Real Thought

Here he goes again, selling us down the river. First, the White House bungled the entire immigration issue and it seems that the current administration in Washington has caved to pressure from Congress and some European countries to “open a dialogue” with Iran over it’s nuclear program according to this story in the Financial Times of London. It appears that the Bush administration wants to reach a “diplomatic solution” with Iran over its nuclear development.

Good Grief!!!!!!!! I guess GW and company don’t remember that Neville Chamberlain tried the same approach with Adolf Hitler over Czechoslovakia or that President Ronald Reagan promised that the United States would never negotiate with terrorists. Yet again, George talks the talk but doesn’t walk the walk. I would venture a guess that outside of Berkeley, Cambridge, New Hampshire, Vermont and Washington DC the vast majority of the American people don’t want us to dialogue with an anti-semetic, misogynistic nut case yet that seems to be the prudent course for this president. And he wonders why his approval rating is in the tank.

George, here is a suggestion, refuse to negotiate with Iran. Let them know that they are angering the “Sleeping Giant” as Admiral Yamamoto so aptly called the United States. Quit listening to the Europeans. They are only out for themselves and have an incredible case of penis envy when it comes to the United States. Go back to the idea of “millions for defense but not one cent for tribute”. Get some cajones. Make a speech to the American people on why a terrorist state like Iran having nuclear capability is a direct threat to the security of Mr. and Mrs. Middle America. Use the bully pulpit. Finally, for God’s sake, George, quit listening to Karl Rove. The man is an idiot.

Yes, folks, it turns out that even the progressive, open hearted, haven of worker’s freedom, defender of human rights, the People’s Republic of China has a pollution problem. This story from the Scotsman, quotes the state run Xinghua News Agency in saying that the mighty Yangtse River is “cancerous with pollution”. Evidently, the enlightened leaders of the PRC thought that the Yangtse was “self-cleaning”. Now the river poses a serious health threat to millions who live along its banks and depend upon its water including the entire city of Shanghai. The story goes on to quote Professor Yuan Aiguo stating that if nothing is done the Yangtse will be incapable of supporting any form of aquatic life in five to ten years.

I would like to know where Greenpeace is? Why isn’t the Rainbow Warrior cruising up and down the Yangtse filled with long haired, patchouli wearing ecological watchdogs waving banners and signs? Well? Could it be they aren’t there because the People’s Navy would have no qualms about blowing them to kingdom come? Or could it be that the activists in Greenpeace are willing to give the PRC a pass because after all, they are in solidarity with the People’s Republic? Or is it that the life of one harp seal or one whale is more valuable to them than the lives of millions of their fellow humans who just happen to be Chinese? My guess is all of the above.

Yes, folks, I have a new renter, E-mails from Jesus.  Irreverent?  Yes.  Blaphemous?  Probably.  Funnier than the drunken father-in-law at the wedding in Cana?  You betcha!  Go check it out.

Many of you may not know but Caifornia has a high school exit exam. This exam is set at the 8th grade level. In order to receive a diploma all seniors have to pass the exam beginning with the class of 2006. Recently a state appellate judge ruled that seniors in the class of 2006 didn’t have to pass the exam and must be awarded their diplomas if they have enough credits to graduate. The seniors of the class of 2006 have had at least four chances to take and pass the exam. The state Supreme Court has ruled that seniors in the class of 2006 must pass the exam in order to receive a diploma.

I applaud this decision. It is about time that we had an objective measure of student achievement before awarding a high school diploma. The test is based on the EIGHTH GRADE CURRICULUM! Let me spell this out, I don’t care how many credits a Senior has, if they can’t pass an eighth grade exam they do not deserve a diploma. Period. This requirement does not apply to special education students by the way. There may be hope for the People’s Republic of California yet. Of course my union, the CTA doesn’t want there to be an exit exam.

One more thing, I will be gone for the next four days with my Sea Scouts. They will be competing at the Ancient Mariner Regatta which is being held aboard the USS Hornet museum in Alameda, California. If you are interested to see why I am an active adult leader in a Scout program, check it out. Of course, that means that there will be no new posts for a few days for the three of you besides my wife and father who actually read this to peruse.

UPDATE: The California Court of Appeals has set a July 25th date to hear oral arguments on the California High School Exit Exam. That means that seniors in the class of 2006 MUST take and pass the exam in order to receive a diploma.

