Choosing A Leader

Maybe Mr. Obama should have this tattooed on his forehead backwards so he can read it every morning while he shaves.

You Look Great

People ask me, "How are you?" My standard reply is, "Fine." And they say, "You look great!"

Sometimes I'd like to say...

“...It stinks. It's no fun....It's lousy. I get sores on my legs, and I don't even feel them....I mess my diapers and don't know I've done it....I worry that there'll be a leak, that I'll offend, that something humiliating will happen....

"I sometimes remember my legs in my dreams, remember walking, feel the experience, and almost believe that, by some miracle, I've—But then I wake up, dead from the waist down. Psychologically, that's hard to take....

“....I don't know if it was better to have had a decent amount of intimacy before or to lose your sexuality as a virgin, because then you'd never remember, never know what you were missing. But I smell women's perfume, I see the crease between their breasts, I see the tops of their stockings. It happens all the time, because around me they're not so guarded in their body movements; they know I'm out of the game. That's what happens to us....So I see breasts and even thighs all the time. And I remember, and it makes me crazy, and I have to get through it on what I suppose is Yankee grit or something....Yet I yearn to be around them, to smell them, to see them smile, to make them laugh....I'm the witty eunuch in the chair, the gelded stallion, so charming yet so unable to satisfy....So yes...the chair is no fun....”

from The Third Bullet by Stephen Hunter

But hey, I look great.

Trolls

Until yesterday, the only trolls I knew about were in The Hobbit. My family and I were talking about getting my blog out there to a wider audience. I felt that the work was where I wanted it to be, and there was as much or as little as someone might want to check out. We were going back and forth, because increased exposure brought...well, increased exposure. My Gen-X son, a PC gamer, who hosts his own server (whatever the hell that means)  said I had to watch out for "trolls." He explained that I would be opening myself up to people who liked to cause trouble on the internet simply because they can. I said I was pretty thick skinned and had the option of answering, ignoring or deleting negative posts.

A little later in the day I was perusing my Facebook news feed and I saw this post. I clicked on like. The comment bar rolled down and I could not believe when I read this comment. How can people leave vulgar, hateful messages in response to a small child with cancer? Here's the comment I read, I didn't even bother reading the negative messages themselves:

Rebecca Van Helsing: To those of you who have left vulgar, hateful, vile remarks. I feel the shame your mother and family must feel towards you. I can only hope that life treats you with more kindness and understanding than you have shown this most amazing child, soon. I can't imagine how awful it must feel to be you.

I decided that if this brave kid could take it, I sure could. Let Anduril be my sword.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=663980423629857&set=a.202846819743222.56977.173664769328094&type=1&theater

Old Stoner Joke

DUDE: "Hey man, how'd you like the last stuff I got ya?"
STONER: "Aw man, it was fulla seeds and stems, it was really harsh, and it didn't even get me that buzzed."
DUDE: "Aw man."
STONER: "Yah...can you get any more?"


And always remember, pot will get you through times with no money, better than money will get you through times with no pot.


Ben, this is to show you that times never change . . .

"30 Days In the Hole"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdXjm8pZMws

7th Inning Stretch

I've been hearing a lot of negative talk lately about Ron Santo. Let me tell you, when I was growing up the guy was a hero. They're banning him all over Europe, and there's even protests to outlaw him here in the States. I for one do not believe in speaking ill of the dead, especially a Hall of Famer who played in 9 All Star games. He was a great 3rd baseman and had a career batting average of .277. A lot of the hoo hah is about him killing all the bees. He may have swatted a few while enjoying a hotdog out at the Friendly Confines, but we all did that, to keep them out of our Cracker Jack. I'm also seeing stories on the internet about him spreading his seed around. The guy was a ballplayer! Everyone knows that the jocks get the chicks. You can't hold that against him. He lost his legs to diabetes, but went on to a career as a beloved sports announcer and unabashed fan of the feckless Cubs ball club. Fortunately Congress just passed the Ron Santo Protection Act, which I am fully behind. Further . . .

What? MON-santo?

My bad.

The Following Blog Is Suitable For All Audiences

Last night my wife and I laid down to watch a movie. We had no sooner settled in when a black screen came up with big white letters that said "PG-13 Parents Strongly Cautioned." I turned to my wife and said, "OMG! We're parents. Are we not supposed to be watching this?" Then I got really scared because the next thing that came up was a giant FBI WARNING and a long paragraph about fines and prison. Then, just as I thought the movie was about to begin, another screen came up in big red letters that said ATTENTION followed by another paragraph in small print. I didn't even stop to read it because by this time I had already rolled off the bed and lay face down on the floor with my hands behind my head. Sheesh!

Alex the Talking Parrot

Another truly amazing story of animal-human relations. When are people going to get off their high-horse about animal intelligence and the human arrogance that claims that if there is such a thing as a soul, that only people have them.

Alex the African gray parrot had a vocabulary of 100 words and clinical tests demonstrated an understanding of human language. He had a beautiful relationship with his person, Irene Pepperberg. When Alex died in 2007, his last words to her were, “You be good.... I love you.”

For more on Alex's accomplishments, go to the Wikipedia link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_(parrot)

or visit The Alex Foundation at: www.alexfoundation.org.

Alex

Oscar the Therapy Cat

I have been posting a lot of political pieces lately, because the moves the government is making against our freedoms has been so overshadowing. But this story is a welcome change of pace.

Oscar the therapy cat has lived in a nursing home since he was a kitten, and brings great comfort and joy to the residents. Everyone who knows me or follows my blog, knows how I feel about animals, and about cats in particular. Cats have an innate empathy for people who are suffering and they seek to alleviate this suffering through proximity and by the laying on of paws. Not too long ago, I pulled a muscle in my side while transferring out of my wheelchair. It was extremely painful, and I was laying in bed on the opposite side. My cat climbed up on me and placed her front paws directly on the epicenter of the pain. The pain actually increased sharply, but I continued to lay there as my cat pressed down. After about five minutes she climbed off and I could immediately feel the pain ebb slowly away.

It came as no surprise to me when I read the story about this remarkable animal, but confirmed what I believed all along. The following is a quote from that story:

Oscar could always sense when one of the residents at the nursing home where he lived was near death and would sit quietly on their bed during their last moments. One relative of two sisters who died in the nursing home said of Oscar’s vigil, “Oscar’s presence gave a sense of completion and contentment. Both women loved pets. Oscar brought a special serenity to the room. What’s more peaceful than a purring cat? What sound more beautiful to fill one’s ears when leaving this life?”

