When They Fall, They Fall Hard

I'm so embarrassed. And, I'm pissed because, once again, Jay was right in a character assessment. I hate when he does that!

He said all along that John Edwards was a big fake, and we'd all find out before the primaries were over. I said, "No, no, he's a nice southern boy with a nice wife and family who he loves.

Then, it was disclosed that he was messing around with some woman who was involved with his campaign, and Jay said, "See? I was right! Admit it!"

And I said, "No, no. This was just one of those flukey things that sometimes happen to men when they get carried away with their own hype. Elizabeth is a worldly woman. She will understand one slip, and will forgive him. Wait and see." "Snort!" said Jay.

Elizabeth didn't quite forgive and forget. She did stand by him, to a point, though. After all, she was dealing with a terrible disease that was eventually going to be terminal, and must have been distracted with her own problems.

Then, we found out that John kind of fudged the facts a bit about that affair. It wasn't just a one-time thing, and had been going on for a while. Another "I told you so" from Jay. He was beginning to enjoy this a little too much for my taste.

Long after the primaries were over, and John lost not only the race, but his chances for a political appointment, the media kept digging and digging and digging, until I was getting a little ticked at them for carrying it so far. After all, John didn't invent adultery. Hmmmph!

This morning, Jay came in with that little smirk on his face, and I thought, "Uh-oh. I've been wrong about something, yet again." He said, "I don't want to keep rubbing it in (yes, he did), but I just read that John Edwards is under investigation by the Feds for misuse of campaign funds."

That was the last straw. Jay was right. I was wrong. Completely taken in. Flummoxed. Blinded by that smile. My confidence is shaken.

If it turns out Jay was right this time, I don't care if John Edwards IS pretty as a hound dawg. He doesn't have to act like one. We're through.

Stay tuned.

No More Debates

The debates are finally over and not a minute too soon, in my opinion. I thought this one was better than the other two in that they finally did actually engage each other and discuss a few issues.

Barack Obama did what he had to do to hang on to the high road. And, McCain did what he had to do to hang on to the low road. By all accounts, Obama won.

I tend to agree with the pundit who declared Joe the Plumber the winner. He said Joe will have an agent by tomorrow and several franchises.

Obama kind of dared McCain to bring up Bill Ayres and McCain took the bait, and threw in a few smarmy remarks about ACORN for good measure. It didn't work out the way McCain thought it would.

And then, McCain seemed to confuse Downs Syndrome with Autism. He didn't cover himself with glory that time, either.

I really thought that McCain looked like a grumpy old coot, with all that blinking and grimacing. He and Sarah must really make a pair, what with her winking and all. But, at least he didn't get up and wander aimlessly around the stage like he did in the last debate.

I'm just so glad there are no more debates. I really don't think they clarify anything, usually, although in this one, they did give their views on a few social issues that they hadn't touched on in the other two debates.

Ready, set, VOTE!

Disjointed Thoughts

Thanks to Big John, I have a new award to add to my blog roll. If you haven't read his blog, give it a try. He's very interesting, very funny, and very irreverent.

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I haven't paid a lot of attention to updating my blogroll lately, I'm afraid. Since I use Google Reader, I tend to put new blogs on it and forget to also put them on my blogroll. I'll have to do better.

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I miss Annie, of Little Rock Photos. Can't find anyone else who takes pics of my old home town. I sure hope she comes back in the fall.

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Maybe the reason I can't come up with any new posts is because I'm preoccupied with politics at the moment. In fact, it's really driving me crazy (Jay would tell you "That's not a drive, it's a short putt." haha, he's a card.) I simply can't commit to voting for Barack Obama. I THINK I'm going to vote for him, but there's just something............. On the other hand, I'm a good Democrat, by cracky, and I've had to hold my nose and vote more times than I can count, so I imagine I'll cave this time, too.

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Thanks to the economy, I can't justify buying the number of paperbacks I usuall buy, so I've been getting books from our local joke for a library. Since I can't count on getting bestsellers as soon as they come out, I have resorted to reading older mysteries, which means I'm reading books by people whose books I don't usually buy. Lately, I'm slogging through Jeffery Deaver and Steve Martini. Actually, I'm enjoying them.

