Keith Olbermann has another of his special commentaries out. It's too bad neither President Bush nor Vice-President Cheney have an iota of understanding about what it is they have done that sets so many Patriotic Americans teeth on edge. And as far as doing the right thing is concerned, Mr.…
The external world, so fascinating, so infinite in its variety, has us firmly in hand and thoroughly mesmerized. Lasting happiness is almost ours – over there, just ahead of us, right around the next corner. When we round that corner and find it has eluded us, something in us says,…
Can you imagine what must have been going on behind the scenes on this day all those years ago in Philadelphia? The discussions, the arguments, the compromises all to commit...treason. Each and every signer of the Declaration of Independence was putting his head in a noose for what he believed…
I rolled out of bed this morning to the sound of thunder and pouring rain. That seems to be the pattern around here the past week or so. What is unusual about that is thunderstorms, unassociated with a weather front usually don't happen before the sun has had a chance…
This caught my eye this morning in the Houston Chronicle... They're scattered across Houston's neighborhoods like pebbles flung from someone's hand. Now, almost two years into their Houston experience, this displaced population roughly the size of Beaumont longs for an identity free of Hurricane Katrina. Two years later...This is how…
As I was reading my email and feeds I hit a link from Earth & Sky Blogs that led to the following video. "See" how the world is changing. Visual imagery can tell stories and truths which would be very hard to capture and communicate otherwise. Hans Rosling, Professor of…
Gray Day on Galveston Bay
I generally don't just copy someone else's full post. This one twigged on a number of levels so I'll let Jim Hightower say it himself. Jim Hightower | WHY NOT "DRINK LOCAL?" Friday, June 29, 2007 Posted by Jim Hightower Listen to this Commentary In a triumph of marketing over…
This mornings Washington Post has some interesting reading. Even David Broder is on Chaney's case this morning. If you haven't checked out the Post's series on the essential Dick Chaney you really should...Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency. But then we get to George Will. I am beginning to think the…
Well after a couple of weeks of playing target practice with a ray gun the sore throat they were promising has arrived. Looks like this most expensive of diets has now kicked into it's starting phase... Checking the news this morning I see Warren Buffett is living up to the…
A great read on the "Buy Local" meme. Heavy on the economics... The Ethicurean: Chew the right thing. » Blog Archive » Guest post: Michael Shuman defends the “buy local” premise Michael Shuman, author of the books “The Small-Mart Revolution” and “Going Local,” wrote the best rebuttal by far to…
As I was perusing through the morning emails the daily forecast started me thinking. Back on our first summer trip to the mountains in August of 2003 the folk down in town of Valle Crucis were all talking about the uncommonly hot weather they were having. I want to say…
Today will be the 9th radiation treatment of 35. You could say we are about a quarter of the way through. The strange thing about these treatments is you never know from one day to the next how your voice will react. Saturday everyone said my voice was stronger, Sunday…
Pushing the Envelope on Presidential Power | Cheney | washingtonpost.com Shortly after the first accused terrorists reached the U.S. naval prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, on Jan. 11, 2002, a delegation from CIA headquarters arrived in the Situation Room. The agency presented a delicate problem to White House counsel Alberto…
All last week the weather prognosticators were promising us a beautiful, dry and sunny weekend to make up for the unending rain of last weekend...They blew it. The high pressure dome they were expecting to settle in decided to wander over to Phoenix. I don't think they needed it. Yesterday…
One of the blogs I like that comes from the Appalachian Mountains is: Appalachian Treks Here's another bit of advice I read somewhere that changed the way I take pictures: Find a different perspective. The vast majority of all photos are taken from a position 5'2" to 6'2" off the…
Garrison tells us that... Tonight is Midsummer Night's Eve, also called St. John's Eve. St. John is the patron saint of beekeepers. It's a time when the hives are full of honey. The full moon that occurs this month was called the Mead Moon, because honey was fermented to make…
The article was about the resignation of another Assistant to Gonzales resigning. But the final paragraph reached out and grabbed me... On the same day that letter was written, however, Mercer instructed a GOP staff member to insert language into a USA Patriot Act reauthorization bill allowing federal prosecutors to…
What it is I dream of...
