Veteran's Day

I have a friend who is a former Marine. In 2003, in Iraq, he was hanging on the side of a tank that went airborne. He landed in the sand and the tank landed on him. Because of the give of the sand and the protection of his body armor, he was not killed. He did, however, suffer major internal damage. He was flown to our base in Spain and spent time hospitalized there, and then came home and spent more time at Bethesda. He insists he was just doing his job. He came home with a Purple Heart. He never forgets that he was one of the lucky ones. I texted him one Memorial Day a few years ago to thank him for his service. He told me that his grandmother was the only other person who had said anything to him about it. It means the world to him to be thanked, and he rarely is.

Thank a veteran.

I went to Walmart the other day, and drove in behind a car with a license plate frame proclaiming that the driver was the proud parent of a U.S. Marine. I saw her walk in the store, and ended up right behind her getting a cart. I stopped her and thanked her for her sacrifice and her Marine's service. Her face just lit up. She was so pleased to be recognized and to have her son recognized.

Thank the active duty servicemen and women. Thank their families.

My dad was a reservist until he was forced to retire because of his age. He was nearly sent to Iraq after 9/11, but they sent a single man without children instead. When I lived with my parents at the time, our bishop was the adjutant general for the state of Utah. He had units in Iraq. He spent most of his weeks in Iraq with his men and women, and flew home every weekend just in time to be with us at church. I know he was sustained by the Lord in his service to his country and his God, and still it drained him. But he did it. Several days ago, two Idaho reservists were killed when an Apache went down in a training accident. Reservists are activated at home and abroad constantly, and serve without complaint.

Thank a reservist.

They each give their lives, even the ones who come home, because once they see combat they are never the same again. They stand for liberty all over the world. They stand for the freedoms that we all take for granted far too often. Thank them for it. It means a lot to be recognized, we all know that. No one likes their hard work ignored. Why would it be any different for them? It doesn't need to be elaborate or long-winded, simply thank them for their service. It means so much.

To all who serve their country, in so many capacities, thank you. Thank you for your service.

‘Fat’ is usually the first insult a girl throws at another girl when she wants to hurt her.

I mean, is ‘fat’ really the worst thing a human being can be? Is ‘fat’ worse than ‘vindictive’, ‘jealous’, ‘shallow’, ‘vain’, ‘boring’ or ‘cruel’? Not to me; but then, you might retort, what do I know about the pressure to be skinny? I’m not in the business of being judged on my looks, what with being a writer and earning my living by using my brain…

I went to the British Book Awards that evening. After the award ceremony I bumped into a woman I hadn’t seen for nearly three years. The first thing she said to me? ‘You’ve lost a lot of weight since the last time I saw you!’

‘Well,’ I said, slightly nonplussed, ‘the last time you saw me I’d just had a baby.’

What I felt like saying was, ‘I’ve produced my third child and my sixth novel since I last saw you. Aren’t either of those things more important, more interesting, than my size?’ But no – my waist looked smaller! Forget the kid and the book: finally, something to celebrate!

I’ve got two daughters who will have to make their way in this skinny-obsessed world, and it worries me, because I don’t want them to be empty-headed, self-obsessed, emaciated clones; I’d rather they were independent, interesting, idealistic, kind, opinionated, original, funny – a thousand things, before ‘thin’. And frankly, I’d rather they didn’t give a gust of stinking chihuahua flatulence whether the woman standing next to them has fleshier knees than they do. Let my girls be Hermiones, rather than Pansy Parkinsons.


- J.K. Rowling

“Recently, Obama has been re-elected for a 2nd term by an illiterate society and he is ready to continue his lies of less taxes while he raises them. He gives speeches of peace and love in the world while he promotes wars as he did in Egypt, Libya and Syria. He plans his next war is with Iran as he fires or demotes his generals who get in the way.”

"He is a Communist without question promoting the Communist Manifesto without calling it so. How shrewd he is in America. His cult of personality mesmerizes those who cannot go beyond their ignorance. They will continue to follow him like those fools who still praise Lenin and Stalin in Russia. Obama’s fools and Stalin’s fools share the same drink of illusion.”

"President Vladimir Putin could never have imagined anyone so ignorant or so willing to destroy their people like Obama much less seeing millions vote for someone like Obama."


Pravda 11/19/2012 By Xavier Lerma

The Chicago Teacher's Union is WRONG.

Chicago teachers average salary: $70,000 – $76,000 per year (Highest or 2nd highest in nation).

Chicago average family income: $47,000 per year.

The city has already offered an 11% raise to teachers, but the union denied it.

The Chicago Teachers Union originally asked for a 30% raise.