For the complete story about Oscar, start by visiting the Wikipedia link below, and then any of the other articles on the internet.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_(therapy_cat)

Oscar

Federal Emergency Punishment Agency

The Federal Emergency Management Agency was formed on June 19th, 1978 by Presidential Executive Order signed by James E. Carter

FEMA's Parent Agency is the U.S. Department of Homeland Security

FEMA employs 7, 474 Federal personnel as of October 8, 2011

FEMA's annual budget stands at $10.9 billion for calendar year 2012

FEMA's Administrator is W. Craig Fugate

FEMA's Deputy Administrator is Richard Serino

FEMA's Website is www.fema.gov

In the event of Martial Law as decreed by Presidential Executive Order (non-revocable by Congress) due to natural disaster, foreign threat, domestic unrest or extraterrestrial invasion (if you don't believe me look it up), all online news sources would be redirected to FEMA's homepage.

FEMA is authorized...well, it's authorized to do anything it wants. I found it hard to believe (but then again I didn't) all of the powers invested in this one agency. Power to relocate entire populations, commandeer all personal property, control food supplies, organize forced labor, establish prison camps* and separate family units, just to name a few. FEMA has even been given control of the State Defense Forces, an untrained and undisciplined civilian army that will substitute for the National Guard, if the Guard is called to duty overseas.

*including a mental health facility at Fairbanks, Alaska, designed to house 2 million "residents."

For a complete list of Executive Orders granting authorities to FEMA, and FEMA camp locations, go to:

http://www.sianews.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1062

or visit Friends of Liberty at www.friendsofliberty.com

On A Need To Know Basis

I have a few recently unclassified documents that have come to my attention that I want to share with you. Even the excerpts that I have chosen are a little lengthy (it is government-speak after all), but I think the information is important enough to get it out there.

The following document addresses the legal justification for using U.S. military troops on American soil against American citizens.

Authority for Use of Military Force to Combat Terrorist Activities Within the United States [selected excerpts]:

Because the scale of the violence involved in this conflict removes it from the sphere of operations designed to enforce the criminal laws, legal and constitutional rules regulating law enforcement activity are not applicable.... As a result, the uses of force contemplated in this conflict are unlike those that have occurred in America's other recent wars. Such uses might include, for example; deploying troops and military equipment to monitor and control the flow of traffic into a city; attacking civilian targets, such as apartment buildings or offices; and employing electronic surveillance methods more powerful and sophisticated than those available to law enforcement agencies. These military operations, taken as they may be on United States soil, and involving as they might American citizens, raise novel and difficult questions of constitutional law.

For example, the September 11 attacks were both acts of war and crimes under United States law. Future terrorist incidents could continue to have both aspects. If the President were to deploy the Armed Forces within the United States in order to engage in counter-terrorism operations, their actions could resemble, overlap with, and assist ordinary law enforcement activity. Military action might encompass making arrests, seizing documents or other property, searching persons or places or keeping them under surveillance, intercepting electronic or wireless communications, setting up roadblocks, interviewing witnesses, and searching for suspects. Moreover, the information gathered in such efforts could be of considerable use to federal prosecutors if the Government were to prosecute against captured terrorists.

Our forces must be free to "seize" enemy personnel or "search" enemy quarters, papers and messages without having to show "probable cause" before a neutral magistrate, and even without having to demonstrate that their actions were constitutionally "reasonable." They must be free to use any means necessary to defeat the enemy's forces, even if their efforts might cause collateral damage to United States persons. Although their conduct might be governed by the laws of war, including laws for the protection of noncombatants, the Fourth Amendment would no more apply than if those operations occurred in a foreign theater of war.

Nor is it necessary that the military forces on our soil be foreign. Suppose that an armed and violent group of United States citizens seized control of a part of the country or of one of the territories, and declared itself independent.... Federal Armed Forces must be free to use force to put down this insurrection without being constrained by the Fourth Amendment, even though force would be intentionally directed against persons known to be citizens.

This document discusses the use of drugs to break detainees. Even U.S. citizens (detained indefinitely, without charge, without legal representation, without prisoner of war protections under the Geneva Convention) could be administered these drugs.

Seton Hall University School of Law Center for Policy and Research: Drug Abuse: An Exploration of the Government's Use of Mefloquine at Guantanamo [selected excerpts]:

Mefloquine is an antimalarial drug that has long been known to cause severe neuropsychological adverse effects such as anxiety, paranoia, hallucinations, aggression, psychotic behavior, mood changes, depression, memory impairment, convulsions, loss of coordination (ataxia), suicidal ideation, and possibly suicide, particularly in patients with a history of mental illness. A prescribing physician must exercise caution and informed judgment when weighing the risks and potential benefits of prescribing the drug. To administer this drug with its severe potential side effects without a malaria diagnosis and without taking a patient’s mental health history is not medically justified. Yet as a matter of official policy, the standard operating procedure implemented by the United States military at Guantanamo Bay was to administer high doses of mefloquine to detainees whether or not any use of the drug was medically appropriate and without consideration of the detainees’ mental health.

This Report demonstrates that the U.S. military routinely administered doses of mefloquine to detainees upon their arrival at GTMO without medical justification: 1250 mg of mefloquine was given to all detainees as a standard measure during inprocessing. This Report further demonstrates that the U.S. military knew, and any competent medical professional would have known, of the severe side effects caused by mefloquine: Mefloquine was first developed by the United States military. As early as 1955, and possibly earlier, the CIA was experimenting with quinolines, the chemical family to which mefloquine belongs, as part of MKULTRA, a program of research in behavioral modification that studied psychotropic drugs for use as a weapon and interrogation tool. The U.S. military was aware of the risk of severe adverse neuropsychological effects of mefloquine before the establishment of the GTMO detention facility.  The stated aim of the study was to “understand the mechanism of such states as toxic delirium, uremic coma, and cerebral toxicity from poisoning.” The potential use of these drugs in an interrogation setting was a stated purpose for the study.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no malaria in Cuba. “Malaria is not a threat in Guantanamo Bay,” according to an official memorandum on the “Department of Defense Operational Use of Mefloquine.” U.S. military personnel and contractors are not prescribed any anti-malarial medication for assignment to GTMO. Because GTMO is not a malaria zone, administration of mefloquine is not indicated for prophylactic use. This raises the question of why mefloquine was given to every detainee without first determining whether he had malaria or not and without taking a medical history first.

Mefloquine was given in order to bring about the adverse effects for one of three reasons. Any of these would likely satisfy the legal definition of torture as articulated by the Department of Justice in 2002.