My short answer...If you have heard they have cancer, don't ask "How are you?" Talk about a loaded question with no real answers at the beginning of treatment. "How you feeling?" would be safer...just. "Hi!" is the best and the safest yet. My two cents thrown out into the blogosphere.…
Colin Fletcher (photograph, John Sexton/Appalachian Long Distance Hikers Association) For most of us who care about ecology and the environment, there was some personal experience that brought us there. For me, it was wilderness hiking, beginning 30-plus years ago in the Grand Canyon and continuing across the American West. Two…
I had a funny thought as I lay on the...hmmm, I really don't know what to call it...the platform(?) while x-rays were taken of my throat before my radiation treatments started yesterday. I was recalling my elementary school days during the Cuban Missile Crisis when they would line us up…
So far so good. Other than a raspy voice not much to report after the first weeks radiation treatment. No news is good news I guess. The promised cooling effect of afternoon thunderstorms did not happen yesterday. So it was quite warm as I finished the yard in the late…
Verlyn Klinkenborg has a new piece out. His observations on humanity and our relationship to the natural world do not put humanity in the best of lights...Rightfully so in my humble opinion. Millions of Missing Birds, Vanishing in Plain Sight - New York Times Last week, the Audubon Society released…
There was a break in the afternoon gully washers yesterday. I took that opportunity to play a bit of catchup on the yard work. I managed to mow about 2/3 of the yard...if I'm lucky I may get the rest mowed this afternoon. At 6am this morning we are already…
The weather the past two days was...to be nice...wet. Occasional heavy thunderstorms interspersed with steady rain. Short periods of local street flooding. One of the changes I have seen in my half century in SE Texas (particularly the flat coastal plain) is the change in road building styles and flood…
I was sitting here checking out some WP plugins when I noticed the time. Poured my first cup of the morning muse and turned on "Sunday Morning". I was late for the preamble but caught most of the first story. Even Sunday Morning is on the sugar story and what…
The Ethicurean Blog always has some intriguing posts about the food we eat and how it is raised or shows up at our table. Maybe I've been reading them too much, 'cause this whole dependence on corn is beginning to remind me of something else. Are we planning to trade…
To judge by his latest columns my answer would have to be yes. It looks like I'm not the only one who thins so either. Marbo is Guest Posting over at The Carpetbagger Report this weekend and has a systematic rebuttal to George Will's latest column telling us how good…
American Agriculture - Do you trust a CEO to decide what you eat? It may just be my inherent distrust of corporations or the complete lack of values most corporations have shown in the course of this country's history, but, I really do not trust my food quality and safety…
From My PhotoBlog at Gary-Boyd.com I just learned an interesting fact. If you ever had a Blogger Blog that you posted photo's to, you seem to also have a Picas Web Album for that blog. You can go to your Web Album and create a slideshow like the one above…
Currently: 72° Dewpoint: 68° Wind: Calm Humidity: 85% Pressure: 29.85 in Hg Average: High 91° Low 72° Record: High 100° (1936) Low 58° (1933) Today's Sunrise: 6:20AM Today's Sunset: 8:24PM (14:04 hours of sunlight) The afternoon thunder is becoming a summertime pattern, with street flooding and power outages becoming a…
Currently: 73° Dewpoint: 72° Wind: Calm Humidity: 97% Pressure: 29.87 in Hg Average: High 91° Low 72° Record: High 102° (1998) Low 62° (1995) Today's Sunrise: 6:20AM Today's Sunset: 8:23PM (14:03 hours of sunlight) I am still working on a repeatable format for this blog, so bear with me. If…
Gaian Tarot Oracle: an Online Reading I was reading Cate's post Four of Earth which led me to Joanna's Gaian Tarot While looking at her art I saw the link to the Oracle...Go try asking a question.
