The Twitching Tail

Hi

2005-12-06T23:28:00.000-05:00

Yes, I'm still alive.

Outrage, Absolute Outrage...

2005-05-27T18:52:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I went to the mall to do some shopping for my brother's wedding. As I walked through the door I saw an Indy Star paper box and caught the headline, Judge: Parents can't teach pagan beliefs I bought the paper in hopes the title was misleading...It wasn't. Two Wiccans got a divorce, both parents want to raise their child Wiccan, but when the parents got their divorce the judge, Cale J. Bradford, added a clause that prohibits the child's mom and dad from exposeing their child to "non-mainstream religious beliefs and rituals."

What the fuck?! Has the 1st amendment been completely blacked out by the Religious Reich? How could anyone even THINK of doing THIS? The father filed an appeal to the decision back in January...why are we just now hearing about it? I guess I should be thankful we are hearing anything about it at all. This angers me to no end. When will the taking away our Consitutional Rights be stopped? You think it will stop at Wicca? Of course not! If they are allowed to get away with this what is to stop them from attacking Hindus? Then Buddists, then Muslims, (Oh wait, aren't they already doing that?), then the Jews. After all of that, you KNOW they would start in on different Christian sects...After all, an oppessor MUST have someone to actively oppress, it keeps everyone else in line.

You can read the original article here.

HISS!!!

2005-05-19T11:38:00.000-05:00

So a pregnant girl at a Catholic high school in Alabama was not allowed to attend her graduation ceramony but did anyway. The father of her child was allowed to participate. I wonder if the girl had gotten an abortion would she have been allowed to participate then? You can read the story here

NO!

2005-04-30T19:57:00.000-05:00

God Damn Bush and his revenge for his daddy war! My brother's best friend is going to Iraq where he will have one of the most dangerous jobs over there...guarding convoys and transporting prisoners...I have know this kid since he was a baby...his dad and my dad are best friends...we played together when our parents got together...we once tried to sell dirt in his neighborhood.(some kids have lemonade stands, we tried to sell dirt). He's not much younger then me, so he won't be one of the children we currently have fighting over there, but even though he is older then my brother he will always be my little brother's best friend...if anything were to happen to him.....

Stolen from "Daily Kos"...

2005-03-21T17:49:00.000-05:00

I can't say it any better, so I'm doing a 'cut and paste'

"""Rage. Fury. Many, Many Swearwords.
by Hunter
Sun Mar 20th, 2005 at 20:29:37 PST

I haven't said anything about the Terri Schaivo case because approximately 500 other people here have. I'd gone cold turkey on it.
That was a big, big mistake, because I failed to build up an immunity, and so I got hit with the full force of moronic, ass-kissing, Constitution-fucking, Jesus-punching evil when the GOP decided to turn Terri into their own personal effigy so that they can stage their own version of Republican Burning Man on Capital Hill. I expect by the time the week is out, Congress will have renamed itself TerriLand. The Republican Party will be known as the Terri Party. We'll have Terri Fries being served in the House cafeteria.

Diaries :: Hunter's diary ::

You know what? Subpoena her. You called it, DeLay, Frist -- unless you're the biggest fucking cowards on Capital Hill (a pretty safe bet, ain't it?) I want you to haul that soulless body that used to be Terri Schaivo up to Washington, prop her the hell up in front of a microphone, tape a goddamn American Flag to her forehead and ask her your fucking, shit-headed questions.

She won't answer. Guess Why?

Because She. Has. No. Brain. Left. She is brain-dead. She is worse than brain-dead, because her brain died so long ago that there's nothing but fluid-filled holes in much of it. Yeah, you can still dress her up in pretty clothes and coo, if you're a sick fucking bastard. I think you're a fucking necrophile, but that seems to be a central tenet of modern Republicanism, so what the hell?

So subpoena her. Bring. It. The. Fuck. On. You. Goddamn. Constitution-Fucking. Cowards.

If she is even remotely still alive inside there, if she does have the consciousness that every doctor and every court that examined her say there's no fucking way she could have with a hollowed-out brain, then she has been essentially buried alive, all these years, unable to talk or even move, her very skin her own coffin, rotting in a hospital bed while nurses tend to her like a potted plant.

So I'm sure she won't mind staying that way a little while longer while you drag her out of that bed and prop her up in front of the whole world on national television. Her pain is your gain.

Never the fuck mind that she said that she didn't want to live like that. Never the fuck mind that every damn court that has heard the case has upheld her husband as her guardian, and confirmed her wishes.

So screw basic human decency, screw the sanctity of marriage, you get to act compassionate to a brain-dead woman who, best case scenario, you insist on torturing like a stray kitten.

Screw the basic principles of the constitution that say you can't make a law tailored to fuck with the rights of one particular person -- her husband, trying to carry out her wishes -- and no-one else. Anyone taking bets on whether Tom "I-Like-Illegal-Extortion" DeLay has ever actually read the Constitution?

Screw the black infant who had the plug pulled on him against his own mother's wishes, because he was going to die anyway and hospital care is expensive, ka-fucking-ching. Yeah, you were falling all over your pasty-white selves trying to bring that kid and his mother up to Washington, weren't you?

Screw all the soldiers who now can't get decent treatment for their own freedom-induced massive head injuries because you zeroed the damn budget for it.

What-the-hell-ever. Being a Republican means you tool up to Capital Hill on a moment's notice, and you can make any fucking law you want, against any goddamn person you want, and the President will even fly the hell up from his craphole of a fake ranch, designer boots still a-jingling, in order to get in on the photo op while you take a giant, Republican-sized dump on whatever paragraph of the Constitution you think looked at ya funny this week.

So, what brought this on, you may ask? Why, I'm glad you asked. Three words: World. Net. Daily. Yes, that same online rag that regularly brings you the screeds of Ann Coulter and other freedom-loving racist nutcases brings us (courtesy of Kossack Christian Dem in NC, who I bear no ill-will towards) the ever-so-thoughtful writings of David N. Bass.

"Perhaps for the first time in American history," commented Alliance Defense Fund attorney Michael Johnson, "we have a court ordering essentially the murder of an innocent person." The injustice is staggering. Today, a guiltless woman is being executed by the most inhumane method imaginable, while those who have tirelessly worked to end her life walk free.
The acts of Judge Greer and his cohorts in the Florida court system can only be called one thing: Judicial terrorism.

Excuse me? Following the damn law is now -- let me pause to savor the spectacular craptitude of this -- "judicial terrorism"?

You know, I've seen a lot of stupid things over my lifetime. I've been on the Internets, for starters. But it's been a long, long time since I've seen anywhere, Fox News or otherwise, willfully put such a gigantic, monstrous piece of true hell on their website.

Following the laws, preserving the sanctity of marriage, following Terri's wishes from back when her brain was capable of having wishes -- that's judicial terrorism, now?

Death by dehydration is anything but quick and peaceful; it can last as long as two weeks. Terri will suffer extreme thirst, drying out her mouth. She will experience nausea and cramping in her arms and legs. Her skin will become dry and wrinkled as fluids are drawn from the skin to hydrate the organs. The mucous membranes of her mouth and lips will crack. Her breathing will become labored and difficult. Her muscles will spasm, resulting in extreme agitation. She may suffer seizures. And finally, she will do what her estranged husband, Michael Schiavo, and the other fans of the Culture of Death want her to do - she will die.
No, Terri won't feel any of those things. Terri is brain-dead, and gone. But you know what would be great, since you're so goddamn concerned with Terri? If people who were brain-dead didn't have to linger for fucking days in supposed agonizing pain just because little pussies like you won't let the doctors inject them with 10ccs of something that will let them drift away with some amount of compassion.