As part of a program of enhanced interrogation, the psychotropic effects of mefloquine may have been intended as an aid to breaking a detainee’s resistance. This would be the psychological equivalent of waterboarding.

As part of an experimental study to gather data on the side effects of mefloquine.

As a punitive measure.

This chilling document speaks of establishing concentration camps for U.S. citizens and using them for forced labor. I do not need to draw comparisons, do I?

Army Regulation 210-35 Civilian Inmate Labor Program [selected excerpts]:

This regulation provides Army policy and guidance for establishing civilian inmate labor programs and civilian prison camps on Army installations. Sources of civilian inmate labor are limited to on– and off–post Federal corrections facilities, State and/or local corrections facilities operating from on–post prison camps pursuant to leases under Section 2667, Title 10, United States Code (10 USC 2667), and off–post State corrections facilities participating in the demonstration project authorized under Section 1065, Public Law (PL) 103–337.

Civilian inmate labor programs benefit both the Army and corrections systems by: Providing a source of labor at no direct labor cost to Army installations to accomplish tasks that would not be possible otherwise due to the manning and funding constraints under which the Army operates. Providing meaningful work for inmates and, in some cases, additional space to alleviate overcrowding in nearby corrections facilities. Making cost–effective use of buildings and land not otherwise being used.

This final document, in a very matter of fact way, talks about torture.

Request for Approval of Counter-Resistance Strategies [selected excerpts]:

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA

MEMORANDUM FOR Commander, Joint Task Force

SUBJECT: Request for Approval of Counter-Resistance Strategies
PROBLEM: The current guidelines for interrogation procedures at GTMO limit the ability of interrogators to counter advanced resistance. Request approval for use of the following interrogation plan.

Category I techniques. During the initial category of interrogation the detainee should be provided a chair and the environment should be generally comfortable. The format of the interrogation is the direct approach. The use of rewards like cookies or cigarettes may be helpful. If the detainee is determined by the interrogator to be uncooperative, the interrogator may use the following techniques.

Yelling at the detainee (not directly in his ear at the level that it would cause physical pain or hearing problems)
Techniques of deception:
Multiple-interrogator techniques.
Interrogator identity. The interviewer may identify himself as a citizen of a foreign nation or as an interrogator from a country with a reputation for harsh treatment of detainees.

Category II Techniques. With the permission of the OIC, Interrogation Section, the interrogator may use the following techniques.

The use of stress positions....
The use of falsified documents or reports
Use of the isolation facility for up to 30 days. Request must be made to the OIC, Interrogation Section, to the Director, Joint Interrogation Group (JIG). Extensions beyond the initial 30 days must be approved by the Commanding General. For selected detainees, the OIC, Interrogation Section, will approve all contacts with the detainee, to include medical visits of a non-emergent nature.
Interrogating the detainee in an environment other than the standard interrogation booth.
Deprivation of light and auditory stimuli
The detainee may also have a hood placed over his head during transportation and questioning. The hood should not restrict breathing in any way and the detainee should be under direct observation when hooded.
The use of 20 hour interrogations.
Removal of all comfort items (including religious items).
Switching the detainee from hot rations to MREs.
Removal of clothing.
Forced grooming (shaving of facial hair, etc...)
Using detainees individual phobias (such as fear of dogs) to induce stress.

Category III techniques. Techniques in this category may be used only by submitting a request through the Directory, JIG, for approval by the Commanding General with appropriate legal review and information to Commander, USSOUTHCOM. These techniques are required for a very small percentage of the most uncooperative detainees (less than 3%). The following techniques and other aversive techniques, such as those used in U.S. military interrogation resistance training or by other U.S. government agencies, may be utilized in a carefully coordinated manner to help interrogate exceptionally resistant detainees. Any of these techniques will be administered only by individuals specifically trained in their safe application.

The use of scenarios designed to convince the detainee that death or severely painful consequences are imminent for him and/or his family.
Exposure to cold weather or water (with appropriate medical monitoring).
Use of a wet towel and dripping water to induce the misperception of suffocation.


All this coming soon to a FEMA camp near you.

"Honor Bound To Defend Freedom"

Nasty

You want to know something folks, our government is nasty. But the thing is, when it comes right down to it, it's people. Just really nasty, low down, mean, fucking people. And they have so much disrespect for us. We are nothing but pond scum to them. Yet we vote them in. Then we vote them in again. And again. And we pay so much so that they can live the life. Fancy offices, chauffeured limousines, Secret Service protection, lavish parties, five-star restaurants, free first-rate healthcare,  fully vested pensions, salaries ten times the “poverty level,” and the ability to grant themselves pay raises...

...While we pay so much in income tax, sales tax, property tax (even if you live in an apartment, part of your rent is based on the owner's property tax), gasoline tax, communications tax on our phones and internet service, utilities tax, and I'm sure others could add to this list. We work in an extremely stressful economy that is strongly skewed in favor of the employer. I believe that this is deliberate, and that the true U.S. unemployment rate of 30% is designed to bust unions, eliminate the minimum wage, take away benefits, and keep those who have jobs in a perpetual state of uncertainty and fear. You can argue whether workers' rights have any place in a free market system, but I think they are a necessary evil. Yet we work under these conditions to feed our families, have a decent place to live, provide an education for our children, see a doctor when we need to, maybe take in a movie now and then, and after all that, put away a little something for a rainy day. And for better or worse, my retirement plan hinges on winning the lottery or being struck by a meteor on my 65th birthday.

There are some people who say they do not believe in “conspiracy theories” because the politicians are too inept. In many cases this may be so, but their staffs are not. Their staffs are culled from ivy league colleges who graduated at the tops of their classes. The lobbyists who represent the special interests are not. These are the shrewdest, sharpest operators that money can buy and are backed with unlimited funds. The generals are not. They are highly intelligent, highly capable strategic tacticians who command hundreds of thousands of expertly trained and motivated troops. The special forces, black ops, spooks and mercenaries are not. They know more about the art of killing than I am comfortable going to bed with.

And for some reason, it is not enough for the government to just let us live our lives in peace. They want to crush us under their heels. Shred the “unalienable” liberties guaranteed us by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. They want to bleed us dry. Bleed our wallets, and then bleed our bodies.

Just a lot of very nasty people.

"If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face - forever."