Average health-care costs paid by teachers: 3%.

Out of every new dollar set aside for public education in Illinois in the last 5 years, 71 cents goes to teacher retirement costs.

Only 15% of fourth graders are proficient in reading.

Only 56% of students who enter their freshman year of high school wind up graduating.



Well, no wonder they don't want their jobs to be subject to teacher evaluations.

I think that pretty much sums it up.

Remember when journalism was about facts and unbiased reporting? Yeah, me either.

Dear Chris Matthews and every other moron "journalist" out there - please learn the actual FACTS about Paul Ryan's Medicare plan before you go out and riff on them in public. NOTHING CHANGES FOR ANYONE 55 OR OLDER. PERIOD. Don't try to disparage or discredit the plan by talking about 80 year old people trying to find private insurance. It's flat out wrong, incorrect and either lazy or a deliberate lie. Knock it off. At least pretend to have some journalistic integrity.

Do people really not see the obvious logical fallacy in the party of Hollywood and high society screeching about the evil rich? So many of those who jumped on the "Occupy" bandwagon are the one percent.

Come on, people. Think.

And they call us the anti-intellectuals.

It's interesting to me that the "anyone but Bush" liberals either discount or just do not understand the potential power of the "anyone but Obama" conservatives.

Sometimes it's really hard - and honestly lonely - when almost all your close friends are liberals.

You know, Alec Baldwin promised to move if Bush won, and yet, Bush won and Baldwin just... didn't say anything about it again. We can't get rid of him.

Hey, all you RUN FROM THE SCARY GOP liberals, did you know that Steven Chu stated that his goal - not fear or prediction or expectation, not hope or even plan, his goal - is $10 a gallon gas. Ten. That's right, your precious president's Energy Secretary let it slip that the administration's goal is to make it impossible for most Americans to afford to drive a car. Never mind how many people will lose or have to quit their jobs because they can't physically get there anymore. Unemployment will skyrocket, foreclosures and bankruptcies will too, but none of that matters. We're Saving The Environment! Even When It Isn't At Risk! At Your Expense! Whether You Like It Or Not!

If Obama actually cared about creating jobs or reducing energy costs, he wouldn't have spent this morning on the phone nagging Democrats not to overturn his refusal to allow construction of the Keystone pipeline. All we needed were four Democrats to find their backbones and we would suddenly have 20,000 shovel-ready jobs on the immediate horizon.

Chu said when specifically asked that no, lowering costs is not the administration's goal. And when asked in his LOOK AT ME LOOK AT ME press conference (not coincidentally held on GOP Super Tuesday) if he wanted gas prices to go down, Obama said that of course, any president running for re-election wants prices to go down. HE'S PLAYING YOU, AMERICA, AND YOU AREN'T EVEN MAKING IT HARD FOR HIM.

But if you honestly believe we are better off with Mr. "I'd rather be golfing" Obama and his lovely wife Ms. "$10 million plus (and counting!) in taxpayer funded vacations" Michelle, then please. Move to Canada when the Republican wins in November. The fewer socialists we have to deal with in our democratic republic, the better.

Some day I will be a grown-up. Today was not that day. Tomorrow doesn't look good either.

This is an extension of the last post, I suppose, although I certainly didn't intend it to be when I decided to ramble a little.

I am realizing more and more that I do not mean as much, matter as much, to some people as I think I should, or thought I did. I suppose that's a risk one runs with online friendships, especially when one doesn't really know how to interact with people and never really knows what to say. I thought it would be easier for some reason to not have to interact in person. Sometimes it is. Especially when things remain trivial and superficial. But I have a tendency to imagine connections that just aren't there.

For the most part it's nothing big, and I'm sure those in question don't realize how I feel. Mostly because of that bottom line. I'm a casual friend at best, and it doesn't seem to occur to them to think of me otherwise. And let's be honest - I am incapable of trusting them, of really letting them in, so it is probably, on the whole, for the best.

apanthropy

1. A strong preference for solitude.
2. A kind of melancholy characterized by a dislike for human society.

"Let me tell you this: if you meet a loner, no matter what they tell you, it's not because they enjoy solitude. It's because they have tried to blend into the world before, and people continue to disappoint them."

― Jodi Picoult, My Sister's Keeper

dilemmas, i have them

First, I am sincerely perplexed by something my brother told me yesterday. He has a friend S. I can't remember if he was actually Dave's companion or just in his mission area. I'm pretty sure they at least did splits, but it's not really relevant. Point is, they've been friends since their mission. I don't know what it is about S, but he's been my favorite of Dave's friends. I know he went through a rough spot awhile back, I have the impression he's doing better, but I don't know any details. I'm not entirely sure I would recognize him if I passed him on the street (but that's my own issue - I honestly don't retain faces right away and it takes several times seeing someone before I remember what they look like) but I think about him and worry a little and hope he's happy.