And Culture of Fucking Death? Let me ask you, who the hell is insisting that this brain-dead woman be put on display like a fucking circus attraction, in order to Bring Out The Heartland Voters? Answer me that, and I'll point you at your Culture of Fucking Exhibitionist Death.

Our nation is consumed with the threat of terrorism from the Middle East. We value our own lives and we expect our government to protect us from the bombs and dictatorial maniacs mankind has produced. There's only one problem: While we obsess over al-Qaida and North Korea as the greatest threats to our national security, judicial terrorism is destroying the soul of our nation.
Jesus Christ. You realize, you little shit-for-brain, the number of judges who get "targeted" because of little pinheaded shits like you marking them up for it? It's been in a few of the papers lately, maybe you want to Look It The Fuck Up? Wanna guess how much security that judge already has on him, even before you put out your little call-to-arms?

Fuckwipe.

So now al-Qaida and some Florida judge are now equivalent. WorldNetDaily is just fine putting that up on their site, too. Thanks for that, WorldNetDaily, I guess settling for Ann Coulter calling for the murder of journalists is so old media.

Are we really any less barbaric than Rome, or have we simply learned new ways to veil our wickedness behind the curtain of science, choice and a so-called "right to die"?
It's a searching question.

No. No, it really fucking isn't. It's a moronic question. I realize that the strange new worlds of "science" and "choice" frighten you, but I assure you the rest of us have moved the hell on.

Sometimes, it takes a kick in the face for individuals to wake up and realize tyranny is on their doorstep. The ongoing starvation of Terri Schindler Schiavo should be a disturbing reminder of what an out-of-control judiciary can do when the executive and legislative branches of government are slow to deal with it. Having come this far, both branches must boldly step forward and use the fullest extent of their powers to counter-balance this tyrannical judiciary.
Yeah, God Bless America. How The Fuck Dare People follow the law instead of reinterpreting it to fit modern Republican talking points. I guess there's another branch of our 200-year-old American government that needs the crap kicked out of it.

And if I were you, having just compared a Florida judge with al-Qaida, I wouldn't be talking about who needs a good kick in the face right now.

Here's the kicker. The author of this gigantic pile:

David N. Bass is a 19-year-old Christian homeschool graduate who has written for World Newspaper Publishing and is a regular columnist at AmericanDaily.com, IntellectualConservative.com and RenewAmerica.us. While attending college, he interns at a pro-family public-policy organization. Bass currently is working on his first novel.
Sigh. Of course.

You know, there's a reason that any 19-year-old Christian homeschooler can talk so much like a Bob Novak or Grover Norquist or Buford F. MilitiaPants that he can be printed up in all the conservative rags and heralded as a brilliant conservative thinker.

It's because there's NO FUCKING INTELLECTUAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO. Hell, if they had the Virgin Ben writing conservative screeds before he was tall enough to ride the Matterhorn, why the hell can't you? It's like farting, only with a thesaurus.

Can't wait for your novel, dude. I hear "The Turner Diaries" has already been done, so maybe you can do something about Jesus coming back to earth and handing out hollowpoints. Maybe you can work something in there about what we should do with all those "terrorists" posing as judges. And how all the people who believe in dinosaurs get cast into the lake of fire.

Ahem.

This diary has one point, and one point only. TALK ME THE FUCK DOWN, before I put pictures of Tom DeLay's momma on the frontpage with the caption "Biggest Whore In Her Time Zone". Before I start a petition drive to buy Senator Bill Frist ten thousand separate medical dictionaries to be dumped in his Capitol Hill office, so he can start looking crap up about "brain injury" that he didn't learn in college because he was too busy figuring out how many individual chunks he could carve local Animal Shelter kittens into. Before I find out wherever Teenage Circus Freak "David N. Bass" lives and hire Jeff Gannon to go over to his house and service the poor unstable freak in order to relieve all that teenage angst that makes him see Osama bin Laden in his morning Fruit Loops.

And somebody else has the frontpage for the rest of the night, because I am the Fuck DONE trying to be polite about this country-raping three-ring circus of belching, shitfaced, drunken rednecks parading around in Jesus-brand T-shirts and calling it a government.

Damnit, Hunter S., haunt someone else for a few fucking days."""

Consolidation and Test Scores

2005-03-17T23:19:00.000-05:00

So I was doing some random writting at work today and somehow the 'Indy Works' Bill cropped up. The idea is to consolidate the city and township police and fire departments as well as consolidating the schools. The fire departments seem to be for it, the police, against, and I personally don't want the township schools consolidated into IPS.

Some have stated the reason for consolidating schools is to increase test scores-yes, township students seem to get higher scores then those of IPS, but averaging both the township scores with IPS scores for a higher average is not going to help the students living in the current IPS district.

The plan is said to increase school funds...but it won't. The state legistature already passed a bill that has, in fact, CUT funding to schools across the state. Now does IPS need more money? I think 'yes'-most of the IPS students are from low income households and many are below the poverty level. Most students have some sort of government assistance (free or discounted lunches, textbooks, etc) and most of the schools in IPS are in dire need of remodeling. The buildings are old, unaircondioned, leaky pipes, still have asbestoes, etc-Face it, if such building were stores you wouldn't even want to shop there, no matter how low their prices were...it would be too depressing. How are students supposed to learn under these condions? Why do we expect them to?

Then there is more talk of dumbing down the ISTEP tests yet again. They have been dumbing down the test almost every other year since the ISTEP began. My 6th grade year was the first year the state administered the ISTEP test. I remember when ISTEP was first coming out and how all the teachers were nervous about the tests and how we were told how important it was to do well on them because these tests would show if our school was up to state standards.

So when I began to take the test, I was nervous. After I finished the test I was even more nervous because I found the test to be easy-too easy-I was sure I had screwed up somewhere because I was led to believe the test would be difficult. When we received our results back I learned I didn't have to worry. 95%+ for the most part, even 90%'s for my math scores (my most difficult subject). Then on the news (yes, I was a geeky kid that watched the news), they were going to have to change the ISTEP test because it was too hard. Now if it had been just me that thought the test was easy...ok...but the whole class thought it was easy.

Just this past year 68-69% of students passed the ISTEP test and these results were touted as good, but there is still talk that the tests are too hard. Lowering standards is NOT the answer. Lowering standards puts students at a DISadvantage. Why can't people see that?!

I welcome your retorts...

This is why Choice is so important...

2005-03-01T11:03:00.000-05:00

You cannot possibly know the circumstances of everyone. Everyone should be free to make their own choices...read this

"Well, the FCC won't let me be..."