Check out my new renter folks, They The People. It is a blog all about politics in the world’s largest democracy, India. There is some interesting stuff to read about, almost all of which is not covered by the media here in the United States. Go give it a look!

According to this story from the Associated Press it appears that our southern neighbors really don’t want non-natives to hold jobs in their country. Strange considering that the Mexican government wants complete and unrestricted access to jobs in the United States for its citizens. Perhaps the United States should adopt similar statutes.

I have been away for a few days and the Native Sons of the Golden West Grand Parlor (statewide convention) in South Lake Tahoe. WOOHOO! Four days of partying with a bunch of people whose average age is about 70 and discussion on matters which don’t mean anything to non-members. I will say that a HUGE sum of money was raised for historical preservation and to assist families whose children are born with cleft palate and can’t afford the corrective surgery.

I get home only to discover that I have to buy Kentucky Girl the matching dryer for our new washing machine. It seems that she tried to burn the house down with the old one while I was gone. Of course, she has a history of trying to burn the house down. While our kitchen was being remodeled, she left a candle burning on the newly installed cabinets and we awoke at 3 a.m. to the sound of the smoke alarm. At least the counter tops and sink hadn’t been installed yet and the candle only burned an area that was removed for the sink installation. She wonders why I have a million dollar liability policy. Heh!

Finally, we have a new service on our cable system. Karoke on demand! May I ask who requested this? Really? I mean we have a bazillion channels of garbage and the best the cable company can do is give us karoke? Sometimes I just want to slap the people who make these kind of decisions.

Mother’s Day has always been bittersweet for me. I lost my sister to a heart attack in 1983. I lost my mother about 15 years ago to complications from diabeties and heart disease. Kentucky Girl and I have no children of our own and one of my aunts just passed away this week leaving her twin sister as my sole remaining aunt. Needless to say, there won’t be much of a celebration here today.

Here is to all of the mothers out there and all the wonderful things you do for your families on a daily basis; may you all have a very happy Mother’s Day.

As I surf other’s blogs, I see that a number of people have the “Thursday 13″ or “Friday 14″ or some other such list. Most of this seems to be filler and fluff to me. Yet I feel strangely compelled to create a list of my own, so here it is: Twenty public figures I can do without and twenty I actually pay somewhat fractured attention to.

First the twenty I can do without:

1. Senator Edward Kennedy. Why Jabba the senator gets re-elected is beyond me. He hasn’t done anything worthwhile in at least thirty years and he certainly is not as glamorous as Jack or as smart and ruthless as Bobby.

2. Senator Barbara Boxer. I live in Babs country. If she has ever had an original thought in her political career, I have yet to see or hear it. She lives in Marin county, wears fur coats and drives a Porsche, yet pretends to be a champion for the working class. Need I say more?

3. Britney Spears. No talent. Married Kevin Federline. Drives without her child in a car seat. Is pregnant by K-Fed again. Someone please end her career.

4. Kevin Federline. Po Po Zao. Next!

5. Paris Hilton. She is about as bright as my basset hound and about as attractive. Why anyone listens to her is beyond me.

6. Michael Moore. Where do I begin? How about the hatchet job that was “Roger and Me”? How about the blatant manipulation and self-aggrandisement that was “Farenheit 911″? Michael, you are a sham and a phoney and you know it.

7. Al Franken. Al, pretending to be an intellectual does not make you one. You were much funnier when you were half of Franken and Davis.

8. Howard Stern. Howard, your schtick was funny thirty years ago when it was pioneered by Alex Bennett. I frankly do not care what strippers, prostitutes and porn starlets have to say.

9. Bill O’Reilly. Bill, who is looking out for me? Not you, unless you can see beyond your enormous ego.

10. Rush Limbaugh. You were the man twenty years ago. You virtually re-invented talk radio but your tendencies to get sloppy with your fact checking, create facts from thin air and pop painkillers as if they were after dinner mints have done you in. You make the rest of us look bad.

11. Barbara Streisand. Babs, remember when you said you would leave the country if Bush was re-elected? Remember that I offered to buy you a one way ticket? I am still waiting for you to call.

12. Susan Sarandon. Susan, what happened to the sex kitten of The Rocky Horror Picture Show? When did you become so angry and bitter? Did Tim Robbins do this to you or was it Geena Davis?