Well, yesterday, in the course of a text conversation, Dave said S always asks about me. It was said in such a casual way that clearly it's a part of Dave's relationship with S, so common that he doesn't even think about it any more. When I said something about it, Dave said again that S always asks about me specifically, that I'm the only one he specifically asks about. I told Dave that S has always been my favorite of his friends and Dave said the feeling is mutual.

Wow, this is an awkward post. Anyway. I don't know how to process that. I don't consider myself all that likeable, much less memorable, and I don't understand why someone I've only met a few times and haven't talked to all the much (which, I don't know how to talk to people, but that's a separate issue) clearly feels that same weird connection that I do. I don't know. *hands*

My other dilemma shouldn't even be an issue. I could easily get $50,000 within the next 6-8 months, but I would have to flat out lie to do it. The chances of getting caught are slim to none. The chances of being punished if I were caught are even less. I'm starting to seriously consider filing for bankruptcy even though I've always considered that to be absolutely abhorrent. It feels like cheating, even though I know for some people it's their only and best option. I'm starting to think it might be my best option, and $50k would fix it. What's the price of integrity? I know people will claim "their" $50k with the same lie I could tell. It feels unfair that doing the right thing might screw me over. I don't know why I'm even struggling with this, because I know I won't do it, but it kind of scares me how much I want to.

I feel irrelevant. It doesn't upset me as much as I think it should.

I'm so disgusted with our president and his party's leaders. In the Twitter townhall, he was asked what he would have done differently to address the recession and he said he would have made more effort to make sure the people understood it would take awhile to fix. Because yeah, that is the problem. The people are so stupid that you weren't able to make them understand your genius plan! It's not because, oh, I don't know - the bigger the government the LOWER the quality of life, the LOWER the effectiveness of its economy, the LOWER the freedom of its people. It's not that you've taxed and regulated businesses to the point that it's more cost-effective to move operations to countries where they can actually run the business. It's not because 51% of people pay NO taxes whatsoever, and the richest people you keep trying to tax find more and more shelters and loopholes the higher their taxes. No. You're denying quantifiable facts, provable facts, and WE are the stupid ones. Newsflash, you dick, your plan ISN'T WORKING.

And Nancy Pelosi! She had the utter gall to smirk at reporters as she drawled that we have reached day 185 of no jobs bill from the GOP controlled House, when we have also reached day EIGHT HUNDRED of no budget proposal whatsoever, which includes time when both the House and Senate were under Democrat control and they could have passed any kind of budget - tax increases and spending increases galore - and FAILED TO DO SO. And when asked recently, Harry Reid said he thought it would IRRESPONSIBLE of the Democrats to propose a budget at this time. Seriously?!? You jump all over Paul Ryan, subject him to any number of personal attacks, accuse him of trying to kill old people because he wants to OH NOES balance the budget and save Medicare, and you fail fail fail EVERY DAY to even propose a budget of your own!

Side note: It is NOT the responsibility of the government to create jobs. That is the responsibility of the private sector, which can actually provide sustainable long-term employment. The GOP understands this. It also understands that it cost $278 million for every job "created" by the stimulus package (which package, incidentally, also paid for the genius program where the US government sold assault weapons to Mexican drug cartels - because nothing could possibly go wrong there, right?). It's actually a good thing the House isn't trying to "create" jobs, Nancy. If you lived in any universe even remotely connected to reality you might understand that.



Never has that been more true. Speaker Boehner said today that we have three problems - a tax problem, a spending problem and a jobs problem. Those three are merely symptoms of our three real problems: a Pelosi problem, a Reid problem and an Obama problem.

Yeah, no. No, no, no. You are the Primary president, not Queen of the Ward. Just because I'm "only" the ward music director doesn't mean that I am retarded or "less" in any way. You cannot - CANNOT - continue to do end-runs around me to get the Primary kids singing in Sacrament meeting and then brush me off like I'm a Sunbeam trying to sit at the adult table when I call you on it. I am more than happy to have other things going on than interminable intermediate hymns, believe me, but just ask me. Do NOT inform me that I will be notified if the grown-ups decide to have the kids sing. Sacrament meeting music is MY responsibility, just like all the ankle-biters are yours. This makes the third month in a row for both the end-run and the Primary number. I will not let you steamroll me. Quiet does not in any way mean spineless.

RAR.