George Orwell, 1984

Billy

When I was in 3rd grade at Adlai E. Stevenson elementary school in Chicago, I had a friend named Billy Weeks. Billy was older. He was in 5th grade and he was a patrol boy. Every day as we walked to school, there would be Billy in his bright orange belt standing on his corner. I don't know where he got them all from (he must have had a friend in 6th grade), but each morning he would have a new joke for us. I don't remember most of them because most of them were not memorable. But just a few have stuck with me over the years. So as not to be lost in the mist of time, I want to tell you one of Billy's jokes.

WARNING: The following paragraph contains ethnic stereotypes and scatological humor age appropriate for a ten year old boy in 1967.

A Polack was walking down the sidewalk when he comes up to a big pile of dog shit. He picks it up and weighs it first in one hand and then the other. "Feels like dog shit," he says. Then he sticks it right up in his face and takes a big whiff. "Smells like dog shit, " he says. Then he takes a big bite of it. "Tastes like dog shit," he says. He drops it back on the ground and says, "I'm sure glad I didn't step in it."

Photo Deleted

(in the interest of good taste)

Gridlocked

In the sixties, the “button” referred to nuclear Armageddon. The President was said to have his finger on the button. Today, the “button” that most worries me is the “enter” key.

The President has stated his concern that America is vulnerable to foreign cyberattacks aimed at taking down the power infrastructure. While this is a very valid threat to national security, it also points out how vulnerable we are to a disruption of the utilities we have become dependent on by our own government.

We are all on the grid. Let's think for just a moment about the ramifications. We have all experienced power outages during storms. In an instant the first thing you notice is the silence. The TV goes off, window fans, air conditioners, refrigerators all stop humming. The next thing you notice is the isolation. All communication ceases. Access to news is shut down. Landline telephones stop working.

In a prolonged outage, food becomes scarce. Without refrigeration, perishables spoil quickly. Modern stoves won't ignite so nothing can be cooked. Gas pumps don't work, so travel becomes impossible. Water pumping and filtration systems break down. People are reduced to drinking from the toilet tank.

In the event of popular dissent, the government has protocols in place for creating just such a scenario. In addition to cutting the electric umbilical cord, cell phone and internet access would be taken down. Martial law would be declared. The National Guard would be mobilized with shoot to kill orders for looters, protesters, and curfew violators.

According to provisions of the Patriot Act, any preparatory actions on your part would label you as an enemy combatant. It is illegal to “stockpile” more than one week's worth of foodstuffs, including bottled water on your premises. It is illegal (as well as dangerous) to store gasoline. Retailers must retain records of generator sales. Votive candles would be classified as weapons of mass destruction. (Okay, I made that one up.)

Power over other people is like a drug, and our current government is intoxicated with it. Power is like a drug for us because we are addicted to it. And withdrawal is a bitch.

Of the Sheeple, By the Sheeple, For the Sheeple

In Don't Start the Revolution Without Me!, Jesse Ventura frames his “reflections and revisionings” of his years as Governor of Minnesota around his expatriate journey with his wife Terry to Baja, Mexico. Ventura's third book, co-written with award-winning writer Dick Russell, published in 2008, is a no holds barred essay on the current state of America in which the former pro wrestler body slams politics, religion, and the media. After blindsiding the two party system by winning the governorship as an Independent, the navy SEAL, athlete, actor, radio and television host, outdoorsman, mayor, author, visiting professor at Harvard, governor, and Statesman of the people, explains why he left politics and the country he loves behind.

In one of the most ironic twists of fate, Ventura discusses how since leaving office he has been living the American Dream, but that he has to do it in a country other than America. “In a way, here in Baja, I'm now living the life that many of us dream about—being away from the rat race. My life is far more spiritual....Down here, when it's dark I sleep, and when it's light I'm awake.”

In Chapter 1, he muses, “Today, the special interests have a stranglehold on our reality. Nobody is being told the truth. We've bought a bill of goods. I can't believe everyone is so asleep....Do I have to throw myself into the political ring again? And, if I do, is it worth the price that my family and I will have to pay?” “Is it worth it to put my family and me out there, to take on a force that most of the American people are willing to go along with?”

The force he refers to is the two party system which is really one, and the special interests that control the cash flow of American politics. Ventura questions whether a third party movement will arise. “The corruption of the Democrats and Republicans ensures that it will. I call them the Demo-crips and the Re-blood-licans. No different really than the...street gangs—except that these guys wear Brooks Brothers suits.” In an interview with Larry King, Ventura further stated, “I think the two party system is phenomenal. After all, it gives us one more choice than Communist Russia had.” In the closing pages of the book, he asserts, “It is time to break the stranglehold of the two party system. We no longer have any choice, if our Republic is to survive in the way the founders envisioned in 1776.” Terry says of her husband, “I think running for president would destroy him. I don't think that they'll kill him, but that they'll do the best job of character assassination they possibly can. And they're really good at it.” Ventura sums up the two party system this way: “It's like going into the grocery store and the only choices in the soft drink department are Coke and Pepsi. Depending on your taste buds, one is slightly sweeter than the other—but they're both colas!”

Ventura remarks on his inability to push through programs that the people of Minnesota specifically voted him in to do because of a hostile legislature on both sides of the aisle and pressure from Washington including CIA surveillance. He mentions that he and key people in his campaign and administration knew going in, what they'd be up against politically, but what caught him unawares was the biased agendas and self-serving sensationalism of the media. “We have allowed our media to be turned into entertainment, rather than facts, enlightenment, and knowledge.” He sadly attributes this phenomenon to the program 60 Minutes. 'The media today are controlled by the big corporations. It's all about ratings and money. Believe it or not, I think the downfall of our press today, was the show 60 Minutes. Up until it came along, news during the Walter Cronkite era was expected to lose money. The networks wrote it off, in order to bring the people fair reporting and the truth. But when 60 Minutes became the top-rated program on television, the light went on. The corporate honchos said, “Wait a minute, you mean if we entertain with the news, we can make money?” But once this realization was put through the corporate machinery, and the number crunchers, pollsters, ad agencies, spin doctors and psychologists weighed in, it became apparent that if the entertainment was reduced to its basest form, it would make even more money. “They're obsessed, it seems, with portraying the ugliest side of humanity.”

The long road trip from Minnesota to the border affords the Venturas the opportunity to expound on a number of topics affecting the future of our country, including the road itself. “The famous Route 66...doesn't get traveled much anymore. There's even grass growing over parts of it. John Steinbeck...in The Grapes of Wrath called Route 66 the “Mother Road.” As a kid, I remember Nat King Cole...singing about how you could “Get Your Kicks on Route 66.”...So the road became part of our auto culture mythology.” Route 66 featured the first drive-in restaurants and gave rise to the roadside attraction. “When we came to our first “Authentic Indian Trading Post, “ Terry got all excited. But when we pulled into the village, we..saw that all the “authentic” teepees were painted on plywood boards....After we'd driven by a dozen more of these “authentic trading posts,” I realized these were the McDonald's of Native Americans.”