The local library is pretty much held hostage by the Women's Book Club. This group has been around since just before the earth cooled off, and I suppose they should be given credit for our even having a library. But, they've assisted the Board in a few pretty costly decisions, such as trying to get a bond issue passed because the building needed a new air conditioning system. This ploy worked the first time they asked, but the next time, after they had used all the money for something else, it didn't fly. We may be slow, but we're not stupid.

Then, they had this idea that the way to make extra money was to charge library patrons "rent" for books on the Best Seller lists. In fairness, I don't think ours was the only library trying to pull this little scam. (I'm also sure they didn't view it as a scam, either. But, I'm the suspicious type.) Anyway, they saw the light fairly soon.

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I guess everyone is pulling back a bit these days. And, naturally, since the retailers are beginning to feel the pinch, they, in their infinite wisdom, will decide the way to fight this is to raise prices. Isn't this just the opposite of supply and demand?

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The Enquirer ran a story about John Edwards and his alleged long-time girlfriend and their "love child". This story has been floating around for a while, and I have no idea whether it is true, nor do I care, frankly. After Bill Clinton, it's going to take more than that to create a scandal. Since this story ran, however, Jay has been doing his fist-pumping "I told you so" superior dance. For some reason, he has an unnatural dislike for John Edwards. It's very strange, if you ask me. He doesn't even know the guy, and he has called him a "fake" since day one, when he ran for Veep.

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Did I imagine things, or was the media coverage of the death of Jesse Helms rather tepid? I got the feeling people were trying desperately to find something good to say about the man.

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More later.

One Less Friend

I guess I lost a friend today. Or, maybe I should say I drove her off, unless she is more forgiving than I know her to be.

She is forever sending me e-mails containing racist, bigoted, Republican propaganda, and today, I guess I snapped. She sent me a big picture of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bill Richardson and someone else standing in front of a ginormous American flag. Of course, Barack doesn't have his hand over his heart, nor is he wearing a flag lapel pin. Her message was that she was going to send this photo every chance she got, because she just couldn't stand Barack Hussein Obama (his REAL name - her words).

Now, you all know I'm a mild-mannered little old Southern lady, sweet, gentle, and patient to a fault. I can put up with a lot of crap from a lot of people. I don't suffer it, gladly, but generally speaking, my feeling is that everyone is entitled to his/her opinion, and that includes being entitled to MY opinion. I try, always, to refrain from being rude, even in the face of political attack machines and dirty tricks, keeping in mind that it is all just "politics".

But, Dammit! I am so tired of these ignorant hillbillies around here sending me this crap! This is about the third time this particular hillbilly has sent me this particular picture. But, it's the first (and, hopefully, last) time I have responded to it. I asked her, not very nicely, to quit sending me this picture, and others like it. I told her I knew she was smart enough to recognize drivel when she saw it, so why was she buying into it this time?

I asked her what made her think that just because someone put his hand over his heart in front of an obscenely large American flag and wore some cheesy little lapel pin, it meant that he/she was a better American than someone who didn't follow suit, like Lemmings scampering over a cliff into the sea. I also told her that she was, of course, free to ignore my request, but that I was free to delete it without opening it. So, she might as well stop sending the thing, and others like it.

So, she's probably not speaking to me any more - and good riddance to her and the elephant she rode in on.

Of course, I realize that this is the kind of thing we are in for if and when Obama becomes the Democratic candidate against John McCain. And, of course, she will ignore my request because she has ignored all of my nicely written requests that she not send me her usual 19-25 boring e-mails daily, containing videos and dozens of photos that used to fill my e-mail box to capacity. I say "used to" because I finally opened a separate e-mail account, just for her e-mails, and another one or two people I used to work with, who were prone to forward to me every single piece of drivel they receive from others.

So, what do you think? Have I been offensive enough to shut her the f*ck up?

Blood Lust Satisfied

I watched "Sweeney Todd" a couple of days ago, and loved it. "But, wasn't it violent and bloody, you ask?" Yes, yes, yes. It was. It isn't subtitled, "The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" for nothing, ya know.

