I'm just sayin'...

Change. Yeah.

"one who will preach doctrines he knows to be untrue to men he knows to be idiots." H.L. Mencken

Mencken's definition of a demagogue is as apt today as it was early last century. I expect the ecstasy seen in some political gatherings today would be difficult to tell from that seen in crowds gathered at the Well of the Comitia in ancient Rome, listening to someone running for office as Tribune of the Plebs and promising a general cancellation of debt to all.

Of course, the crowds of ancient Rome were also known to stone a erstwhile politicians for not keeping campaign promises.  Hmmmmm.

I'm holding out for puppies...

“You know why they call it birth control? Because it’s meant to stop a birth from happening nine months later. We know when life begins. Everyone who ever bought a pack of condom knows when life begins. To put it another way, with conception something begins. What do you think it is? A car? A 1948 Buick?” —Peggy Noonan

Must. Not. Choke. Co-worker.

While talking to a co-worker, the conversation turned politics. He volunteered the main reason he would never vote Republican in a presidential election was SCOTUS. When I pressed him, he said, "A McCain nominee would change the fundamental nature of the court." He went on to explain that the judges expected to leave the court generally lean (almost to the point of falling down) to the left.

So I asked him what he meant. He replied, "He would appoint conservatives, and that would unbalance the court."

So I asked him if an Obama nominee would maintain the "nature of the court" as he saw it. "Oh, yes," he said, "That would be just fine. We have to maintain balance."

I asked him why. He said it was "somewhere in the Constitution."

If ever Providence needed to be invoked...

Gun Owner. Voter. NOBAMA

If you're inclined, you can go over to the McCain store and buy this on stickers, t-shirts, and buttons.

A different look at "concealed carry"

Now that's using your, uh, well...

Well, you read about Cleavage Caddy for yourself, and buy it here if you're inclined.

Going "Green"? Nah.

As I was cutting the grass in my front yard recently, a neighbor walking by stopped to chat. First from his mouth was, "Going Green, huh?"

Prompted by my use of a Scott reel mower, he wasn’t seeing what he thought he was seeing. Even though I've been known to hug a tree or two (I'm particularly partial to Carpinus caroliniana Betulaceae and Fagus grandifolia), I wouldn't want my sister to marry one. Green is not a big deal to me.

I use the reel mower on my postage stamp front yard primarily to avoid the noise and dust cloud generated by my power mower. I still crank up the 5HP, self-propelled beast for the much larger back yard. There’s also a bit more exercise with a reel mower, and that doesn’t hurt. Well, not too much.

Unless you have environmental personality disorder, green is achieved by making it affordable and reasonable. Even AlGore, a classic case of EPD if ever there was one, hasn't moved into a yurt because it isn't reasonable. Of course, he thinks it's reasonable that we move into yurts, but that's between him and his shrink.

When seconds count...

I've said it before, and I'll say it again now. The police are there to draw the chalk outline and look for the perp. Protection is not part of their job.

from the AP and the Times Union.

MONTPELIER, Vt. -- A 911 dispatcher trying to find a Vermont woman being beaten to death was slowed by technical problems and a bureaucratic roadblock at Verizon Wireless, delaying emergency responders' ability to reach the victim, a county official in New York said Friday.

The dispatcher was placed on hold for two minutes and then got a busy signal when trying to fax a form that would allow Verizon to release the billing address of the victim's cellphone, said Bill Cook, Washington County public safety director.

It was 30 minutes between the time a screaming Francine Morgan placed the 911 call from her home in Wells that it was answered across the state line in New York and the Vermont State Police in Rutland could be sent to her home, where she was found dead.

Nothing 'till next Tuesday...

Going to funeral.