2005-02-21T17:39:00.000-05:00

Ok, I understand that on the radio there are some words that are not allowed to be said or appear in songs. However, ever since I can remember there has always been one song that was seemingly exempt from the Censor's 'bleep', that song is of course, (drumroll)..Pink Floyd's song, "Money" from the Dark Side of the Moon album. I had NEVER heard this song bleeped until July of 2002 while driving through the exact middle of Pennslyvania (middle of nowhere), it shocked all of the occupants of the car. I made up my mind that I would never move to Pennslyvania. Then while driving home from work today listening to Q95...home of the Bob and Tom Show...I heard Pink Floyd's song "Money"...BLEEPED! What the fuck?! I know for a FACT they used to play the original version, along with everyone else. Why the sudden change? Were people THAT offended?! If so, why now? The song was recorded and released in 1973! That is over 30 years ago! If people were offended then, then I wouldn't have grown up hearing the unbleeped version on the radio!

Daylight Savings Time...

2005-02-14T23:08:00.000-05:00

I post from Indiana, and most of Indiana does not observe Daylight Savings Time. Why I do not know. Once again there is a big debate at the statehouse as to whether or not Indiana should go on Daylight Time. The Indianapolis Star has been publishing Letters to the Editor from both sides for months. What I don't understand is the people who are so dead-set against it. Their primary arguement is, "I don't want to change. This is the way it has been for years." I think Indiana SHOULD go to Eastern Daylight Time during Daylight Savings Time. It provides continuity for time, especially important in today's business world...a shrinking world is why time zones were 'invented' in the first place. The advent of trains made people realize time had to be standardized. It used to be each town had its own time...then towns started having two times: local time and railroad time. Sometimes the differences would be hours, other times and places, minutes. It was confusing. The fact that Indiana has a 'time abyss' can confuse out-of-state businesses. Half of the year they can talk to their Indiana offices on time, and the other half of the year they have to wait. Business is time oriented. Why do so many Hoosiers think changing their clocks twice a year is such a chore? I have lived in New York State and the DC Metro area, both of these places 'spring forward, and fall back'. Do you know what happens? The sun rises at 5am and sets at about 8:30pm...dark falls around 9pm. In Indiana during the summer months we have sunrise at 4AM! Who besides those that work 3rd shift are up at that hour?! I for one would rather have extra daylight in the evening when stores are open. You know what else happens when people change their clocks? Often when TV stations are reminding people to change their clocks they also remind people it is time to change the battery in their smoke alarms. You are supposed to change the battery in smoke alarms every 6 months, but how many people actually remember to do this? Clock changing time is the perfect way to remind people of this. Clock changing is not difficult...people all over the U.S. do it twice a year. Come on Indiana, it is time to SPRING FORWARD this April.

Anti-Magnet....

2005-01-25T16:58:00.000-05:00

To me it seems many of those magnets you see proclaiming patriotism are just to make people feel superior to everyone else...."I'm a good American...look at my magnet of red, white, and blue...and it's a magnet...so it's not permently attached!"

So I offer a link to the anti-magnet site...

Contemplating....

2005-01-17T18:21:00.000-05:00

I bought the new John Mellencamp CD not long ago, and as I'm listening to it I have the realization of how lucky I am to have the parents I had growing up....

When I was a child my parents listened to the Oldies station and alot of John Mellencamp...in fact when we first got MTV my dad spent alot of time recording Mellencamp videos...

However, at my house my parents didn't just listen to the songs, they EXPLAINED them to me, told me what they were all about, let me know that many songs actually told a story about the world. They explained the views expressed in songs and when my parents held the same beliefs, they explained WHY they believed what they believed. My parents also explained to me that these were THEIR opinions and that other people had different opinions. They told me that as I got older I would have opinions of my own and that was fine as long as I understood the reasons behind my opinions and to look at both sides.

My parents taught me to think for myself, they taught me to question....which sometimes put them in difficult postions...parentally and politically. Questions regarding Vietnam were generally vague, "It was a war. Some people thought we shouldn't of been there. I had friends die over there. Some questions I just can't answer."...this may be why I studied it so much.

I've had people tell me I'm a liberal because my parents raised me that way, but I don't think so. True, my parents have some liberal views, they have conservative ones as well, but what my parents truly taught me was to think for myself and not follow blindly. My parents actually told me, "Don't have these beliefs just because we have them, find your own reasons, just make sure you back them up."

I hope if I ever have kids I can raise then to think for themselves, too many people just follow blindly.

Hinting at a future rant.....

2004-12-24T21:19:00.000-05:00

A&E, the cable channel...is running an "Airline" Marathon tonight...yea! A perfect night for it...right after many retail people get off of work Christmas Eve, after dealing with customers that have anything but Christmas Spirit and take it out on the poor retail clerk. The "Airline" marathon lets the retail people know that we are not alone.

Why do I have to share my state with these people?....

2004-12-05T22:24:00.000-05:00

I made a big mistake....I went to read the IndyStar message boards so I could see the opinion comments that didn't make it into the paper. The comments posted there just made me angry. Unfortunatly, unfocused anger so I am unable to type about the idiots that are proclaiming Bush as their king...not in those exact words, but that is their message. ARGH! Why don't these people get it?!

This disgusts me.....

2004-11-15T11:30:00.000-05:00

I found this Letter to the Editor in the Indianapolis Star (Nov. 14th, 2004)

Absentee ballot returned to sender
November 14, 2004
Nov. 2 was the first election my 19-year-old daughter was eligible to vote in. She watched and listened to all the presidential debates and was very excited to vote.
She had to vote absentee because she is a student at Ball State University.
On Saturday, Nov. 6, her absentee ballot was returned "postage due." On the envelope, it says in big print "No postage necessary."
In talking with the post office personnel, they stated that there should have been a red-metered stamp on the envelope and that is why the ballot was returned. She also said they were getting a lot of absentee ballots returned because of "postage due."
In calling the Marion County Election Board, they stated that it was too late for the ballots to be counted and they would just be stored in their warehouse.
The election results could have been different especially in the close races. How could such a fiasco happen? We would have gladly put a stamp on the envelope if we had known it was needed. How many thousands of votes were not counted because of "postage due?"
Janet Gobel
Indianapolis

I don't know who is responsible for this, nor do I really care because voter fraud is voter fraud. How are we supposed to know if our vote really counts? Makes me Mad.

Contemplating......

2004-11-07T18:39:00.000-05:00

...and thinking about the world today. In particular, the U.S. It seems to me that most people are complacent, don't pay attention, and really don't care.

I wonder, if the government came up with an American Patriot Card, would anyone say anything? An A.P.C. would be like the discount cards you get at the grocery store- it would go on your keychain and everytime you use it you would get a discount on what you purchase. Companies that accept the A.P.C. would get tax breaks, consumers could accumulate points and get a tax credit based on those points. If you don't use your A.P.C., that's fine, but if you spend 'x' amount of dollars or buy certain items, you must provide I.D. The card could be used at grocery stores, resturants, (even McDonald's), car lots, and retail stores. Think of all the money you could save. Think of all the data the government could collect. I wonder how many people would stand up and protest? How many others would say it is a good thing and for our protection? How many wouldn't be able to see past the 'savings' of using the card?

Fear...

2004-11-03T17:12:00.000-05:00

Fear-its what this election was based on and I am now filled with it...A lame duck president who believes he is on a mission from God...what could be worse? This morning on the news (I think it was CNN, but I'm not positive) some 'analyist' was saying since the vote showed a country divided, Bush would have to move closer to the center. What the hell kind of crack has she been smoking?! Dubya is now a lame duck president- he won't be up for re-election-he no longer has to answer to the people- he can basicly do whatever he wants-especially with a Republican controled House and Senete! People are so stupid! How can they be so goddamned BLIND?! How can they not see what is happening to our country?