On the other hand, there was that marvelous Stephen Sondheim music. Almost impossible to sing, because it is sometimes discordant, but that's what makes it so impressive. I'd bet there won't be a Stephen Sondheim night on American Idol any time soon.

Johnny Depp gave his usual flawless performance, and he can sing! Who knew? OK, everybody but me. Anyway, it was a pleasant surprise. Helena Bonhan Carter was so-so, but she can't hold a candle to Angela Lansbury in that part. Nobody can. Sasha Baron Cohen and Alan Rickman were well cast.

"But, about the blood?", you whimper. The thing is, although there was a lot of blood, you were never expected to believe that it was real. The whole movie had the feel of a Broadway musical, which it was, of course, originally. So, the blood-letting was more, oh, call it "theatrical" than realistic. It was red, it flowed freely, and without it, there would have been no show. Just don't think that you can cover your eyes only in the bloodiest parts, because you'll be peeking through your fingers for an hour and fifty minutes.

So, if you're even the slightest bit squeamish, you might want to give this movie a pass, but, you'll be missing a fine production.

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American Idol. It's fixed, you know. How else to explain the departure of Michael, who was one of the best, if not THE best singers of the bunch, in my very humble opinion. If you need even more evidence that the fix is in, look at last night's bottom two - Syesha and Carly. WHAT? After that cutie, Jason, and the infinitely forgettable Brooke stunk up the place Tuesday night?

Jason proved that he can't take direction, when Andrew Lloyd Webber tried, in his gentle, if twitchy way, to tell him that the song he had chosen was the wrong one, and he soldiered on, anyway. "Memory" from "Cats" was written for Grizabella, an ancient female cat. Jason, honey, you just can't bridge that gap. Brook, dear, you got away with starting and stopping one other time, even though we've been told that we didn't really see what we saw with our own eyes, in one of the first shows of the season. Enough of the "Drama Queen" act.

Personally, the only two I thought did a decent job with Webber's music were Big David and Little David, and Little David, not so much, actually. Note to Little David: It is supremely insulting to take Webber's music and put your own "spin" on it, a concept which Big David understood completely. Note to Big David: Thank you for showing respect for "The Music of the Night" by singing it as written ........... except for those last two NOTES! WTF?????? Not every musical number has to end with a loud screech, despite what we see on "Idol" every week. It's as though you just couldn't help yourself. A nice, soft ending is what was required. Nice. Soft. Even so, you were the best of the lot.

All in all, I think the powers that be on American Idol owe a heartfelt apology to Webber. The contestants, in general, just weren't up to the challenge that his music poses.

Next week: Neil Diamond music. Woo Hoo! Unless he watched this week, and suddenly discovers he is going to have a scheduling conflict.

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Speaking of blood-letting, I guess we can expect Hillary to go "scorched earth" for the rest of her campaign. Apparently, she's hoping to do some high-powered arm-twisting among the super delegates at the convention, in order to capture the nomination. Because, it is becoming more and more apparent that she can't win any other way. And, I would suggest that she needs to brush up on her math skills. She's claiming she is actually ahead of Obama, when you factor in Florida, where she campaigned in spite of her promise not to, and Michigan, where hers was the only name on the ballot, after she promised to take it off. For one thing, she is not taking into account the number of votes Obama got in Florida, even without campaiging.

Whatever. The super delegates will go along with Hillary to their peril, and I'm sure no one has to point that out to them. They would have to have balls as big as church bells to turn their backs on the voters and then try to claim that they are only doing it for the good of the country.

Stay tuned.

Now, About Those Super Delegates...

My son informed me that back in 1972, when the Super Delegates were created, two of the people on that committee were Bill and Hillary Clinton. Ironic, isn't it? Talk about creating a monster. Now, that monster has come back to bite Hillary on the ass.

Don't get me wrong. I think the Super Delegates are a great idea, a necessity, even. After all, what if the great unwashed should become enamored of a candidate who is simply incapable of handling the job of president, and they go to the polls en masse and make him their candidate? Or, during the course of the campaign it comes to light that the front runner frequents opium dens for relaxation, or his favorite pasttime is donning a red wig, high heels and sequins, calling himself Fifi and dancing in gay nightclubs. (Not that there's anything wrong with that - it just wouldn't win him the election.)