Further down the road, Ventura observes, “Driving an interstate can be deceiving. Agribusiness keeps the big “factory farms,” livestock operations with thousands of cattle, hogs, and poultry, just far enough off the freeway so you can't usually see or smell them.” Terry: “When I was a kid, I thought the air in southern Minnesota was the most refreshing in the world. Today, the area where I grew up is so full of chemicals that I cannot go down there...without getting terrible allergic reactions....As First Lady, I tried to work on the problems of feedlots because I also think they only produce toxic food. How can something good come from animals living in severe stress, fed nothing but chemicals and antibiotics and who knows what? None of that kind of meat can have the amount of protein, vitamins, and minerals that animals raised humanely on a normal diet could yield.”

Ventura quotes musician and political maverick Kinky Friedman, “A politician looks to the next election, a statesman looks to the next generation.” With this in mind, Ventura speaks out on the “war on drugs,” the “war on terror,” 9/11, the Patriot Act, the IRS, and the continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. A few brief quotes will suffice to illustrate his opinions.

On drugs: “What infuriates me more than anything is that it's my generation that is now in charge....We're...the generation that experimented more than any other with recreational drugs. If anybody should understand how wrong-headed the “war on drugs” is, it's us. Marijuana should be legalized and regulated the same way as alcohol and tobacco....And yes, I have inhaled. Very few didn't who came of age in the sixties.”

On 9/11: “The breakdown in standard operating procedure on 9/11 was unprecedented, uninvestigated, and unaccountable....My doubts about the official story have grown steadily over the last couple of years.” Ventura goes on to explain his concerns over several pages and it should be noted that 9/11 occurred while he was the sitting Governor of Minnesota, and certain information should have been made available to him while the United States was under attack. Further, as governor of one of the 50 states, he was privy to protocols in place in case of emergencies.

On the Patriot Act: “The Patriot Act was rushed into law in those first scary weeks after 9/11....It's official title was: “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act.” Hence, USA PATRIOT Act....The Patriot Act is 342 pages long....It's almost as if somebody had it all ready to be unveiled, but just had to wait for the right moment...to make it a reality.” Again Ventura takes several pages to itemize the provisions contained in the Act. Martial law, internment camps [which are already being built by Dick Cheney's outfit, Halliburton], the naming of U.S. citizens as enemy combatants and America itself as a war zone, the use of the military for domestic police functions, secret courts issuing blanket surveillance, access to personal and financial information, and search and seizure warrants, indefinite detainment, rendition, torture and murder.

On Iraq: “Iraq is the most privatized war in American history....Today, a whole lot of people are cashing in on the “war on terror.” Not just Halliburton and the Carlyle Group [in which the Bush and the bin Laden family are heavily invested]. The big weapons makers—Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop, Grumman, and General Dynamics—are all reporting huge profits. It's been toted up that the defense industry's top thirty-four CEOs have collectively earned a billion dollars since 9/11....There are as many as 200,000 private contractors over there—a number greater than our 160,000 military troops!” At the time of the book's publication, the Iraq war had claimed the lives of 4,000 American soldiers, with 30,000 casualties. Civilian casualties in Iraq have been estimated at 650,000! The cost of the war at that time was in excess of 800 BILLION dollars.

And who is funding this war? We are, of course. And our children. And our grandchildren. And their grandchildren. Who makes sure the pounds of flesh get collected? Our friends at the IRS. “The IRS assumes you are guilty and forces you to either try to muddle through [an audit] alone against their professionals, or hire your own expert to defend yourself, if you can afford it. They freeze people's assets [without due process], they threaten you with fines [that in some cases can be greater than the tax liability], taking your house and property, and...even with jail.” The Venturas were audited twice while Jesse was mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. Coincidence? I think not. Terry recalls, “Your mother lived with us then, and they wanted to know whether there was any chance she'd hidden some money in our backyard. It was ridiculous!”

As Jesse and Terry navigate the treacherous and often nonexistent roads of Baja Norte and Baja Sur, they are able to touch on a few more lessons learned including our educational system. “Revisionist history troubles me deeply. I fear textbooks being written with a “government seal of approval.” But  he does find hope in the Cambridge environs. “When I first arrived at Harvard, I'd been concerned because I didn't see any partying as I walked around campus. I thought, this seems a bit un-American. I was made an honorary member of the Spee Club, the same one that JFK belonged to in 1938. I went to a couple of their parties, which renewed my faith in youth, in college, in America. Because let me tell you, they were partying!” He concludes, “Harvard did wonders for me in many ways. I'd become very cynical by the time I  arrived. Being around the energy of the young people, their quick intelligence and enthusiasm, gave me a ray of hope again. It made me wonder, could this be the generation that doesn't repeat history?”

But how can an uneducated populace understand the laws that government requires them to live by? “One day not long after I was inaugurated, I walked over to the secretary of state's office. In there was a massive wall filled with volumes of books, twenty-five times the size of the Encyclopedia Britannica. I mean, there had to be close to a thousand books. I inquired, “Excuse me, but what is all this?” And I was told, “Those are all the laws for the state of Minnesota.” I sat there a moment and thought: They tell us that ignorance of the law is no excuse. In other words, we as citizens are supposed to know all this? That seemed pretty absurd.”

“Traveling a meandering stretch of Highway 1, one of the most breathtakingly beautiful spots that I've ever witnessed appears suddenly from around a bend. It's called the Bahia de Concepcion. Conception Bay. It's vast, with a series of small islands in the middle. Looking across it, you see a mountain range—the southern end of the Sierra de Guadalupe....It is a calm day, no wind. Far below us, probably 200 feet or more, the tranquil, turquoise waters are so clear that we can see all the way to the bottom....Terry recognizes a frigate bird passing overhead. In the near distance, we think we catch the spouting of a whale....We emerge at a cove. We are alone. Alone on a glistening, white sand beach. Pelicans dove for fish. Fiddler crabs race along the shoreline.”

Ventura walked away from politics at the height of his fame, when a presidential bid, and even the presidency itself did not seem so far out of grasp. He readily admits to the allure of power. “There's an emptiness you feel. Because, all of a sudden, you're not the focus...anymore. I don't care what anybody says, it's very addictive to be the most powerful person in a state. There's no doubt in my mind why people do it.”