I want to move, but Canada would never take me, me being from the retail world. Ireland is a beautiful country, but I don't really know enough about its politcal climate...and I don't know if they would take me anyway...I could buy a house and start up my own B&B...provided they sell Bisquik over there...I didn't notice.

Back in July I heard, from an Army recruiter, that no matter who won the election in November, a draft would begin in June of '05. I hope he was wrong, but I won't be surprised when the draft happens.

How the HELL did Dubya get the popular vote?! It doesn't make any sense. I feel the dark clouds of doom getting thicker. This country is headed for disaster. People around the world will now see that over half of the country wants Dubya in the White House...now the rest of the world has a reason to hate Americans...not just the American government.

You know, the Mayan calender is said to predict the end of the world-December 20th, 2012- It seems we are on the schedualed path, but I hope not, I have no intrest in dying before 40.

I placed my vote...

2004-11-02T22:02:00.000-05:00

...and now all I can do is wait. As I type this Indiana has gone red again...BOO. When will this state wake up? I hate waiting.

Random Post....

2004-10-27T16:16:00.000-05:00

Riverbend (Baghdad Burning) has updated with her take on the American elections...go read it.

I've actually seen some Kerry ads on TV recently..(I post from Indiana and Democrats see Indiana as a lost cause, and the Dubya camp assumes Indiana is no threat, so I haven't seen many Dubya ads until recently either...hopefully Hoosiers prove both parties wrong and goes blue.

I'm worried about the gubnatorial race Indiana is having this year. Even though Indiana has voted Democratic for govenors for the past 16 years, the republican canidate, Mitch Danials, has an excellant campaign manager. His ads are perfectly designed to win the hearts and minds of those who don't delve deep into the issues and those that don't pay close attention. His campaign ads basicly say, "The current office holders aren't bad people, they've just been there too long and don't understand. It's time for a change...vote for me." This from a guy who was in Dubya's inner circle and praises the current administration, not to mention the scandals he has been involved in...IPALCO for one, costing our state thousands of jobs. Plus, I can't stand his 'I'm a regular guy' ploy. To me he comes off looking like the stereotypical used car salesman. I'm terrified of what could happen if he is elected.

By the way, did anyone see last Sunday's 'Boondocks' comic? I loved it. I'll try to find it online and post a link.

Hey, Look, It's A New Post!

2004-10-24T11:40:00.000-05:00

I was Googleing for song lyrics...mainly for Green Day's "American Idiot" and Mellencamp's "Walk Tall"...both sites had links for 'discussion', so I clicked on them to read the comments. I was very upset at what I found. Many comments were about how 'unamerican' the artists are. Alot of comments were along the lines of how they could care less about a celebrity's political point of view and that they should keep their political opinions to themselves.

How much do you want to bet these are the same people who praised Mel Gibson for being 'oh so brave' for making "The Passion" and expressing his religious views? It iritates me when people are of the mindset that people should only express their views if their views match their own views.

And on a completely unrelated note...I have recently accuired 2 new tiger-stripped kittens, both girls...one is considerably braver then the other..she doesn't mind being held, brushed, bathed, and is more apt to go exploring. The other one runs and hides if at all possible and if she can't see her sister when she is in her hiding place, she mews and mews until her sister comes looking for her. Currently, neither one has a name. I'm taking suggestions..preferably names that reflect their personalities, different languages are ok.

Idiots never cease to amaze me....

2004-10-18T11:12:00.000-05:00

Yesterday while at work I had a customer that wanted to open a credit card in his wife's name....she was not there. I told him I could open up one in his name and she could be an authorized user on the card. He did not want to do that. He went on and on about how his wife isn't feeling well and couldn't come into the store to fill out the paperwork. I tried to explain to him that legally I cannot open a credit card for someone without their presence and ID. He started yelling that all of this was too complicated and he would take his business elsewhere.

Why do these people not understand that if we can open up a card for someone without their presence that ANYONE can open up a card for someone else without their knowledge and run up credit card bills without worrying about having to pay them....it's called identity theft, credit card fraud.....

I know, I know...

2004-09-27T11:26:00.000-05:00

I haven't been updating my blog, or even keeping up with the project I started on it...However, I think only one other person besides me even reads this thing. But just incase someone gets here through the random blog button...you should really go check out 'Baghdad Burning' on my blog list. She is a blogger living in Iraq and tells it like it is for the people there. She doesn't get a chance to update often...something about not having alot of electricity in a war torn country...anyway, its a great blog...you should check it out.

Chapter 1 page 4

2004-09-13T23:36:00.000-05:00

"I came home from the war with the curious feeling that I had grown older then my father, who was then 51. It was as if a lifetime of experience had been compressed into a year and a half. A man saw the heights and depths of human behavior in Vietnam, all manner of violence and horrors so grotesque that they evoked more facination then disgust. Once I had seen pigs eating napalm-charred corpses--a memorable sight, pigs eating roast people."

"I had survived enough ambushes and doubted my capacity to endure many more physical or emotional shocks. I had all the symptoms of 'combat veteranitis': an inability to concentrate, a child-like fear of darkness, a tendancy to tire easily, chronic nightmares, an intolerance of load noises-especially doors slamming and cars backfiring-and alternating moods of depression and rage that came over me for no apparent reason. Recovery has been less then total."

Prologue...pages xx-xxi

2004-09-12T23:11:00.000-05:00

"The air-conditioned headquarters of Saigon and Danang seemed thousands of miles away. As for the United States, we did not call it 'the World' for nothing; it might as well have been on another planet. There was nothing familiar out where we were, no churches, no police, no laws, no newspapers, or any of the restraining influences without which the earth's population of virtuous people would be reduced by ninety-five percent. It was the dawn of creation in the Indochina bush, an ethical as well as geographical wilderness. Out there, lacking restraints, sanctioned to kill, confronted by a hostile country and a relentless enemy, we sank into a brutish state. The descent could be checked only by the net of a man's inner moral values, the attribute that is called character. There were a few-and I suspect Lieutenant Calley was one-who had no net and plunged all the way down, discovering in their bottommost depths a capacity for malice they probably never suspected was there."

"Most American soldiers in Vietnam-at least the ones I knew- could not be divided into good men and bad. Each possessed roughly equel measures of both qualities. I saw men who behaved with great compassion toward the Vietnamese one day and then burned down a village the next. They were, as Kipling wrote of his Tommy Atkins, neither saints 'nor blackguards too/But single men in barricks most remarkable like you.' That may be why Americans reacted with such horror to the disclosures of U.S. atrocities while ignoring those of the other side: the American soldier was a reflection of themselves."

"This book is not a work of the imagination. The events related are true, the characters real, though I have used fictitious names in some places. I have tried to describe accurately what the dominant event in the life of my generation, the Vietnam War, was like for the men who fought in it. Toward that end, I have made a great effort to resist the veteran's inclination to remember things the way he would like them to have been rather then the way they were."

"Finally, this book ought not to be regarded as a protest. Protest arises from a belief that one can change things or influence events. I am not egotistical enough to believe I can. Besides, it no longer seems necessary to registar an objection to the war, because the war is over. We lost it, and no amount of objecting will resurrect the men who died, without redeeming anything, on calvaries like Hamburger Hill and the Rockpile."