Yes, we need the Super Delegates. What we DON'T need is for them to insert themselves into the primaries by endorsing a particular candidate. The Republicans have a similar system in place, although I don't know anything about it. But, they don't try to influence the vote during the primaries, I don't think.

Now, we have a situation where the candidate who is wins the popular vote might not win the delegates, which is another thing the Democrats need to look closely at in future elections. And, since many Super Delegates have endorsed either Hillary or Barack, Hillary is now in a position to lose to the candidate who is behind in the popular vote. (Shades of Al Gore and the Republicans in 2002).

But, all is not lost for Hillary. The Super Delegates are free to change their endorsements, and they have many times. Personally, I think they need to look at their home states as a whole and endorse the candidate who carried the popular vote.

In fact, I am even more radical in my thinking than that. I believe that there should be one day set aside every Presidential Election year for a national primary. This takes care of many problems, such as Iowa and New Hampshire moving their primaries ahead of the others, no matter how early it makes them. My PNP (Plan For A National Primary) hasn't been thoroughly fleshed out, as yet. But here it is for starters:

The candidates would have months and months to raise money for their campaigns and they would have time to visit every state to campaign. Then, when National Primary Day comes, no state would be influenced by any other state's earlier votes. I'm leaning toward the idea of the number of delegates the states can have would be dependent upon the population of the state, not divided up into districts for that purpose. Then, the delegates would be obligated to vote for the candidate who won the popular vote in that state.

Wouldn't that be a start in the direction of making the elections more fair, and more a reflection of the actual voters? Wouldn't you feel that your vote DOES count, after all?

More Politics???????

I can tell from the lack of comments that you are probably either getting bored with my nattering on and on or you don't agree with my positions, but that's all right. I get all wrapped up in politics during Presidential election years. So, I hope you'll bear with me until November, when I might be able to come up with something more amusing, interesting or entertaining to write about.

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Note to Tim Russert: Hillary voted to authorize GWB to make the decision to invade Iraq on the strength of lies and faulty information. So did a lot of others.

Live with it and move on.

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Note to Chris Matthews: See Note to Tim Russert.

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Note to Ralph Nader: Look closely into the mirror next time you shave. You're old, You're all ego, you're irrelevant.

Go away.

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Note to John McCain: You're the luckiest bastard on earth. You came back from 'Nam a hero and relatively intact. You've had an illustrious political career, especially after you dumped the first Mrs. McCain in favor of her wealthy, younger look-alike, who was able to finance your aspirations. Her you are, the leading candidate of a party full of people who don't really like you much. Get real.

You're no Ronald Reagan.

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Note to Barack Obama: You're almost as slick as "Slick Willie". So far, everyone's afraid to criticize you for fear of being called a racist. The fun's almost over. The Republicans have no such qualms.

Be ready.

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Note to Hillary: You've had some sorry advisors, and you're in danger of losing the nomination. The rats will soon begin leaving the ship. They're already telling you to drop out. Here's my advice: Don't get out until you're damn good and ready. Nobody else does.

You go, girl.

Feelin' Sorry for Hillary

She doesn't need my pity, but I kind of feel sorry for Hillary Clinton, anyway. Just think about it from her (possible) point of view. I don't know her personally, so I am making up my own scenario, here, and I could be wrong, but this is the way I see it.

First, at Yale, she met this goober from Arkansas who, like most good old Southern boys, could charm the birds out of the trees. He was the one, after all, who put astroturf in the bed of his pickup truck to make things more comfortable for the young ladies he was romancing back there. She may not have known this about him, at the time. But, much to her surprise, he loved her for her brain. So, she fell for him. Hard.

They started making their master plan. They got married, much to the chagrin of her friends and maybe her family up in big old sophisticated Chicago, and he took her to live in Arkansas, a place where one of her friends described as "primitive". And, she was happy as a clam while they lived there and she became a law professor and helped him become, first, Arkansas' Attorney General, then Governor, twice. He never objected to her continuing her work, this time as an associate in a prestigious (for a primitive state) law firm in Little Rock. He didn't even object when she decided to keep her maiden name, Rodham, instead of being little Mrs. Clinton.

