Dec 31 2012

Wrapping up 2012

I am never one to lament the completion of another year as I spend relatively little time looking backwards. To be honest, much to the chagrin of my wife (who is quite the planner), I spend relatively little time looking forward either as I’m usually absorbed in the here and now. I find there is enough to deal with in the present. As with most of my years on this earth (and there have now been almost 60 of them), 2012 was a year with some good and some bad – and in some cases pretty horrid. Luckily, my life and my sphere of influence fell mostly on the side of the good stuff. I am happy with that but I am disheartened by all the not so good stuff I see around me – again feeling lucky that most all of it has chosen to remain outside of me and my family but never feeling so insulated and safe to not recognize that at any moment it could easily intrude. That possibility is never that far away and with everything going on in this country at the moment, nothing is a certainty.

While most anyone else probably doesn’t care about the personal side of my life, this is really for me – by seeing it in writing it re-emphasizes the gift I have and how lucky I am to have the people around me who are my immediate family. It ensures I never take it all for granted.

Let’s talk about the good first.

I remain happily married and in love – kind of corny on one hand but having the type of relationship I have with my wife after 32 years is one that happens far too little in our society – I am very fortunate.
All four of us in the immediate family are healthy. Those of us over 55 are feeling our age but that’s it. There is nothing life threatening we need to deal with and we can do most everything we want – and I am thankful for that. My joints make much more noise than they ever have but I take this over most of the alternatives.
As a family we have remained pretty much unscathed by the economic travesties of the past couple of years.
My two kids continue success in their careers and jobs – and they have good jobs. Not as a result of luck because they have both worked hard and have not waited for things to be handed to them. And I am (we are) extremely proud to have raised these types of adults.
I can also see the fruits of the time and effort we put into parenting over oh so many years (and it never really stops – it just changes). I believe my kids are contributing members of society. Perfect with no faults – not at all – they were raised by imperfect but caring parents. They are thoughtful, intelligent and caring of everything that is around them. They are not myopic and self-centered which seems to be more the rule than the exception any more.

On the personal “not so good” side, I actually can’t come up with too much that has happened this past year. In fact there is only one thing that has been bad that I can really think of. For anyone who has a family pet, you will understand. For the rest of you, probably not. If you look at the photos in my blog header and probably dispersed around other places, you will see a few of Gunther – our Jack Russell who has been a member of our family for the past 13 years. I’ve had a good number of dogs over my time but there has been none that have been like him. He is the embodiment of attitude and coolness. This was a dog that was all id, in your face, spirited beyond belief but loveable and warm through it all. His health issues began actually almost two years ago but it has been this past year we’ve watched him change the most. Where he was a friend to any person who walked into our house, he now moves away from everyone other than a couple of us – even those he readily jumped on just a short time ago. He is often confused and seems disoriented – his cataracts have gotten worse so it’s hard to tell if it is because he can’t see or if it is really the canine dementia the vet has diagnosed. We are lucky (again) that we have the resources to make sure he gets the treatment and care that he needs. Not sure if cataract surgery is in the future or if the medicine for the dementia will actually help him but I am hopeful. I know I’m blessed that this has been the only real downer on my year but that doesn’t take away the pain of watching the changes taking place and knowing what is happening to him – hoping his discomfort is more evident to us than to him.

On a broader note, some of the most recent happenings in our country have been tough to watch and often harder to understand. I don’t have answers to all the problems as I don’t believe there is any problem that has one or two causes and given the complexity of people and their varied ways of perceiving that around themselves, there will never be a “fix” that everyone sees the same way. That being said, there is some common sense that might factor into what we do or at least how we approach some of our issues of the day. Nothing magic or deep on my part or even maybe helpful but given this blog was a way to dump that which is in my head, so be it.

Guns and killing in America – Good topic top of mind – and one that could use some common sense applied.