"It might, perhaps, prevent the next generation from becoming crucified in the next war.
But I don't think so." from 'A Rumor of War' by Philip Caputo

New Project for my Blog.....

2004-09-11T22:33:00.000-05:00

I've been reading the book, "A Rumor of War" by Philip Caputo, about the Vietnam War. It is a very well-written, thought-provoking book. Each day or so, I would like to share a passage or so from the book. Here is the first installment....

"The discovery that the men we had scorned as peasant guerrillas were, in fact, a lethal, determined enemy and the casualty lists that lengthened each week with nothing to show for the blood being spilled broke our early confidence. By autumn, what had begun as an adventurous expedition had turned into an exhausting, indecisive war of attrition in which we fought for no cause other then our own survival."
"Writing about this kind of warfare is not a simple task. Repeatedly, I have found myself wishing that I had been a veteran of a conventional war, with dramatic campaigns and historic battles for subject matter instead of a monotonous succession of ambushes and fire-fights. But there were no Normandies or Gettysburgs for us, no epic clashes that decided the fates of armies or nations. The war was mostly a matter of enduring weeks of expectant waiting and, at random intervals, of conducting vicious manhunts through jungles and swamps where snipers harassed us constantly and booby traps cut us down one by one." Pages xiv-xv.

Feeling like a hypocrite.....

2004-08-31T21:09:00.000-05:00

I hate Wal-Mart, yet I shop there. Why do I shop there? Let's face it, I don't make much money and they have low prices, yet it is their low prices that keep the poor, poor. A Wal-Mart moves in, surrounding stores like mom and pop businesses can't compete, so they go under...people become unemployed. If the unemployed go to Wal-Mart to work, Wal-Mart can often hire so many people for less money and give employees chump hours totaling 18 hours a week-how can you live off that?

Then Wal-Mart tells the companies they buy from to make their products cheaper. (With Wal-Marts clout they can do this) If the company is an American company with American workers they probably pay their employees $15-$30 an hour. Where can the company cut costs? Move out of the country of course. Then they can pay their new workers 25 cents a day, or if they are a generous company, a whole dollar a day! More unemployment....so now those people are forced to shop at Wal-Mart in hopes of being able to stretch what little money they have so they can try to pay their rent, morgages, etc. And the wheel just keeps on turning, and the gap between rich and poor gets wider and wider. Is there anything people can realisticly do? Not everyone can be a doctor or lawyer, and even if they could the world still needs farmers, sanitation workers, construction workers, sales people, and many other jobs. No I don't have the answers. Does anybody out there have the answers?

More 'Ugh' on Republicans

2004-08-31T20:47:00.000-05:00

So the front page of today's IndyStar runs the headline, "Giuliani, McCain extol Bush in terror fight" as well as, "Kerry criticized as lacking stewardship". I need to find out what the headlines were during the Democratic convention. And another thing I found in todays IndyStar was in the 'Letters to the Editor' section....

Some guy named John Stermer is bitching that the new poverty statistics that have been released are skewed just to make Bush look bad because the numbers are for the past 3 years. He states that poverty has dropped because it was 12.9% in 1998. To me that means poverty dropped in 1998 AND 1999, but when Bush was given the presidency in 2000, poverty levels have INCREASED 3 years in a row! He goes on to claim that the poverty levels are down from the average between 1980-1998....hmmm, let's see out of those 18 years, 12 of them had Republicans in the White House. I wonder how the numbers would compare if we compared 1980-1992 to 1992-2000....Any guesses? Anybody can skew numbers anyway they wish, but it doesn't change the fact that poverty has increased every year since Bush has been in charge. You can read the guy's whiny letter here. http://www.indystar.com/articles/1/174572-2271-022.html

Attention Stupid People!

2004-08-31T20:36:00.000-05:00

What is your problem?! What makes you think you can buy a drain cleaning tool, use it, and return it? Why did you return it with the crap still on it? EW! And who was the idiot that allowed the return and put it back on the shelf until it was discovered by me? EW! Do you realize that when you buy something, use it and return it, it is the same as stealing? Do you realize the associate that helps you could very well be on commission? When a commissioned sale is returned, the money is taken OUT of the associate's paycheck. Besides all of that, why are you returning an item with sewage on it? Do you REALLY think we can sell that? Do you WANT us to be able to sell that? Would YOU want to buy a USED drain tool encrusted with unknown DNA, viral, and bacterial strains? I think not.

I guess I should update.....

2004-08-25T18:06:00.000-05:00

...I'm back from Ireland. Ireland was alot of fun. One thing I noticed, one of the popular songs over there is Green Day's "American Idiot". It made me smile...now I have to go out and buy the CD.

U.S. customs is a pain, even if you are just being waved through. Our flight took off from Dublin and had an hour layover in Shannon. No problem...except in Shannon EVERYBODY had to get off the plane and go through US Customs! IN Shannon, IRELAND!.....waiting in line, waiting in line...the computer quits talking to the computers in the States. Wait, wait, wait, some more. Finally, the line starts moving again...non-US citizens get fingerprinted, asked questions, etc. My turn comes up. I give them my paper that says I'm not carrying any biological samples, fruit, dirt, drugs, and an itemized list of everything I bought in Ireland that's coming home with me. My paper and passport gets stamped and I'm sent on my way. The hour layover becomes a 2 and a half hour layover because of the computer problems....and once you're though customs you have to stay on the plane. Then when we landed in Boston we had to go through customs again...to prove that we have already been through customs...and to get another opportunity to tapped for a bag search...luckily, my friends and I didn't get tapped, as it would've been a mind-numbing waste of valuable time for everyone involved. No I only got tapped at security flying from Boston to Dublin....and then from Boston to Indy...I usually do get tapped for that...I think it's because I fit the "'See? We're not profiling!' Profile" (red-blond hair, blue eyed female)

My vacation also consited of 4 days of GenCon! That was a blast as well..I will definatly be going again next year. Now that I'm back I suppose I should start watching the news again.

No posting for awhile....

2004-08-09T23:22:00.000-05:00

I'm going to Ireland! I've been saving for this trip for over 2 years, and I finally get to go! Whoohoo!!! I'll be back with tales of airports and how the Irish see Americans. (Unless I chicken out and tell people I'm Canadian)

Does this mean Republicans are worried???

2004-08-06T07:26:00.000-05:00

I usually don't post so early, as I'm on my way to work, but when I heard THIS on the news this morning, I had to post. Apparently, there is confusion over the voter registration card being mass-mailed in Marion county (Indianapolis). The Democrats say the mailings were done by the Republicans to cause confusion and reduce voter turn out. The story can be found here http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story , if that link dosen't take you right to the story, click on 'voter registration confusion' at that website. I wonder if this means Republicans think they could lose Indiana..... I do find this new law about 'voter registration maintenance' a bit fishy, especially during an election year.

Argh!

2004-08-02T22:29:00.000-05:00

So I was reading the Indy Star at work today and apparently the 10 Commandherement statue from the courthouse in Alabama is on tour. The people interviewed were saying such things as "The ACLU is still the enemy." And another person was claiming that the U.S. was based on the Bible. Uhhh...has she read any history books? The founding fathers were Diests, not Christians. Why do you think they created seperation of church and state? People like this irritate me to no end. You can read the story here.http://www.indystar.com/articles/4/166948-3004-010.html

Ok, I've been pretty quiet lately....