By the time she had Chelsea, their plan was firmly in place. Bill was off and running for the main prize, the presidency. And, it worked. To the astonishment of the other candidates, Bill won.

They were right on schedule. Bill would serve for eight years, then, they promised Gore he would have his turn, and Hillary would make her bones, so to speak, in the Senate. After that, it would be her turn to become the first female president. And, then the wheels started coming off. Gore lost the election, with the help of the Supreme Court, the crooked Republicans and the stupidity of lots of people in Florida who supported Ralph Nader.

But, she didn't give up. After all she had endured, notably Whitewater and bimbo eruptions, she hung in there. She made good use of her time during the George W. Bush presidency, moving to New York and becoming a U.S. Senator. Biding her time, which wasn't easy for a Type A, impatient personality such as herself, she threw herself into the job, ingratiating herself with the other senators, working hard and taking advice from those more experienced. She gained a lot of respect from her fellow senators, so that by the time she announced her candidacy, she had already secured promises of support from a goodly number of super delegates and she could raise a lot of money.

Riding high, she readily accepted the notion that she had a straight shot to the nomination, and it would be all over by Super Tuesday.

Then, it happened. This much younger black man jumped into the fray. He was articulate, impressive, determined and extremely intelligent. He was of another generation, with new ideas and a way of expressing them that captured the imagination of many people who heretofore had supported Hillary. She had enjoyed the support of much of the black community before Barack Obama got into the race, and many of them, understandably, switched allegiances. The final blow came when even her super delegate support began eroding.

Since there was no cohesive plan for the weeks between Super Tuesday and the Democratic Convention, no one knew where to go from there. "Be nicer!" they advised. "Be meaner!" "Be softer, and cry!" "Lecture the young upstart! (Shame on you, Barack Obama!)" Things got sillier and sillier, and now, she is in danger of losing the whole enchilada. Everything she has worked for is slipping away.

After all she has put up with over the years, the time and effort she has put into helping others achieve their goals, she probably won't realize hers. It's really sad, when you think about it.

The Many Faces of Hillary

Hillary is beginning to get on my nerves. This late in the race, she seems to be trying on different personas. She reminds me of one of our local quick stops that advertises, "We'll treat you so many ways, you're bound to like one of them."

First, in the last debate, she was Lady Bountiful fawning over Obama almost to the point of being condescending. Everyone said, "Awwwwwwwww, how sweet and gracious she is."

A day later, she is standing on a stage with some unnamed guy behind her whose job is to nod his head sagely, while she scolds, "Shame on you Barack Obama!" Everyone said, "Wow, she's like the schoolmarm who is terribly disappointed in her hapless student."

Then, she's shown waving her arms around and weaving a fantasy about how everybody is going to get together, join hands and sing Kumbaya, and peace will break out over the land, nay, all over the world, and everything will be good. Nobody knows what to say about this performance.

And, there stands Obama, looking like someone who is watching a train wreck in slow motion. And, everybody says, "Oooooooooooo, he's unshakeable, so even-tempered!"

So, I can't wait to see tonight's debate. Wonder which Hillary will appear. I wouldn't be a bit surprised to see her wringing her hands and opining that the media is being unfair to her.

Stay tuned.

Those Damn Democrats

The Democrats don't ever do anything halfway, do they? If there's quicksand anywhere around, they'll find it and jump in. Bless 'em. It's feast or famine.

The media pundits seem surprised when they make much of the fact that women over Sixty are supporting Hillary Clinton. Well, duh. Of course. We women over Sixty are the ones who fought the good fight for women's rights. We have waited all these years for the Democrats to nominate a woman for the Presidency. The closest we have come, up to now, was Geraldine Ferraro, and we stood by and let her sleazy husband's activities shoot down her chance to become Vice-President.

So, now we have another worthy candidate, who also has a sleazy husband, but who has had the strength and determination to deflect all attempts to be tarred with the same brush he was. She has emerged as the strong, determined wife who stuck by her husband and didn't let him bring her down because she had her eye on her own prize - becoming the first female President of the United States.