In the Epilogue, "A Glimpse of the Future," Ventura speculates on his bid for the White House:

Headline: LEADING PROTESTERS TO WHITE HOUSE GATES, VENTURA IS SHOT BY LONE GUNMAN

Late October 2008: Jesse Ventura, the renegade presidential candidate from Minnesota, was shot today as he led a throng of people estimated at close to 100,000 towards the gates of the White House. They were advancing on the heavily-guarded residence to protest [the President's] imposition of martial law, which has resulted in postponement of the forthcoming elections for the first time in U.S. history. Three shots rang out at 12:30 p.m., one missing the former Minnesota governor while two others lodged in his  back and stomach.

I like and respect Jesse Ventura. I have friends who live in Minnesota and they say he did a good job. Although I have liberally used excerpts from the text, it has not been my intention to dissuade anyone from reading the entire book. For instance, I have not made reference to Jesse's visit to China, his revealing audience with Fidel Castro, his insights into the Kennedy assassination, the CIA's attempt to disrupt his lectures at Harvard, and his triumph in revising Minnesota's statutes on Bingo. In fact, it is my hope that this essay will encourage the reading of the book by giving an inkling into the vital observations, reminiscences and down to earth prose of Jesse and Terry Ventura. I personally do not think he will ever again run for public office. Will another independent David emerge to slay the two-party Goliath? Neither Jesse nor I have the answer to that question. 

I end this review of Don't Start the Revolution Without Me! with Terry's opening dedication. She says, “To our son, Tyrel, and our daughter, Jade, and to all the children of the future: Your freedom is at risk. Be wary.”

I couldn't have put it better myself.

For more on Jesse, visit Jesse Ventura--the Official Facebook Page

The War on Clothes

In June of 1975, just after my high school graduation and before starting college, my brother and I booked an airplane ride and a week at the Contemporary Hotel in Walt Disney World. We flew out of O'Hare, at that time still the busiest airport in America. We checked our luggage and proceeded through security which consisted of walking through a metal detector. I had an ounce of high grade Colombian marijuana in one pocket of my sport coat and 30 hits of acid in my other. I made sure that I had nothing on me that would, if you'll pardon the pun, trip the alarm. The last thing in the world we wanted to do was cause trouble, and we certainly had no intention of hijacking the plane, especially since it was headed our way. In fact, as we were boarding the plane, the flight attendant asked me if I would be willing to change my seat assignment and sit next to the emergency door over the left wing. She handed me a card with instructions on how to open the door and help people down the chute in case of emergency. This actually happened to me a few times over the years (the seat designation, not the emergency) but I did start to wonder why they kept choosing me to be the last one off the plane in the event of trouble.

I call it the dressing down of America. Implemented through air travel, we have become accustomed to indignities the framers of the Constitution would never have dreamed of. Assuredly body cavity searches fall under the protection of illegal searches and seizures. To be pulled out of line while traveling for business or pleasure, locked in a small room, forced to undress, and have your rectum probed by uniformed men with big hard guns (getting excited yet?) cannot be allowed to become standard operating procedure for the government.

America is a mobile society. The right of unrestricted travel is ingrained in us. The freedom of the open road. The adventure of new places. The thrill of unexplored vistas waiting to be discovered just over the horizon. From sea to shining sea. But now the government is taking that away from us. The TSA, a branch of Homeland Security, has made it so onerous to travel by air that many people are changing their plans or just staying home. We have all seen and heard the horror stories of TSA abuses. The citizens of our country are now given the choice of voluntarily walking through scanners that see all the way through clothes to the naked body or submitting to demeaning and dehumanizing groping of our most private areas. Men, women children. The elderly and the infirm. And now plans are being readied to expand these procedures to train stations, bus depots and roadway checkpoints.

This is all part of a larger conspiracy to prohibit the wearing of clothes. It is very hard to protest against riot police in full tactical gear when you are naked. The wearing of clothes at rallies would single you out for arrest or worse. With Illinois becoming the 50th state to authorize conceal carry gun laws (by court order), the police must operate under the presumption that EVERY interaction with the public will be an armed confrontation. The government's answer is, fine you all want to carry concealed weapons, well try concealing them when you're nude.

Yes, in the very near future, clothes will be only for the elite. They will wear ten thousand dollar suits and women's apparel that run into six figures or more, while we wear our birthday suits. We will come into the world naked and helpless, and we will go out the same way. We will be safer. The police will be able to spot suicide bombers more easily, but at what cost. Once the mystery of what clothes conceal is no longer there, will we still maintain our sensuality? It is our very lust for life that is at stake.

Thomas Jefferson

"Dissent is the highest form of Patriotism!"

Multitasking

My opinion of multitasking is, why screw up one thing at a time, when you can screw up several things at once. But this morning I am multitasking. I'm watching the British Open, drinking coffee, playing on Facebook, and reading a book by Jesse Ventura.

Fore

My son came in a few minutes ago to get me breakfast and glanced at the TV. "Golf?" he said. "British Open. Coverage started at six this morning and goes till two." "Oh great," he said, "eight hours of golf." "Yah, for four days in a row." He quickly left the room.

Tonight

Jennifer Nettles at her seductive best . . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNDtN4XM8KA

Inari

Those of you who have a pet, and especially those who have a cat, will understand when I say that I love my cat so much it hurts. But it is a pain that I willingly embrace. During the long days when I lay in bed reading or working on the computer, she sleeps curled up on my lap, and her gentle snoring calms my savage breast. She wakes up, yawns widely exposing her sharp canines, and stretches up the length of my body. She then sits on my chest, her hind legs tucked underneath her, and no matter what I am doing, I stop and give her my undivided attention, scratching her all about the head, underneath her chin which she juts out causing her long, horrible whiskers to bristle, and all the way down her back and tail. As she purrs softly, I kiss the top of her head and cheeks, even though it disturbs her sense of propriety. When she is done, and of course it is always her decision, she jumps down off the bed, nibbles her kibble, takes a drink of water, uses the litterbox and makes her rounds about the house. During the long nights when I lay on my side and stare at the clock, she sleeps curled up in the crook of my lap and I deeply massage the scruff of her neck until I fall back to sleep.