2004-07-26T19:33:00.000-05:00

I've been trying to steer clear of alot of news lately as it tends to make me irrate. The closest thing to the news I've been watching is local TV news and a couple of blogs. This worries me because its been quite easy to hide under the rock, yet still watch the news. It disturbs me because if I, an anti-bush person can hide from the news while still watching the news-how are the bush-lovers supposed to be informed on just how evil Bush is?

I can't understand how people can still be in favor of Bush-it doesn't make any sense-It confuses me. I have this horrible feeling that Indiana is going to go red again this election year. I also have the feeling the govenorship is going red this year, even though Indiana has had a tendancy to go democrat on govenors for at least the past 16 years. Why do I think that? Mainly because of the republican Danials' campaign ads...they are almost pure genious...they don't say much, but come across as heartfelt and uplifting...alot of the ads are misleading, but no one wants to be the first to throw mud...(I must admit I'm shocked that no one has yet) But his ads are perfect for gathering the sheep-like masses...the sheep-like complacency of the vast majority frightens me.

Whoo Hoo!

2004-07-20T22:48:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite authors is coming out with a new book in the spring...it's called "Assassination Vacation" by Sarah Vowell. If you have not read any of her stuff, you should. She also wrote, "The Partly Cloudy Patriot" which has recently come out in paperback. I can't wait to read her new book.

Where do these people come from?

2004-07-17T21:13:00.000-05:00

So I have a new job now...selling appliances...and yesterday I had one of those pain in the ass customers. Since our customers want delivery 95% of the time, we don't keep alot of stock in-store...delivery is done out of the warehouse, which is 1000 times bigger then our stock room area. We had a customer that wanted a washer that minute....on a washer we don't keep in stock. (we could of had it delivered to her home in less then 24 hours, but that wasn't good enough) She asked, "Well, what DO you have?" I told her what we had...a model that was $200 more then the model she wanted...so she wanted that model for the same price...I don't think so...$50 we can do, but $200?! That would've been 50% off...and the markup on those is only about 20%. Another couple walks up interested in a washer and the bitchy lady tells them, 'they don't have anything in stock...you should go somewhere else.' The couple looks at the bitchy lady like she is insane and keep their distance...but still stay in the department. She demands a manager. I get the manager. "THIS is the manager?!" She screams. (ok, the manager looks a little young, but she didn't need to scream) She continues her tirade about wanting the $400 washer for $200. Her 2 kids that were with her looked like they wanted to fall through the floor. The oldest one, a girl about 10 or 11, calmly says to her, "Mom, you are being completely inmature, calm down. We'll just go somewhere else." The 'mother' snaps back, "I am NOT being inmature. These people need to sell me a washer!" Finally, finally, finally...the bitchy lady storms out of the store. The couple that had been watching from a distance walk up and say, "Wow. How do you stand dealing with people like that?" They bought a washer and went merrily on their way. I just wonder how often that 10 or 11 year old girl has to be the level-headed one in the family...hopefully her mother won't rub off on her.

WHY are they doing THIS...

2004-07-08T21:02:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite radio stations (the 80's station) is changing formats. They are changing to Christian contemporary. WHY?! Is that really going to bring in more advertising dollars? I can't imagine how. Do they think they will retain their current listening audience?
And WHY are they taking over the 80's station?! They are the only 80's station in the listening area while there are at least 2 other Christian stations in the area. How come they didn't take over one of the 50 kajillion country stations in the area? At least if they did THAT there would probably be a higher retention rate of the current listeners. Now I have to reprogram my radio...guess I'll give the oldies station a button instead of 'alternative station + scan'

OY Vey.....

2004-07-06T19:38:00.000-05:00

So I managed to avoid going to Wal-Mart all holiday weekend despite the fact that I needed food.... However, I discovered that the breeders come out in droves on Tuesdays. I think I was the only customer in the building without children. Somehow, I managed to get out of the store without performing a self-hysterectomy in the middle of the cereal aisle.

Guess what I saw?

2004-06-20T19:58:00.000-05:00

Today, as I was driving in south central Indiana for Father's Day, I saw a car with an interesting mix of bumper stickers...he had an Indy Racing League sticker, a Nascar sticker of a 3 with a halo, a Nascar #20 window shade, an American flag, and...dun duna la...a Pro Kerry bumper sticker!! Yea! Seeing such a car fills me with hope and optimism....

Quick Comment....

2004-06-17T19:48:00.000-05:00

...If you are a guy sitting in front of the post office eating your lunch while your stomach is doubled over your pants and your man-boobs are in desperate need of a bra you DO NOT get to say, "Hey Thunderthighs! Boom boom boom!" to the size 14 chick walking into the post office.

All right, fine, here's my Reagan post....

2004-06-09T23:02:00.000-05:00

I actually don't find myself thinking about Reagan at all. He is the 1st president I can remember but I find myself thinking about Mrs. Reagan. I heard on NPR that there were to be few speakers at the funeral per her request. I understand that. I'm sure to Nancy, her husband died several years ago. I wonder if she feels she must play the grieving widow when I'm sure she has conflicting feelings of grief and relief. After all, he did have Alzhiemers and I know from experience that it is very difficult to watch a loved one go through that. For me it was my grandpa and I saw what my grandma and my father went through during his decline and the relief that was felt at his passing. I think Reagan having Alzhiemers brought the disese to the public's eye and is the reason why so much research has been done on it..after all if such a prominant, wealthy figure can get it.....

Nancy, don't feel guilty about feeling relief, there are those of us that understand.

So they need celebrities to spout their propaganda now?

2004-06-07T20:11:00.000-05:00

So I was getting ready for work this morning and heard a commercial with Mary Lou Retton advertizing Christianity. WHY? Basicly, she said, "Back in 1984 I won a gold medal because I scored a perfect 10, but I'm not perfect. There is only one person that is perfect and I found him. His name is Jesus Christ." Are these commercials really neccessary? Why does christianity feel the need to advertise? Do you see any other religions doing this? No. And can you imagine what the right wingers would do if there was a television ad that said, "Find your own path to the Goddess-come join us in a circle casting." Wouldn't happen as Wiccans don't go around recruiting people...but can you imagine the uproar from the right?

Proselytizers tick me off. At work we have customers that shove 'You will suffer the torment of hell' pamphlets in our merchandise. Then other customers or employees pick up a can of paint only to be greeted by a card that says 'convert or burn'. Everytime I find one I go through the rest of the store trying to find all of the cards before a customer can get offended. They always tend to put them in the same spots so I have turned it into a game and make comment on where I find them...or don't find them, "Hey, they forgot to put a card in the Bug I.D. book this week."

Why is it that people who claim to follow someone who preached 'love one another' seem to be the most hateful, judgemental, intolerant people I have ever met?

1st Amendment? What 1st Amendment?

2004-05-28T19:44:00.000-05:00

Teachers have been fired and poetry classes have been banned from a high school in New Mexico because one girl read her poem to the school and it was deemmed 'unamerican' by the principal. The girl's mother, who happens to be a teacher, was ordered to find the poem and destroy it.

What has Bush done to this country? Words can't express my anger. How can people allow this to happen? Why do the masses turn a blind eye? Can't they see what is happening? It starts off slow.....

Here are more details.

This is the poem the girl named Courtney wrote and read over the school's closed circuit television.