She's not perfect, but we're philosophical about it. She may be our last chance to see a woman President in our lifetimes.

And, what do our fellow Democrats do? They bring in another candidate who also represents something we have waited a long time for. For all those years, while we fought for the rights of women, we were also fighting for the rights of people of color. We were captivated by Jessie Jackson and watched him light up the room everywhere he spoke. We celebrated the Civil Rights Movement with the same zeal that we gave to the ERA (Equal Rights Amendment).

Now, we have Barack Obama, a black man who has his own way of lighting up a room. A man we would all be proud to vote for. And, he's ahead. And, we would be satisfied with him as the candidate.

If it weren't for Hillary. So, we're pretty much split down the middle. Why, oh why, can't the Democrats do things one at a time? For all these years, we have hoped for a viable female candidate - OR - a viable black male/female candidate. Now that we have both at the same time, what's a good Liberal Democrat to do? We really can't have them both. It's hard to imagine that either of the candidates would accept the Vice-Presidency.

OK. The handwriting seems to be on the old wall. We'll shed a tear for Hillary (and our dreams) and go to the polls and vote enthusiastically for Obama.

And, we'll hope that there will still be time for us to see the first female President. Hmmmmm. I wonder if Caroline Kennedy has any political aspirations.

Religion and Politics

I've always heard that you should never get into a discussion about religion or politics, and here I am, about to talk about both at the same time.

Pictured is the First Methodist Church of Little Rock. It is the church in which I was married in 1962. At that time, the church boasted over 3,000 members. I don't know what the membership is today.

My church attendance, growing up, was spotty, at best. I "attended" several different denominations, but I "belonged" to the Methodist Church. It wasn't until after I married that I became much more involved in church activities, and that was in Yellville, Arkansas. The Yellville Methodist church was very small, and the minister served two other, smaller churches as well. In earlier days, he might have been called a "Circuit Rider". Once a month, he would go to either Cedar Grove Methodist Church or Pleasant Ridge Methodist Church. When he was away, my hubby, D.J. often served as "Lay Minister" at the Yellville church.

D.J. was a popular lay minister in the area, invited to take his message to churches in Flippin, and Cotter, as well as the churches at Cedar Grove and Pleasant Ridge. All these churches were housed in very modest buildings and the members all knew each other well.

I always enjoyed going to church in Yellville and Cedar Grove, but the Pleasant Ridge church was my favorite. I don't think they had more than 30 members, but they all attended, every Sunday, whether they had a minister or not. On the days that D.J. and I went to Pleasant Ridge, they really put on a show. They only had a piano, a song leader and the congregation - no choir. But, my did they sing. That song leader got them all wound up with one uplifting hymn after another (all from a very old hymnal - I hadn't heard many of the hymns), and the more enthusiastic he got, the more he danced around, clapping his hands, high kicking and stomping his feet. It was in that tiny backwoods church, out in the middle of nowhere, that I felt most strongly the presence of God.

Since then, I have attended larger churches, not all Methodist, where I hardly knew anyone, and where their main goals seemed to be to build even larger buildings. And, as they grew larger, they grew colder. And, their priorities changed. They "needed" more and more money. They had to have more Sunday School rooms, padding on the pews, a new organ, more ornate choir robes, larger homes for the ministers - and the ministers had to have assistant ministers. And, church secretaries, and all kinds of committees. I could go on and on, but you get my drift.

Then, the ministers started getting into politics. They hid behind their bibles and their churches in order to satisfy their need to control every corner of everyone's life. Some of them couldn't be satisfied to see to the spiritual needs of their congregations. They saw a way to bring in more money than they had ever dreamed of, through television. They became the Jerry Fallwells, Pat Robertsons, Robert Schullers, etc., etc., starting with Billy Graham.

Now, we have a Baptist minister running for president, pushing his brand of religion and attempting to finish building the Theocracy that George W. Bush envisioned. If Mike Huckabee has his way, we will have a new Constitution, based on Bible teachings. HIS interpretation of the Bible, of course.

