCain will announce that if elected he will only serve one term. That term will prepare Palin for the presidency and will swing a substantial portion of the female vote to McCain this year.

BINAK - He chose her to garner the women's vote and to please the conservatives of the party and because she's anti-abortion---which will please all those evangelicals! And she also has a son going to Iraq---like Biden. Probably a very wise choice for him. I STILL will vote Democratic, though! No matter how good these two "might" be--- I've had ENOUGH of the Republicans for a lifetime!!

PETE - he didn't want anyone smarter than himself.

BILL FROM WNNCO - The choice of Sarah Palin will truly fall into the "Seemed like a good idea at the time" explanation of human activity when viewed a few months from now.

CHRIS - The real reason is Palin is actually a nurse for McCain.

FELIX - Because he knew he had to pick somebody a little less him! Less 'blue suit'. Less starchy and staunch. Less harsh and gruff. Someone who smiles and isn't an old Republican. And, W. had turned him down....

OOPS --- another silly mistake

PATRIOT GUN OWNER MISTAKES 100

Yr-OLD WOMAN FOR A TERRORIST

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100-Year-Old Woman Found Shot Dead In L.I. Home

Spry Jessie Burke, A Lover Of The N.Y. Times Crossword, 

Found With Head Wound In Den Chair

 YAPHANK, N.Y. (CBS) ― She may be the oldest murder victim in New York state history. Suffolk police are baffled, and neighbors are stunned over the murder.

Police are hunting for the gunman who killed a 100-year-old woman in her home in the Hamptons.

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COMMENTARY -- All of us under the Birches would like to encourage people to be more careful now that we have all been declared by the Supreme Court to be members of the militia.  Gun shooting requires care and thought. It is easy to confuse an old woman sitting in her den for an invading communist trying to destroy our families. It is a common mistake, so please try to be very observant before shooting people.  

Monday Morning Friends Report, September 1, 2008

Quite a few teachers or former teachers get to look in on BIRCHES each week, so we have this to say to you: The First Week of teaching in Michigan this fall is supposed to be over 80 degrees. Enjoy! The weather is wonderful here in mid-Michigan these days, but not for teachers.

Sandy reminds the travel group going to her coffee Klatch that it is on Tuesday this week.

THE RESULTS OF OUR Creativity Challenge will be printed very soon! All the answers will be there!
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What's happening With Some Friends These Days

DASHMANN - has returned to football officiating again this fall. He loves it, and has grown used to the pressures.

SANDY - Thank you for the blueberry muffins!

BIG D - Won his case! It means money! He bought a round at the local watering hole, but as he said: "I don't have anything in my pocket, YET!"

ALICE - would like to make a trip to Salt Lake City this fall and is looking to find a friend to go with.

STEVE and BRENDA - are on the verge of buying a house. Everyone send money!

BILL FROM WNNCO - says he wishes he had to go back to teaching tomorrow. (Maybe we misunderstood.)

PAT W. - Went for an ice cream cone, then went home and changed clothes, and then went to Menard's. What's the deal? Bet you can guess. Her friends all know what the deal is.

MARY - has been making front page news. Actually, she was at a rally, and a picture of it was in the newspaper. She's joined a cause!

SCOT - has been attending a lot of Tiger's baseball games and wants to express great aggravation that the pennant run he expected to be watching at Comerica must be happening in someone else's ball park. RATS!

FELIX - has been doing garage reconstruction for a lady in Indiana, and she just happens to be his main squeeze.

What some folks are talking about

DASHMANN- Would like someone out there to answer this question or at least engage in the discussion:

I will vote for Obama. However, the issue that troubles me deeply is still the abortion thing. I wonder how many Democrats such as me continue to choke back our feelings and vote Democratic because Bush, McCain and such is the greater evil. Someone please give me a good discernible break point when a baby becomes a baby and not a fetus. -- 24 weeks just does not get it for me. Women should be free to rule their own bodies, but when does a child become a seperate human being and not subject to murder by a hit doctor if it isn't the moment of conception ??
Please tell me !!!!!

BENNETT - Forwarded a reminder that one can administer CPR TO ONESELF (also called "Self CPR" or "Cough CPR") if one is alone and having a heart attack.

This was the result of an email that started some years ago. It has been widely called A HOAX, so Birches did some on-line research. We found that on several sources, this technique is NOT RECOMMENDED.

BUD - for any of you sports fans who detest the blabbering mouths that disturb nearly every televised contest and who clog up the newspapers with inanities and idiocities, you might want to check out: FIRE JOE MORGAN, "Where Bad Sports Journalism Comes to Die" at this site: CLICK

SEVERAL READERS - have forwarded warnings about the computer virus, UPS FAILURE TO DELIVER, or some variation of that. Here at Birches we received one that told us we had ordered airline tickets and were asked to confirm this by clicking a link. We didn't. No tickets were charged to us by the airlines in question, and we let this pass as an example of an attempted delivery of a VIRUS.
BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!

BILL - with the choice that McCain made for Vice President, Bill says this: "All I say is that if the Democratic party loses the Presidential election this year they might as well disband the organization. That will truly brand them as losers."

Some Humor From You Folks:

JERRY - Sent this wonderful "conception" of Michael Phelps:


From A Ferris Grad, this uncalled for slap at a team we favor:

A guy walks into a bar in Ann Arbor wearing a Michigan jersey
and carrying a cat that also has a Michigan jersey on with a
little Wolverine helmet on his head, too.

The guy says to the bartender, "Can my cat and I watch the
Michigan game here? My TV at home broke down and my cat and
I always watch the game together".

The bartender replies, "Normally, cats wouldn't be allowed
In the bar, but it's not very busy in here right now, so you and
the cat can have a seat at the end of the bar. But, if there's
any trouble with you or the cat, I'll have to ask you to leave."

The guy agrees, and he and his cat start watching the game.
Pretty soon Michigan manages to kick a field goal and the
excited cat jumps up on the bar, walks all the way down and
gives everyone a high five.

The bartender says, "Hey, that's pretty cool! What does he
Do for a touchdown?" The guys answers, "I don't know, I've
only had him for 3 years."

DIG S - sent this cartoon: "Bush the Patriot"

severe disappointment

Oh, DAMN YOU, Gustav!

We were so-o-o looking forward to seeing the THE DECIDER at the Republican Convention today. He's gone to Texas to look at the hurricane in Louisiana. What a disappointment!

And the face shooter has gone home to Wyoming to watch for hurricane damages, too. Another grave sacrifice.