I have my wife to thank for my cat. In 2004 we were separated while I worked out my issues with alcoholism. We know now that I was self-medicating, but I did not drink well. My wife decided that she needed a cat back in her life, so she picked out a black and white kitten with a black mask that would turn out to suit her personality to a tee. When my wife and I started to get to know each other again, and I came to visit her, she introduced me to Inari, named after the Japanese cat goddess, and it was love at first sight. We bonded immediately and came to adore each other. It was the kitten's reaction to me that convinced my wife that I was on the road to recovery and that I was once again becoming the man she fell in love with.

Inari and I are empathically linked. All I have to do is think about her and wherever she is sleeping or prowling, she will very soon jump up on me. She has nursed me back to health through cancer and spinal cord surgery, and continues to care for me through neurological disease and paralysis. We know when each other are not feeling well, physically or emotionally, and she uses her natural Reiki abilities to make me feel better. Our relationship is founded on kindness, trust, respect and consistency. The moment my wife and I begin to display affection, she is right there between us, sticking her face in ours and reminding me unsubtly where my true loyalties (had better) lay.

Although at nine years of age she is in the prime of her life, sometimes I think about losing her and the thought is more than I can bear. When I am in great pain, and plead with God to take me, I think about the commitment I have made to this innocent creature until the anguish passes. I do not feed her or clean her litterbox, yet she loves me unconditionally. All she asks of me in return is that I do the same.

P.S. My wife says she's a punk who has me wrapped around her little claw.

Shellie: In 2008, Steve was in surgery for seven hours. When the nurse came into the waiting room to tell me I could go in to see him, she looked at me and said, "You're not Japanese." I said, "Nooo. Why would you think that?" The nurse replied, "Because ever since he opened his eyes, he's been asking for Inari. We thought he was asking for his wife." "No," I said. "He was asking for his cat."

A Rose by Any Other Name . . .

A young Indian boy asks his father, “Father, how do Indian children get their names?” The father replies, “When an Indian child is born, the father throws back the flap of the teepee, and the child is named after the first thing he sees. That is why your older sister is named Cloud Who Races Across the Sky, and your baby brother is named Acorn Falling from Tree. But why do you ask Two Dogs Fucking?”

Judge Judy for Supreme Empress of Planet Earth . . .

Do you see "stupid" written across my forehead?

We are watched over by Wild Angels. There is no other explanation . . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaXznfBPbyM

To Hell and Back

I just finished reading To Hell and Back by Audie Murphy. I was aware of the book, but had never read it. The book, written without a ghostwriter, is a gritty narrative from the perspective of a private infantryman to a front line combat officer. In eloquent and insightful prose, at times almost poetic, he recounts the day to day struggle of men in trenches, slogging through muddy fields and over the frozen terrain of WWII Europe. The stench of death permeates the work, the stench of rotting corpses, burnt flesh, and black powder in the nostrils. But it is also a book about life, the hopes of the soldiers in the hopelessness of war.

He introduces us to a cast of fellow characters and through their eyes we see the intimate reality of the foot soldiers, the inedible canned rations, the exhaustion beyond human endurance, the bravery and collapse of the human spirit. Of men willing themselves to fight amidst the chaos of action and leaving their blood and broken bodies beneath the soil of foreign lands. Of having to hold their bowels as they are about to meet the enemy, and then losing them when they do. Audie Murphy returned home, the most decorated soldier of the United States Army, and took Hollywood by storm with his boyish good looks belying the battle hardened steel just below the skin. Yes, war is hell, and To Hell and Back makes that abundantly clear.

Stand Your Ground

A Maori warrior with a ta moko (facial tattoo) performs a war haka (dance)

in response to the Zimmerman verdict

"ACQUITTAL?!?"

The Good Fight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klsZXY4ciIQ

I have always been a worrier. I have the ability to look into the future and perceive every adverse permutation of a plan or situation. This ability is shared by every science fiction writer worth his salt. My dad tells the story about the time when I was thirteen years old and at the Mayo Clinic for some very delicate surgery. He walked into my hospital room and became gravely concerned because my bed was surrounded by a large group of doctors who were deliberately focusing on me. But upon stepping closer, he realized that we were involved in a chess match and that I was soundly beating a group of the finest minds in the nation. Being able to see an infinite number of moves ahead of my opponents is both a blessing and a curse. It helps keep me out of trouble, but it also leads to a paralysis of action. Sometimes you just have to wing it.

I am very worried that our government is poised to make a major move. I believe that the world is about to be partitioned into spheres of influence under American, Chinese, and Russian control. Martial law will be invoked. We will see Federally issued identification papers, curfews, armed checkpoints, a military presence on our streets, and DNA indexing of all citizens. All forms of dissent, no matter how peaceful will be ruthlessly crushed. The Bill of Rights will be suspended. Guns will be confiscated. Mass arrests of alternative news journalists, protest leaders and civil libertarians will take place.

Unfortunately, I feel that this will be accomplished with the consent of the governed. The rest of the world, including all other democratic countries, already live with these impositions. The President of the United States will make the case that these measures are necessary to insure the safety of all, as well as our freedoms and liberties. He will point out that commerce will be unaffected, that American citizens will still be able to live their lives mainly as they have been, that if you are into snorkel diving off the South Carolina coast, you will still be able to do that, if you're into hiking in the National Parks, you'll still be able to do that (just be careful not to trip over a gas pipeline), if you're into restoring old cars, crocheting, going to a baseball game, you'll still be able to do all of those things. You can have a pet, own a home, raise a family. The pursuit of happiness will go on.

The government will chuckle at the conspiracy theorists and consign us to sitting in our corners wearing our tinfoil dunce caps. I don't know. Maybe it is a good thing and I am fighting the wrong battle. I know full well that the vast majority of people would go along with a “secure state” scenario and that I am just pissing into the wind. But I am a worrier. I believe that absolute power corrupts absolutely. So I will remain a worrier, and a warrior.

Worldwide tyranny must end now before the rulers have so much power and weaponry behind them that there will be no hope left.

By Harvey Fierstein

It's time to start paying attention to what's going on in Russia in case you haven't yet. Putin has declared war on the gay community. He's made it illegal to promote homosexuality in theater, film, TV, or print, that in any way could be seen by youth. In other words anything gay is now pornography.

He's outlawed the adopting of Russian children to any country that has legalized marriage equality. And now it is reported that his next law will remove the children of GLBT families from their homes. This will apply to biological children as well as formerly adopted ones.

This is a horror. Not only for our community but even for straight families. Already divorced parents are threatening one another with blackmail to tell authorities that their ex is now gay just to control parental rights.

Putin wants this attack against human rights to be his legacy. He believes he can get the backing of the Vatican as well as all other conservative religious leaders to join his cause.