His campaign speeches are becoming more strident, and his real agenda is emerging. Keep watching. Keep listening. At some point, you'll realize that he isn't the one we want as our president.

You will, won't you?

Live Free Or Die

So, how about it? Did a bunch of women change their minds and vote for Hillary out of sympathy? It hasn't been my experience that women are particularly sympathetic toward other women.

I think we can call the New Hampshire primary a tie, actually. Someone said that all those students that Obama expected to flock to the polls were still on break, and hadn't come back to school, yet.

Edwards didn't get as many votes this time as he did last time in New Hampshire. I don't know how much longer he'll hang on, but anything could happen at this point.

I don't want to see Richardson get out of the race just yet. They should all stay in until after Super Tuesday, at least. Getting out after only a couple or three primaries is premature, it seems to me.

On the other hand, after Super Tuesday, there could still be a six or eight way tie among Republicans. For once, they are going to be kind of fun to watch. Of course, if Bloomberg jumps into the fray as an Independent, the Republicans will probably implode. Won't that be fun?

Oh, I just love politics!

Does Iowa Really Matter?

Why do we place so much importance on the Iowa Caucuses? I've been reading up on it, and it seems overly complicated to me. I couldn't find any hard and fast rules, except for the date. Everything else can change in mid-caucus, and frequently does.

Nevertheless, I watched all the media types bloviate all evening about what a win in Iowa would mean. The only real surprise, to me, was that Hillary! ended up in third place. I thought that slot would belong to John Edwards. I was pretty well satisfied with that outcome, strangely enough.

I was not surprised that Mike Huckabee came out ahead of the rest of the field. Over time, the more pious Mike Huckabee seemed, the most insincere Mitt Romney looked. And, perception is everything. Just remember, there's a reason why most of the people in Arkansas called Mike Huckabee "the Huckster". And, it's the same reason they called Bill Clinton "slick Willie". And, it had nothing to do with bimbo eruptions, and everything to do with the dictionary description of "Flim-Flam man".

But, I digress.

Just what does the Iowa outcome mean for the coming primary in New Hampshire? Not a whole lot, I'd bet. Even the talking heads can't seem to agree. The main thing it means is that it is going to be a long, long campaign. But, New Hampshire is very different from Iowa. The state motto, "Live Free or Die" says a lot about it. It will be interesting to watch Huckabee morph into "more of a governor than a pastor", which he is already saying in interviews. He'll be whatever you want him to be, as will most politicians.

I fully expect John McCain to come into his own in New Hampshire. And, strangely enough, I expect Obama to stay on top. If Hillary ends up in second place, I hope Bill doesn't put on that goofy grin of his and crow about her being "another comeback kid". Shiver.

But, by the time the New Hampshire primary is over, Iowa will be forgotten. So, to answer my own question, Iowa doesn't matter a whole lot, except for being first. Which is about all you can expect from a loosey-goosey musical chairs kind of meeting.

What's Happening?

I'm feeling a little under the weather today. I guess I'd better rethink the Chips and Dip breakfast option.

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I'm so sorry for poor Pharmaceuticals,
I'm biting my nails to their cuticals.
With their patents expiring,
Their sales are declining,
And the FDA isn't cooperative.

We can all say good-bye to Zyprexa,
There'll be a generic instead of ya.
The same fate awaits Plavix and Lipitor,
Generics are standing in the wings.
And there's nothing to take their place for ya.

Phizer, and Lilly and Squibb, you've been fine,
Too bad, Bristol-Myers and GlaxoSmith Kline.
Board the generics band wagon while there's time.
You might make less profits, but you'll still be in business.
Take a generic Zoloft and don't whine.

OK. Not a very good effort. But, I couldn’t resist. The pharmaceutical companies are complaining because they don’t have anything in the works to take the place of all their biggest Dollar meds. They say it’s because the mean old FDA won’t okay their new drugs fast enough. So, now, they’ll have to start laying people off and their profits will go down and, and, Wa-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah!

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Oprah took her show on the road over the weekend, campaigning for Barak Obama. It remains to be seen whether she'll have that much influence over voters when it comes right down to it. Don't count Hillary! out just because a talk show host is able to draw crowds. A lot of those people went only to see Oprah. They'll make up their minds about Obama later. In the voting booths.