Revolution X

Bush said no child would be left behind
And yet kids from inner-city schools
Work on Central Avenue
Jingling cans that read
Please sir, may I have some more?
They hand out diplomas like toilet paper
And lower school standards
Because
Underpaid, unrespected teachers
Are afraid of losing their jobs
Funded by the standardized tests
That shows our competency
When I'm in detox.
This is the Land of the Free ...
Where the statute of limitations for rape is only five damn years!
And immigrants can't run for President.
Where Muslims are hunted because
Some suicidal men decided they didn't like
Our arrogant bid for modern imperialism.
This is the Land of the Free ...
You drive by a car whose
Bumper screams
God bless America!
Well, you can scratch out the B
And make it Godless
Because God left this country a long time ago.
The founding fathers made this nation
On a dream and now
Freedom of Speech
Lets Nazis burn crosses, but
Calls police to
Gay pride parades.
We somehow
Can afford war with Iraq
But we can't afford to pay the teachers
Who educate the young who hold the guns
Against the "Axis of Evil"
Land of the Free ...
This is the land
If you're politically assertive
They call you a traitor and
Damn you to ostracism.
Say good-bye to Johnny Walker Lindh
And his family.
Bye Bye
American Pie.
So maybe
My ideas about this nation
Don't resolve around perfection
But at least I know
Education is more important
Than money.
Land of the Free . . .
If this was utopia
We'd have to see each other naked
Before we got married
But instead, we see each other naked all the time
Because the government has my social security number
And the name of my dog!
And then we make babies,
But don't worry, they won't be left behind
And they grow up saying
God bless America!
But they don't know who Bush is
Because they never learned the Presidents.
And they will ride the ship Amistad
To our dreamland shores
Bearing the same shackles as us.
I'm here to say that
Generation X
Is pissed and we are taking over,
Ripping down the American illusion of perfection
We are the future generation
I have my qualifications
I know it looks like Angel Soft paper,
But don't worry
It's a diploma
Do I look qualified?
You can take our toilet paper,
But you can't take our Revolution.

Fun with News Articles

2004-05-26T19:09:00.000-05:00

(Italics by Mooncat)

Article by Curt Anderson..Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- U.S. officials have obtained new intelligence deemed highly credible indicating al-Qaida or other terrorists are in the United States and preparing to launch a major attack this summer, sources familiar with the information said Tuesday.

The intelligence does not include a time, place or method of attack but is among the most disturbing received by the government since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, according to a senior federal counterterrorism official speaking on the condition of anonymity.

(ok, so the intelligence is the most disturbing since the intelligence received about Sept 11th?...I thought the Bush administration said there wasn't any intelligence about the attack that became Sept. 11th. Or are they saying that the government has not received disturbing plans since Sept 11th?)

The concerns are driven by intelligence deemed credible that was obtained about a month ago indicating an attack may be planned between now and Labor Day.

Of most concern, an official said, is that terrorists may possess and use a chemical, biological or radiological weapon that could cause much more damage and casualties than a conventional bomb.

(I thought they just said they didn't know anything about the upcoming attack they claim is coming...are they trying to instil fear and mass panic into the populace?)

"There is clearly a steady drumbeat of information that they are going to attack and hit us hard," said the official, who described the intelligence as highly credible.

('oh, this time we mean it...the attack will come')

The official declined to provide specifics about the information sources but said there was an unusually high level of corroboration.

Despite that, an official said there wasn't an immediate plan to raise the U.S. terrorism threat level from yellow, or elevated, to orange, or high. The level has been at yellow -- midpoint on the five-color scale -- since January.

(ok...so this is the most disturbing intelligence since 9-11, but it isn't bad enough to raise the threat level...so all of the other times we have been at Orange Level was just a hoax? A way to boost Dumbya's approval rating? A way to try and instill panic and fear to the masses?)

Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller plan to hold a news conference this afternoon to discuss the threat and to ask Americans to watch for several suspected al-Qaida operatives who may be in the country, officials said. And the FBI will dispatch a bulletin to about 18,000 state and local law-enforcement agencies about the threat.

The Justice Department and FBI plan to ask for the public's help in locating several suspected terror sympathizers, including some whose names have not been made public before. (WITCH! WITCH! She tried to put a hex on me! WITCH!) The bureau likely plans another public push to find Aafia Siddiqui, a 32-year-old Pakistani woman who has a doctorate in neurological science and has studied at MIT and Brandeis University in the Boston area, as well as in Houston.

The FBI also might seek help locating a man Siddiqui has been linked to, Adnan G. El Shukrijumah, a suspected al-Qaida member who spent time in Florida and whose name has come up in interrogations of al-Qaida lieutenant Khalid Sheik Mohammed.

The FBI also has already created a task force that is focused solely on dealing with this summer's threat. The task force, whose existence until recently was classified, is intended to ensure that no valuable bits of information or intelligence fall through the cracks -- as happened repeatedly before the Sept. 11 attacks.

(oh, is that what the secret societies are? Yeah, sure.)

Beginning with Saturday's dedication of the new World War II Memorial in Washington, the summer presents a number of high-profile targets in the United States. They include the G-8 summit in Georgia next month that will attract top officials from some of America's closest allies, the Democratic National Convention in Boston in July and the Republican National Convention in August in New York.

U.S. authorities repeatedly have said al-Qaida is determined to mount an attack on American soil, in part to announce to the world that it remains capable of doing so despite the money and effort that has gone into homeland security in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.

(yes, the Bush administration seems quite fond of telling us the sky is falling.)

There also is concern that terrorists might try to mount an attack to coincide with November's election. The fallout from the March 11 train bombings in Spain taught al-Qaida that an attack timed to an election can have a big impact. Spain's former ruling party was ousted in the voting that followed the bombing, which killed 191 and injured more than 2,000.

The official did not say how many suspected al-Qaida or other terrorist operatives are believed in the country, whether they made their way into the United States recently or have been here for some time. The FBI has warned in the past that Islamic extremist groups may attempt to recruit non-Middle Easterners or women for attacks because they would be less likely to arouse suspicion.

(Everyone's a terrorist. Suspect everyone. We must seek them out....WITCH! WITCH!)

Sexist Jerks

2004-05-25T19:19:00.000-05:00

I work at a hardware store and I'm good at what I do, so when I answer the phone and the customer says, "I have to talk to one of the guys in plumbing." I say, "How can I help you?" (I'm actually Paint, but I know the rest of the store as well). Generally, the customer will state their question and I will answer it. This particular customer says, "No. I need to talk with one of the guys." "Sir, I do know the quite a bit about plumbing...what's your question?" "No. I need to talk to one of the guys because if you don't know the answer I'm not going to repeat myself." (grrr...put on the fake smile) "Well, if you let me know what the problem is I can direct you to the guy that will best be able to answer your question." (This usually works...not with this guy.) "Why do you care? Get me a man to talk to." I go up to one of the managers phone in hand and say, "I have a customer with plumbing questions but he won't tell me what they are." Turns out the guy had a leaky toilet. As plumbing problems go this is a simple problem. Jerk.

One would think being a female employee at a hardware store I would encounter this on a daily basis...NOT true, which is why I find it so irritating when it does happen. Would anyone care to guess which age group/sex of people fall into the 'sexist' catagory?

If you said men over the age of 75 you are WRONG! This group actually comes in at a distant 3rd!