Let’s start with the premise that I don’t think that anyone really wants to take everyone’s gun away from them. I could give two hoots about what animals you want to kill – I don’t do it, I don’t really understand it. I have had guns and I’ve hunted – first time out deer hunting I quickly realized I couldn’t ever shoot a deer – and luckily one never showed up. I hear the talk of personal freedom, 2nd amendment, it’s an equalizer, etc. etc. I look around and see the evidence that guns breed more violence and death. There is no other civilized country with the number of guns we have in the US and there is no other country with a murder rate that comes close to ours. Not sure that adding more guns to the mix will improve the situation if we are really focused on reducing gun violence. Banning assault weapons and mega-clips seems to be a logical step forward. Yes, it won’t get rid of the guns and clips already out there. But if logic were to prevail, if we are not making more assault weapons then there won’t be more people with them. Does it fix the problem and make sure that no-one will again use an assault rifle or use a mega-clip to kill a bunch of people? Not at all but if it keeps someone who doesn’t have one now from getting one and creating another Newtown incident then maybe it makes sense.
Armed guards in our schools – unfortunately, the state of our society has already resulted in some surprisingly high number of schools where there are already armed guards protecting something. I would surmise it might not be a result of protecting against terrorist or crazy person attacks but more for internal school problems but that is neither here nor there. As has been heavily discussed, Columbine had armed guards. Will it possibly stop another Newtown? It might and if I follow the logic I see on an assault weapon ban, if having an armed guard saves lives in one instance, maybe it makes sense. That being said, having the likes of a Wayne La Pierre walking the halls to protect our children sends chills down my spine. While I have no doubt there are NRA members with the right skills – both gun and people – to maybe pull it off, sorry, if armed guards is the answer, then we need to talk about some real special people. The last thing we need is an internal disaster resulting from this “fix”. Arming school administrators and teachers – sorry – that is another disaster waiting to happen. Pretty sad this is even a topic we need to discuss.
Violence in the movies and in video games – nice, easy target but if we again use common sense, the US isn’t the only country with violent movies and video games. Take a look at Japan – not without violent movies and definitely not without violent video games – take a look at their murder rate. Is the amount of violence a problem? I think there is something wrong here but focusing on this area isn’t going to get the desired results.
Taking religion out of schools – Mike Huckabee, a man who never saw a barbecue he didn’t like, was quick to jump to this one. Not much to say other than “what an asshole”.

Dora has more to her than I would have thought!

End of the day, as President Obama has said, because the problem is too complex isn’t a reason not to do something. If we can save one life, it is a start and an action worth taking.

Looking ahead I expect there is much more to rant about and I expect 2013 will offer plenty of fodder to continue my blog. Speaking of fodder, how about that Congress?

At least there is one thing on which we can all agree!

Happy New Year to all. Here’s to a great 2013 for everyone. A little peace and prosperity for all.

Dec 18 2012

Take Action: Petition to remove Westboro Baptist Church from Tax-Exempt Status

Credit: cheezburger.com

While it is the right of any organization to stand up and show the world how degenerate and despicable they are, as the group Anonymous takes their action against the Westboro Baptist Church, we ordinary citizens can also step up and make our voices heard. There is now an open petition to have the Westboro Baptist Church recognized as a hate group and to have them removed from their designation as a tax-exempt organization. I, for one, would prefer that my tax dollars (indirectly or not) are not somehow supporting an organization so heinous the people running it should be sub-human.

An action which you could consider is to not only sign the petition yourself but to also spread the word on the petition that has been started to attempt to get the religious designation the Westboro Baptist Church has that keeps it from paying any taxes. The current petition of the White House has more than 175,000 signatures, and asks the government to “legally recognize Westboro Baptist Church as a hate group.” Whether this will ultimately result in a decision to remove the church from its tax-exempt status is far from a given, this is one small step we can take to make it clear we really see what this organization is about.

The petition is located at:

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/legally-recognize-westboro-baptist-church-hate-group/DYf3pH2d

The White House petition reads:

“[Westboro’s] actions have been directed at many groups, including homosexuals, military, Jewish people and even other Christians. They pose a threat to the welfare and treatment of others and will not improve without some form of imposed regulation.”

Dec 14 2012

NRA – What is your rationale this time around?

Here it is again. This time in Connecticut – 26 people, 20 of them young children killed by some idiot who was only powerful because he had a gun. A gun that can kill another person without thought and without consequence. Just days ago, in Oregon, another killer who chose to walk into a mall and just take out two people he didn’t know. Again a gun – this time one he apparently stole but again, an individual who was nothing without the feel of cold steel and mayhem in his hands.

We will again hear the rhetoric and the utter bullshit from the NRA and those staunch believers that it isn’t the gun that kills – it is the person. Tell that to the parents of one of the 1st graders who will not wake up on Christmas morning in a little over a week. Tell that to the spouse of one of the people killed in the mall in Oregon who now gets to face raising a family as a single head of household. Let’s here about the fact that the individual who kills with a gun has something wrong with them and they would kill even without a gun. Nice try – I would submit that without a gun available to the cretin who killed children today in Newtown would not have 27 notches on his belt.

Lest we forget, this is just one more tragedy in a year that has seen this happen more than I think I’ve ever seen it happen before. A quick look back thru the postings I’ve made this year shows me that this is the 3rd or 4th time I’ve commented on this same sort of tragedy. Different day, different place, different number of deaths but at the end of it, people dead because someone had a gun.