13. Representative Nancy Pelosi. Is there anything she won’t blame on the Bush administration?

14. Cindy Sheehan. Someone get this woman a shot of tequila and some grief counseling.

15. Harry Belefonte. Harry, I simply do not understand the hatred you bear towards the country which adopted you and gave you fame and fortune.

16. Walter Cronkite. Uncle Walter, you were the most trusted man in America. Millions took your word as gospel and you betrayed that trust. You lied about the Tet Offensive, you lied about the strength of the Soviet Union and you now spew hatred against your country.

17. Al Gore. Al, I remember when you were a rising star in the Democratic Party. You were sane and moderate. What happened?

18. Senator Hillary Clinton. You tolerated a husband who cheated on you in pursuit of political power. You moved to New York in order to gain political office for yourself and you have never come clean about your role in the Vincent Foster affair.

19. George Clooney. Your Oscar speech was a joke. You have only proven that your ego is much larger than your acting ability. Do me a favor, stick to acting and stay out of politics.

20. Jon Stewart. Jon, you are still funny but when the mainstream press says you are “hip and irreverent” you have lost your edge.

OK, now the 20 I actually pay attention to:

1. Ben Stein. Ben, your writing is touching and clear and your expertise in economics is unmached and you are extremely funny. Will you adopt me?

2. Michael Reagan. He is the keeper of his father’s flame. He does his homework and his arguments are logical and concise.

3. Kurt Russell. Kurt made a commitment to Goldie Hawn and her children and he kept it. Everyone says that he is a honest, trustworthy man and no one has anything negative to say about him. This speaks volumes for his character.

4.Tom Selleck. Again, someone about whom almost no one makes negative comments. Well, except for Rosie O’Donnell.

5. William F. Buckley. One of the founders of the modern libertarian conservative movement.

6. Stephen Colbert. Anytime CSPAN can get your roast of a sitting President pulled from the internet, you know that you have made it. Keep up the good work.

7. Dennis Miller. I know his popularity has slipped since he became libertarian but his rants are still some of the funniest commentary around.

8. Trey Parker and Matt Stone. South Park is the best social satire in the public arena today. Anyone who will take on Al Gore, Scientologists, The Catholic Church, NAMBLA, hybrid cars and plastic surgery is OK in my book.

10. Warren Buffett. Pure genius. Period.

11. R. Emmett Tyrell. The American Spectator is a must read for anyone on the conservative side of the political spectrum. Anyone who lists their attorneys as “Poor, Nasty, Brutish and Short” is OK by me.

12. Thomas Sowell. His work on economics and race in America never fails to amaze me.

13. Brit Hume. He has the credibility of which Geraldo Rivera only dreams .

14. Jimmy Buffett. His songs are a reflection of my life and he writes from the heart.

15. The Dalai Lama. His comments and actions, even though I don’t believe that he is divine, humble me. He is truly a man who is exceptionable and holy.

16. Tony Bourdain. Yes, he is snarky, yes he is conceited but his show is also an entertaining window into foods and cultures many of us will never visit.

17. Tom McClintock. California’s last remaining true conservative voice.

18. Nick Parks. Creator of Wallace and Gromit. A true comic genius.

19. Denis Leary. Sarcastic comic, good actor and Boston Bruins fan.

20. George Will. Perhaps the idealogue of the conservative movement in this country today. His writing is elegant and readable and he always causes me to examine an issue in a new way.

There you have it. At least this isn’t some lame “Thursday 13″ list.

So, last night my beloved San Jose Sharks managed to drop a second game in a row to the Edmonton Oilers. When I began watching the game, the Sharks were ahead 3-1 in the middle of the 2nd period. The Oilers then went on to score FIVE unanswered goals in the remainder of the 2nd and the third periods. The playoff series between the two teams is now tied at two games each and the teams return to San Jose for game five. The Sharks went to Edmonton with a 2-0 series lead and managed to let the Oilers even up the series. They have to win two more games to advance to the Western Conference finals. Am I worried? Yes. As a fan, I’d really like to see the Sharks in the conference finals BUT the upside to this is that if they don’t advance, I have money left in my season ticket account for tickets next year. But just once, I’d like to go to the Shark Tank and see a conference championship or Stanley Cup banner hanging from the rafters.