Did you say men of the baby boommer generation? If so That is alos wrong...they are the most beligerantly annoying about it, but they actually come in 2nd overall.

The correct answer is women over age 75! I still can't figure this one out, but they also seem to think it's cool when a woman can help them.

Can anyone explain this to me?!

2004-05-20T19:44:00.000-05:00

Gas Prices. I have a long commute to and from work so I notice gas prices on a daily basis. Wednesday morning at the Citgo near my place regular gas was $1.99 (down from 2.05 the previous week) Gas at the Speedway near my workplace was $1.95. After work the Speedway dropped it's price to 1.92, Citgo was still 1.99. This morning on my way to work the Citgo was 1.91 and the Speedway was still at 1.92. Sounds like the prices were dropping right? WRONG! After work today the Speedway had jumped it's price up to $2.13!! and the Citgo was up to $2.14!!

And can someone explain this...when I first started learning to drive (about 12-13 years ago) I paid between .95-$1.05 a gallon and oil changes were between $15-$20 and individual quarts of 10w30 were about $1.49. Today when I go for an oil change I still pay about $15-$20, but I usually have a coupon for a $12 oil change, no other purchace required and a quart of 10w30 still costs around $1.50. Why such a discrepency? Does this make sense to anyone?

Why do Republicans hate a clean environment?

2004-05-18T19:51:00.000-05:00

Ashcroft is digging up laws from the 1800's (sailor-mongering) to bring down Greenpeace. (And to spread his message of 'government knows best...1st Amendment does not apply'. Has anyone checked the National Archives to see if the Constituion is still there? Here's a link to the story.

WHAT!!!???!!!

2004-05-14T20:16:00.000-05:00

This morning I was watching the local news and apparently the government is trying to convince the people that they never had Nick Berg in custody! There are records people, how convienient that they now 'disappear'. This administration is nothing but a bunch of liars, thieves, and power-hungery assholes hell-bent on destroying the planet (or at least its people)....a war that most of the planet is against, repealing environmental laws, ignoring Geneva Conventions..making those that didn't already hate the U.S. hate the U.S., and making those that already hated the U.S. hate the U.S. even more.

You know what this war makes me think of? (I mean besides Vietnam and other Giant Mistakes in History)

"Hey, look over there...a bee's nest! You know I was stung by a wasp the other day. They should pay." Person W picks up stick and walks toward the nest.

"Wait! Those are bees, not wasps...the wasp stung you, the bees had nothing to do with it!" says person X.

W sticks the stick into the hive and beats on it. The bees come rushing out and sting him. "See! SEE!!! I TOLD you they were evil!" he screams.

"Argh! RUN! They're after us because of him and we were just standing here!" exclaim people Y and Z.

So what happens now?

2004-05-08T21:23:00.000-05:00

The other day I ended up seeing part of a History Channel program about the Vietnam war. Actually, it seemmed to be a documentry focusing on General Westmoreland's attempts to fight the war.

Westmoreland's strategy was 'more troops, more troops, 150,000 should do it. Oh wait, I need more troops.' After troop numbers reached over half a million, secratary of defence said, "no more troops" but President Johnson overruled him and sent over 50,000+ troops.

There was an interview with Westmoreland himself where Westmoreland maintained that had we stayed in Vietnam, we would have won. (Yeah, right.)

While the US won every major battle in Vietnam, there was never a political victory. Military victories mean nothing if political victories are non-existant. This is the major problem the US is currently facing in Iraq.

The US needs political victories in Iraq. This seems very unlikly to happen. This is a revenge for daddy war, this is a war for oil in the guise of 'national defense'.

It has been said this war will make or break the US's relationship with the Middle East and the rest of the world. (true) Now that the current situation in Iraq is completely FUBAR, I fear it will get much worse.

We shouldn't have gone into Iraq in the first place, but now that we are there the job needs to be finished properly. What that is I do not know, but I do know that the US must find a way to win politically, not militarily.

Iraq is currently in chaos. No real government power, no army, no real police force, yet there are angry, armed Iraqi's. If the US leaves the chaos, the chaos will continue and angry Iraqis will be blaming the US for the existing chaos. It would only be a matter of time before someone comes along and promises the people that everything will be okay if they all ban together to fight their common enemies. And the people will follow because what this guy says is everything they want to hear and they will believe it to be true because they want it to be true because that is what people tend to do in situations they deem hopeless and every dictator past, present, and future knows it.

I don't have any answers. I wish I did.

2004-04-29T20:12:00.000-05:00

And this little tidbit is sure to be lost in the shuffle, just like all of this admin's environmental policies.
From NPR's 'All Things Considered'

"The Bush administration decides to include salmon bred in hatcheries in its count of wild salmon populations. The result could be that some species will soon be deemed healthy and removed from the Endangered Species list."

What do you want to bet this is so Bush can claim how the overall health of salmon has increased since he took office? Next thing you know Bush will want to include houseplants to determine how much 'natural land' there is in urban areas.

2004-04-29T20:00:00.000-05:00

What can I say about the Bush/Cheaney closed-door meeting with the 9/11 commission that hasn't been said before? How many times have repubs said the President is not above the law whenever a Democrat is in office, but when a repub is in charge, they are to be treated as the 'the one true god'. NO president should be above the law.

2004-04-27T20:34:00.000-05:00

I have always known that I most likely know someone from my ROTC days is fighting over in Iraq or Afganistan, I just don't know which ones. Lauran? Tom? Ryan? Michelle? Countless others from Bison Battalion....Although it has been about 5 years or more since I have seen or heard from any of them, I wonder where they are and if they are okay. However, now I know someone on her way over...somewhere...she's not even sure where...they haven't told her, but she suspects Afganistan. Fellow co-worker Kate. She is a student at Indiana University, so she only worked part-time, but as of yesterday she is a full-time soldier. Be safe Kate.

2004-04-27T20:25:00.000-05:00

New Army Commercial....
"Mission: Observe enemy activity from a concealed location. You have suppiles for 5 days-it's day 12- Are you tough enough? Find out at goarmy.com"
So this ad is implying our army won't be given the supplies it needs to complete a mission, but it doesn't matter because 'real men' don't need food and water. It also seems to say "we will lie about the duration of your missions" I guess this can be seen as 'truth in advertising', but to imply that soldiers don't need the proper supplies to do their jobs and the ones that do require proper supplies like food and water aren't 'tough enough' is just a disgrace to the men and women in uniform dying everyday so some rich kid can have his revenge for his daddy. I admire our soldiers and it makes me sick that the government expects them to fight with substandard equipment or lackthereof.

2004-04-27T20:19:00.000-05:00

Saw Kill Bill Vol. 2 over the weekend with friends. Good movie. I liked it, but I would've enjoyed it more if some idiot parents had not brought the crying baby. How the hell can people think this is a good idea?! Leave the kid home with a sitter. Can't find one? Stay home-rent a movie. Sitter too expensive? If you can't afford $20 (4 hours at $5 an hour for the high school neighbor kid) then you have other things you should be worried about paying for...like food and clothing for the kid. I'm not even going to get into what I think of parents that bring toddlers to 'R' movies.

2004-04-23T21:28:00.000-05:00

The state of the world pisses me off and this is where I will rant about it. Things you should know about me: I am a liberal and proud of it, I was raised Catholic, but I now follow a Pagan path, close-minded people irritate me, and close-minded people that force their beliefs onto others infuriate me.