What can we do? Make his actions and his plans public. Shine the light of public opinion on this evil doer.

Boycott the Winter Olympics in Russia. Believe me, Putin will use the Olympics as proof that the world backs up his action. There are only two ways to deal with a tyrant: Starve out the rat, or destroy him.

So, my friends, do your research and then GET LOUD AGAINST PUTIN AND HIS ANTI-GAY POGROM. This is a very small world. Our brothers and sisters in Russia need us NOW!

I think the name of the NTSB (ex) intern's name is Jack Cass

On Friday, July 12, during the KTVU Channel 2 Noon newscast, we misidentified the pilots in the Asiana Airlines crash.

We made several mistakes when we received this information. First, we never read the names out loud, phonetically sounding them out.

Then, during our phone call to the NTSB where the person confirmed the spellings of the names, we never asked that person to give us their position with the agency.

We heard this person verify the information without questioning who they were and then rushed the names on our noon newscast.

Shortly before 6 p.m. Friday, the NTSB issued the following statement:

The National Transportation Safety Board apologizes for inaccurate and offensive names that were mistakenly confirmed as those of the pilots. A summer intern acted outside the scope of his authority when he erroneously confirmed the names of the flight crew on the aircraft.  We work hard to ensure that only appropriate factual information regarding an investigation is released and deeply regret today’s incident.  Appropriate actions will be taken to ensure that such a serious error is not repeated.

Even with this statement from the NTSB, KTVU accepts full responsibility for this mistake.

Apache Blessing

“May the sun bring you new energy by day, may the moon softly restore you by night, may the rain wash away your worries, may the breeze blow new strength into your being, may you walk gently through the world and know it's beauty all the days of your life.”

When you're walking along the beach this summer, think of this . . .

Ocean sand magnified 250x

Mayhem

Under the headline: Chicago 'mayhem' prompts politician to call for National Guard, the authorities are rolling out the latest false flag to impose a police state.

For generations the government has subjugated the black community, denying African-American youth educational and employment opportunities. Law enforcement maintains its prohibition against illegal drugs, creating a vicious environment of supply and demand, fueling the gangs with incredible profits. This high stakes game, where half the gangbangers shoot each other and the other half get put in prison, ruins lives up and down the slope. The government makes guns readily available and then when violence gains mainstream media attention, the politicians use it as an excuse to militarize the police and institute a "benign" state of martial law, with the approval of the terrorized and clueless populace. Should guns be taken out of the hands of criminals? In theory, of course. But law enforcement has been unable to do so thus far.

The article in full is as follows:

By Tracy Connor, Staff Writer, NBC News

The onslaught of gun crime in Chicago has spurred members of Congress to convene a summit on urban violence and prompted a state lawmaker to demand the National Guard be called in to stop the “mayhem.”

Rep. Bobby Rush speaks on Capitol Hill Thursday about the growing violence in Chicago, Illinois, which has reached staggering proportions so far in 2013.

“Every single day we wake up in the city of Chicago, some child, some young adult, some African-American male has been murdered,” state Rep. Monique Davis said Thursday. “This is not acceptable.

“I’m hearing from mothers that they are afraid to go outside,” she said. “Hospitals are overburdened with 70 gunshot wounds in one day. Ambulances are so busy people are driving victims in their own cars.”

Davis held a press conference this week to ask Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn to call in the National Guard “to protect our children so they can go to the park and swim and play and have a childhood.” She said the governor has not responded.

Meanwhile, Congressman Bobby Rush and two other Illinois Democrats announced plans Thursday for an “emergency” summit July 25 at Chicago State University. The event will be national in scope, but Chicago was chosen because it is “the epicenter of gun violence in the nation,” said Rush’s spokeswoman, Debra Johnson.

Chicago ended last year as the city with the highest number of murders in the nation. Three weeks later, its reputation as a crime capital was cemented when Hadiya Pendleton, 15, was shot dead days after performing in Washington for President Obama’s inauguration festivities.

Police say anti-gang and crime-fighting strategies launched after Pendleton’s slaying are working. Official statistics show murders were down 28 percent, from 260 to 188, and shooting incidents fell 24 percent, from 1,117 to 849, in the first half of the year.

However, a bloody Independence Day weekend left at least nine people dead and dozens wounded – including two young boys shot in city parks – making many worry that progress is slowing midway through a long, hot summer.

“It’s mayhem,” said Davis. “And nobody seems able to stop it.”

Jus Primae Noctis

Jus Primae Noctis or "Right of the First Night" refers to the medieval practice of the lord of the manor exercising his prerogative to share the wedding bed of his serfs' brides. The feudal law giving the landlord the right to deflower the bride of his vassals was usually waved in Europe in exchange for a monetary payment raised by the bride's family, but was widely practiced throughout the Ottoman Empire.

This "Right" does not seem to be directly related to the custom of American plantation owners abusing their female (and male) slaves, but does stem from the same desire of powerful men to subjugate those of lower station. As is becoming abundantly clear, the current administration is hell bent on turning the world back into a feudal society of peasants and kings. Is this the motive behind Obama's secret agenda?

Boundaries

To keep them out, or to keep us in?

All In A Day's Work

Let's see: I've logged on, logged off, chatted, emailed, blogged, downloaded photos, uploaded photos, and stored information. I've used Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook and Youtube. During the course of these activities I've searched for information on the NYC subway system, gas masks, Nikola Tesla, PRISM, Edward Snowden, Adam Kokesh, and the Oval Office. If that doesn't get someone's attention, then I'm doing something wrong (or they are). And always remember, SMILE, you're on candid camera.

If You See Something Say Something

Thank you for riding the MTA.

At this time we would like to thank you for participating in a joint study conducted by the NYPD and Brookhaven National Laboratory, sponsored by the Department of Defense.

During the month of July riders will be randomly exposed to Per-fluorocarbon gas in five boroughs and on 21 subway lines in an effort to study airflow throughout the MTA subway system.

Per-fluorocarbons are colorless, odorless, and powerful man-made greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. They are emitted as a by-product during aluminum production, are used as solvents in the electronics industry, and as refrigerants in many cooling systems.

We still do not fully understand the health effects of Per-fluorocarbon gas exposure, though exposure to Per-fluorocarbons are linked to the early onset of menopause. Studies in animals have found these gases significantly alter liver and thyroid function, increase the risk for tumors, and cause failure in reproductive organs.

These gases are being dispersed as a test for your protection against an unwanted chemical attack.

Thank you for riding with the MTA and have a safe day.