Is this time for a debate about gun control? Not really – it is time to actually think and understand what is really important today in society. It is time to move beyond politics. Maybe it is time to think about protecting the rights and lives of the masses rather than focusing so much on the rights of the individual. Of course you diehard NRA dimwits won’t see it. While I wouldn’t wish it on anyone, I’d like to have the conversation with you right after you got the call it was your child, your spouse, your grandchild – someone very important to you was one of the victims. Maybe your cold and selfish heart would open a wee bit and maybe you would look beyond your own need for once. And maybe I would tell you I told you so.

In the meantime, the rest of you who maintain your total anti-gun control stance – take a moment and think about those 25 or so families whose lives will never be the same again because of the power of your lobby. Way to go….

Dec 5 2012

Welcome Back Ricky!

It has been a bit difficult to figure out what I want to blog about as of recent given much of the political landscape and turmoil is almost laughable. If I didn’t know better, I would almost assume the Republicans had actually won this last election cycle and that they increased whatever political collateral they had last time we went around on the debt ceiling and how to best handle the issues of deficit reduction. Their continuing stance of protecting the upper 2% of taxpayers while refusing to acknowledge the problems of the middle class will no doubt be discussed in future political science classes as they ponder what appears to be a death march celebrating the ongoing decline of the Republican Party. But that is not where I want to spend my time today.

For anyone who has paid any attention to my blogs for going back into the beginning of the last election, one of my favorite targets has been Ricky Santorum. Hasn’t taken much skill on my part as here we have a man who essentially put the proverbial “Kick Me” sign on his own back as he continually and consistently demonstrated his anachronistic stance in terms of moral, ethical, cultural and almost every form of bias and short-sighted bigotry of everything that didn’t fit cleanly in the mold he has established around his world. I don’t have time nor interest in repeating all my reasons and all my conclusions about this asshole of a human being but, again, he has made it easy as he works to stay in the limelight – really more around bad attention is better than no attention at all. So where does he climb out of his hole in the ground? He’s taken a job as a columnist for the birther bible WorldNetDaily. I’ll admit I hadn’t been aware of the site or organization prior to Ricky’s announcement of his new job but this is a site and organization that makes News Corporation and Rupert Murdock look almost like a real new agency. Aside from maintaining that Obama is not a US citizen and all the like, WorldNetDaily has maintained what I think is one of the most shattering headlines that most of the world has undoubtedly overlooked – that Obama hid gay life in order to become President. I knew Obama was pretty smart – who would have thought.

So here we have Ricky stepping down a notch (hard to believe that was possible) and signing on with an organization that maintains credibility with only those who aren’t really sure what year it is and where they left their car keys. But wait, it gets a bit better because what is his first column about? He basically shits all over the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities, which he feels “crushes U.S. sovereignty.” What is this convention all about? It is intended to protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities. Those parties that sign and support the Convention are required to promote, protect, and ensure the full enjoyment of human rights by persons with disabilities and ensure that they enjoy full equality under the law. Sounds pretty bad to me – oh wait – didn’t we in the US pass the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to essentially get to the same place?

I’ll admit I haven’t reviewed all the nuances of the UN Convention but it would seem that we in the US should be ready and willing to fully support the UN effort. Well, sorry folks but here we go again with this new Republican mindset of somehow being entirely out of step with most everyone else in the US if not the world. Just yesterday on December 4, 2012, the Senate rejected the U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities by 61 to 38. The 38 Republicans voting against the agreement prevented it from receiving a two-thirds majority, necessary in the ratification of treaties. This was despite strong support from John McCain, John Kerry, Bob Dole and others who approached this in a non-partisan manner. What was the rationale of voting against the convention? They took the stand that to vote for the U.N. treaty would mean that the U.N. committee overseeing the ban on discrimination against the disabled, including children, could violate the rights of American parents who decide to home school their disabled children. Visions of Big Brother at it’s finest – you do have to wonder what all these Republicans are really doing behind closed doors that they are that concerned about infringements on their personal freedom. Again, lead by a Tea Party Senator, Mike Lee from Utah, the use of fear and confusion remains a key weapon by those who don’t seem intelligent enough to be making decisions for the citizens of this country. And how embarrassing for the United States – this is not a position to be taken by the greatest country in the world.

So here we continue down a path that is astounding in its lack of civility and compassion for those who probably need help the most. Boy, the elections in 2014 can’t get here soon enough.

I guess for Ricky Santorum he thinks this is somehow going to enhance his bid for the Presidency in 2016. If nothing else, he is consistent – once a fool, always a fool.

notthebestoftimes…

And it is getting worse – time to get our collective head out of our ass

Monthly Archives: December 2012