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Isn't it heart-warming to know that Giuliani was concerned enough to have his police protecting his mistress in the aftermath of the Twin Towers bombing? What a guy! He assures us that if he becomes President, he won’t have Secret Service protecting any future mistresses. Well, that’s a relief!

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And, how about Arkansas' very own former governor, Mike Huckabee. Well! He's also known as "Huckabucks", "the Rev-Gov." and "The Huckster". And, at the peak of his weight problems, John Brummett, of the Arkansas Times, took to referring to him as 'Old Triple-Wide". This was also a reference to the triple-wide mobile home his family occupied while the Governor's mansion was renovated. Anyhoodle, imagine everyone's surprise when, while the national media was obsessing over Fred Thompson, Rudy Giuliani, and Mitt Romney, Huckabee was circling the Religious Conservatives' wagons and quietly moved into first place in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Wouldn't it be funny if....................no, no. Hillary would have too much fun running against him.

Now that he is ahead in some areas, the Media has started scrutinizing his background and they’re finding some things they think we might not like. For instance, he pardoned a killer/rapist who went on to rape and kill another woman.

In 1998, he went along enthusiastically with the Southern Baptist Conference’s statement that “women should submit to their husbands as servants……, “ I wonder how First Tomboy, Janet reacted to that? Not well, I’m sure.

And, just wait until you year all about his ethics problems. Hint: There was no gift too expensive for him or his wife to refuse.

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Finally, Dana Perino, President Bush’s Press Secretary told a funny little story on herself. Chuckling, she admitted that she had never heard of the Bay of Pigs. She wondered if that was the same thing as the Cuban Missile Crisis. What does this say about the state of our Education System in this country? Wonder if she's ever heard of Castro?

'Nuff said. See you later.

Lies and Lying Liars

Why do we lie? We know that all the politicians lie, and we know why they lie. They are trying to be everything to everybody. But, why do the rest of us lie? And, we do, you know, much of the time, and some people lie all the time. And, they lie when the truth would be easier.








I was in one of the shops that sold the Playtex brand in Branson a few years ago, looking for, ahem, an undergarment. I wanted a specific item, one I had been buying for years. I didn't find it, so I asked the saleswoman about it, and she said, "Oh, they don't make that one any more." Fortunately, I knew she was lying, because that particular item was in a Springfield Penney's ad in the local paper.


So, why did she lie? She was hoping that I would cave in and buy something she and I both knew I wouldn't like, because, if my preference was no longer available anywhere, then I'd have to change to another one, and buy it there. But, does that excuse the lie? In my humble opinion, no.


"Does this make me look fat?" The answer to this question is always, ALWAYS, "No." It doesn't matter if it is a lie or not. If it's a lie, it's just, well, a fib, or a little white lie. It spares someone's feelings, and besides, who needs all that drama at 7 a.m.?


"Did you check my brakes?" This kind of question requires the truth. Not, "I think Bubba did that." If you didn't check them, say so. I'll forgive you and you can drive the car back in and do it now. All I will have lost is some time, as opposed to, say, my life.


But, the worst lies, it seems to me, are told by the television news media.

Truman Capote stated years ago not in these exact words, that "all news would eventually be nothing more than gossip." And, what is news these days but gossip, insinuation, speculation and exaggeration? They make the most outrageous statements purported to be fact and then constantly have to backtrack and correct themselves. Meanwhile the damage is done.

I wish they would go back to reporting the news and backing it up with at least 2 sources verifying it.

And, of course, there are the charities.

Remember what happened after 9/11, when the United Way was supposed to disburse funds collected to the victims and their families? Hundreds of Millions of dollars, and where did all of it go? We'll never really know. We do know that some of it went to people who lied about being victims. We can probably assume that some of the money went into the pockets of the people administering the funds.

Another example of fraud on both sides of a catastrophe is Katrina. What a mess that was. And, it is ongoing.

So, who do you believe?

Personally, I believe anyone who tells me I don't look fat in what I'm wearing. That, my friends, is an honest man.