5:52am Currently: 75° Dewpoint: 73° Wind: Calm Humidity: 94% Pressure: 29.92 in Hg Average: High 90° Low 72° Record: High 100° (2006) Low 61° (1955) Today's Sunrise: 6:20AM Today's Sunset: 8:23PM (14:03 hours of sunlight) Yesterday on the drive to work the weather prognosticator was saying something about a heat…
Spotted this in my feed reader and thought I'd pass it along for all of you southerners out there slapping yourselves silly. OakStump Farms Mosquito Trap Eliminates populations of skeeters When I saw this cheap trap at Logan's Trading Post three years ago, I figured what the heck, but we've…
Currently: 73° Dewpoint: 72° Wind: NE 3 MPH Humidity: 97% Pressure: 29.98 in Hg Average: High 90° Low 72° Record: High 101° (1978) Low 60° (1955) Today's Sunrise: 6:20AM Today's Sunset: 8:23PM (14:03 hours of sunlight) The forecast is calling for seasonal highs and lows for the day so life…
When I first started blogging I posted some photos from my North Carolina trips over my Photo Blog. One of the photos has consistently pulled in search engine hits. This is that photo..Brinegar Cabin on the Blue Ridge Parkway Built circa 1875 by Martin Brinegar. He and his wife, Caroline, raised…
Current Weather: 73° Dewpoint: 72° Wind: Calm Humidity: 97% Pressure: 29.94 in Hg Average: High 90° Low 71° Record: High 96° (1953) Low 57° (1955) Today's Sunrise: 6:20AM Today's Sunset: 8:22PM Well, this is the first weekday post on this site. I am not sure where it's going but it'll…
My morning email brought me message from Amazon.com about a new release from Adrian Young. It seems if I enjoy Alison Krause (which I do) then Amazon thinks I’ll enjoy Adrienne’s music also…I guess their code works pretty well, cause she sound real nice… Adrienne Young From the chorus of…
I hope Charles Osgood doesn't get upset with me for borrowing his date format. I have liked the way it sounds ever since he started using in, I think it was Twenty O'One...Sorry for the sparsity of posts. I have been playing with WordPress for a few days now, first…
My email brought me the latest "News From Vermont" a regular newsletter put out by Burr Morse from the Morse Farm Sugarworks. I stumbled upon a copy of one of his email missives a while back and I enjoyed it so much I was moved to subscribe. I have been…
This mornings muse was interrupted by intermittent outages of my wireless connection to my dsl. I ended up having to leave the house without posting or finishing my daily email read. I'll try to post an evening wine muse instead this evening. Until then wander over to The Ladybug Letter…
What a difference a day makes...Yesterday morning I was in Medical Mode and not hurrying out the door, so I drew my first cup and glanced up at the "Weather Station". The outside temperature was 68 and the humidity was lower than normal, just in the 80% vicinity, so I…
Looks like the same old game for the Bush administration. Give a big speech taking the oppositions side away from them, do some back office finagling to ensure what you just promised doesn't happen, and then just assume no one will notice. WASHINGTON — The Bush administration is drastically scaling…
March 27, 2006I have decided that trying to keep up with multiple blogs requires more time than I want to devote. So I am now keeping my political musing on my main blog. If you wish to wander over you can follow this link...Political MusesYou will have to read through…
Leave it to the Senator to put his finger on the "New" policy for Iraq. One innovation of the new strategy is closing markets to vehicles, thereby precluding car bombs that kill so many and garner so much media attention. Petraeus understandably wanted us to see this development. How far…
On Easter Sunday the Iraq prognosis could be better. A political breakthrough in Washington already happened, Hamre (John J. Hamre, a former deputy defense secretary) said, when November's elections turned into a referendum on the war. "The American people have been waiting to hear how we were going to win in…
You know, either politicians are getting really stupid or they think we are. It really doesn't matter a whole lot if they are being paid off any more, the appearance that they are being paid off is something they should have avoided. The smell of this mandate by the Gov…
OK, maybe I'm dense...I know all of you on the right are sure of it, but...That big unanswered question...But, when exactly will the war in Iraq be over? We keep being told it will be over when we win. Who is going to decide that we have? Or haven't? Why…
I didn't look to see how the op-ed pages tried to spin their own survey, but the data looks pretty bad for the gang in the White House. Nearly half of Americans don't trust President Bush to reform the nation's health-care system, a new Wall Street Journal Online/Harris health-care poll…
I was sitting at the kitchen table going through my morning emails, reading the blogs I keep up with and generally doing what I do during the quiet of a Saturday morn when after checking out Fragments I started running Fred's link list. Basically, I was looking for some new…
John Scalzi started a hell of a conversation. Join in...I'm proud to be an American, but I'm tired of being ashamed of my government. I'm tired of having to count the seconds until this bilious waste of a president is shoved out the door in January of 2009. I'm tired…
I really did not think the oil companies would be this desperate to keep the Republicans in charge but I guess you keep the ones that are letting you get away with it all. I originally predicted gas at $1.98 by the week before the election...I was about a month…
The Houston Chronicle is reporting that Colin Powell is not backing down from his stand on the issue of American Principles...Nor the decision to invade Iraq.American principles are vital to terror fight, Powell says: "Former Secretary of State Colin Powell defended Wednesday the decision to invade Iraq and topple leader…
You can always tell when election season rolls around, the Republicans start warning about voter fraud. And I love the way they do it... Georgia Law Requiring Voters to Show Photo ID Is Thrown Out - washingtonpost.com: "'There have been enough reports over the years of voter fraud that it…
I guess this is what sticks in my craw most about these self-righteous leaders we are stuck with and Eugene Robinson said it pretty well...Eugene Robinson - Torture Is Torture - washingtonpost.com: "But we shouldn't have to talk about the practicalities of torture, because the real question is moral: What…
Mr. President, this is not a Monopoly Game ('though I'm sure from your point of view, there isn't much difference). You will be held accountable by history if not by the Courts of this world. Congress will not give you a "Get Out of Jail Free" card.You have "Decided" how…
Bush's problem is he sees big issues and has simplistic responses. With his inability to expand, and unwillingness to change, his ideas he leaves even his own party scratching their heads.Tribunal Dispute Could Ruin GOP Strategy - washingtonpost.com: "The problem, Lungren said, is that the complexity of the tribunal and…
After reading this editorial this morning I had the uneasy experience of seeing the White House's Stephen Hadley on Face The Nation, try to justify their reasoning about their "Torture Amendment". His appearance after Sen. Linsey Graham (R-S.C.)who articulated the reason he is opposed to the program was a sham…
You know, I'm getting really tired of this Administration trying to tell me what morality is. As they lie and cheat and push crony politics to new limits, they seem to have a disconnect with reality (like I'm the first person to say that). I can only hope that the…
A few days ago I thought I posted a comment on gas prices, but, for some reasons I could not find it anywhere. So here is a reprise...And the election season has begun...Isn't it just amazing that after months of exceedingly high profits for the oil company's and $3.00 a…
Former Texas Governor, Activist Ann Richards, 73 - washingtonpost.com: "Former Texas governor Ann Richards, the witty and flamboyant Democrat who went from homemaker to national political celebrity, died Sept. 13 after cancer was diagnosed this year, a family spokeswoman said. She was 73."She was a breath of fresh air in…
You know I avoided ABC's fictional account of the lead up to the terrorist attack. Not hard to do since most evenings I turn the TV off after the Newshour if I have even turned it on at all. But for some reason I flipped on ABC to listen to…
Harold Meyerson - With No Ideas, The GOP Seeks to Scare - washingtonpost.com: "What's a party to do when its high road leads nowhere but down? The Republicans tried privatizing Social Security, but their numbers never added up. They tried spreading democracy with unilateral, preventive war but instead unleashed a…
Ok I was wrong...Bloggermann: This hole in the ground - Bloggermann - MSNBC.com: "History teaches us that nearly unanimous support of a government cannot be taken away from that government by its critics. It can only be squandered by those who use it not to heal a nation's wounds, but…
I was reading the morning papers (on-line of course), and Richard Cohen's column had some interesting thoughts. His contention that Bin Laden has won resonates. He lays out a very good case that everything Bin Laden set out to accomplish he has, and the Bush Administration has taken each of…
I was trying to come up with a way of expressing my feelings for this anniversary of the day America awoke to the realities of the world...This post led to same thoughts...Daily Kos: The lessons of 9-11: "The lessons of 9-11by kosMon Sep 11, 2006 at 10:53:17 AM PDTAravosis learned…
Do you want to really get mad? Review what you know happened without the years of spin from the White House. Then pass it on...It's time to take back America.Lie By Lie: "Lie by Lie: Chronicle of a War Foretold: August 1990 to March 2003The first drafts of history are…
As a followup to the previous post and a commentary on the many conservative pundants who don't understand the sour attitude of the American Public on the state of the economy I would like to point to this Washington Post Editorial:Mr. Bush and Labor DayWorkers aren't benefiting from growth.Monday, September…
Whatever: Being Poor: "Being poor is people who have never been poor wondering why you choose to be so.Being poor is knowing how hard it is to stop being poor.Being poor is seeing how few options you have.Being poor is running in place.Being poor is people wondering why you didn't…
The Carpetbagger Report » Blog Archive » President Cheney: "President CheneyWe've all heard the jokes, some of them funny, about Dick Cheney being the real president, but over the weekend, Robert Kuttner made a compelling case that the jokes actually understate the case  Cheney really is the one 'running…
Fred at Fragments posted this link this morning. You should jump on over and check the article. I know I will be looking for the magazine at the B&N this week to read the rest. Scientific American.com: A Climate Repair Manual: "Translation of scientific consensus on climate change into a…
Bush Team Casts Foes as Defeatist: "When Bush and his allies accuse those favoring such a timetable of 'self-defeating pessimism,' as Cheney put it this week..."I guess that should make me proud to be an American, the land where name calling is the name of the game when you don't…
The Writer's Almanac from American Public Media: "It's the birthday of political humorist Molly Ivins, born in Monterey, California (1944)."Have a great birthday Molly...And many more. Your humor is appreciated and I marvel at your optimism.
I guess this pretty much explains the shenanigans in Florida in 2000...ORLANDO, Aug. 25 -- Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) said this week that God did not intend for the United States to be a 'nation of secular laws' and that the separation of church and state is a 'lie we…
Cheers and Jeers: Rum and Coke FRIDAY!: "From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE...What the Terrorists WantI lived for 5 years in Dusseldorf, Germany inthe late 70s when I was just a li'l nipper. Terrorism was a fact of life thereand throughout Europe. The police carried machine guns, bombs went off,…
page 40...Article II of the United States Constitution provides that any citizen of appropriate birth, age and residency may be elected to the Office of President of the United States and be vested with the executive power of this nation.48The duties and powers of the Chief Executive are carefully listed,…
The War Bush Isn't Fighting:When unsmiling agents at the airport take away your contact lens solution, your toothpaste, and your cologne or after-shave, remember Osama bin Laden. Remember the real war on terrorism that the Bush administration and its allies decided not to fight, preferring cowboy-style military adventures.The revelation yesterday…
Andrew Sullivan | The Daily Dish: "Yglesias Award Nominee10 Aug 2006 04:37 pm'And yet, much as I'm reluctant to agree with him, Weisberg has a point: aside from kvetching about Bush's policies, the liberal blogosphere has chosen to almost unanimously sit out any substantive discussion of the fight against radical…
As for the primary election in Connecticut last night, I know there's a lot of concern and interest about that. Democratic voters in Connecticut have made their choice, and they have chosen Ned Lamont over Senator Lieberman. Just a couple of observations. Key leaders in the national Democratic Party have…
War Crimes Act Changes Would Reduce Threat Of Prosecution: "The Bush administration has drafted amendments to a war crimes law that would eliminate the risk of prosecution for political appointees, CIA officers and former military personnel for humiliating or degrading war prisoners, according to U.S. officials and a copy of…
BUSH'S BACKFIRE:As usual, Jim Hightower says it better than I can:Giving credit where credit is due, I'll concede that Bush's gang of neo-con ideological nutballs were right when they said that Bush's approach to Iraq would be held up as a model of success in the Middle East. Unfortunately, it's…
HoustonChronicle.com - Court rules GOP can't replace DeLay on ballot:"Aug. 3, 2006, 4:39PMCourt rules GOP can't replace DeLay on ballotBy R.G. RATCLIFFECopyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Austin BureauAUSTIN - A federal appeals court panel today in a bipartisan order ruled that former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay cannot be replaced on the…
I.R.S. to Cut Tax Auditors - New York Times: "The federal government is moving to eliminate the jobs of nearly half of the lawyers at the Internal Revenue Service who audit tax returns of some of the wealthiest Americans, specifically those who are subject to gift and estate taxes when…
Bush's Tactic of Refusing Laws Is Probed: 'The President's constitutional duty is to enforce laws he has signed into being unless and until they are held unconstitutional by the Supreme Court or a subordinate tribunal,' panel members wrote. 'The Constitution is not what the President says it is.'" Just kinda…
Daily Kos: What Did You Expect, America?: "If you put people in charge of running a project they are ideologically committed to proving a failure, it will fail. " I would normally add something here, but I don't think I can say it any better than SusanG so go read…
OpinionJournal - Peggy Noonan: "I note here what is to me a mystery. It is that people with lower IQs somehow tend, in our age, to have a greater apprehension of the meaning of things and the reality of life, than do our high-IQ professionals, who often seem, in areas…
Blowing the Whistle on Diebold -- In These Times: “The single greatest threat to our democracy is the insecurity of our voting system,” warns Kennedy. “Whoever controls the voting machines can control who wins the votes.” After reading his article in Rolling Stone I was impressed, now it looks like…
USNews.com: Washington Whispers: "To the list of those penning books about the prez add the most authoritative source of all: President Bush. Insiders say that he's been working on the project for a year. 'He's doing a memoir,' one insider says. 'He's keenly interested in it.' But here's the odd…
