Nice warm sunny Summer day with a refreshing breeze. I got to plant yellow squash and zucchini squash in two of my Earth Boxes. I didn't follow the Earth Box rules, just used them as growing pots.. we'll see if that works. Maybe I can do the other two boxes tomorrow and plant two cucumber plants.
Let me try something I used to do today and see if it works. I'll do a dozen things to think about.
01. Attack on the Tea Party
Jim Lee, editor of the local newspaper, the Carroll County Times, wrote a scathing editorial about the Tea Party and their my-way-only philosophy that is killing the Republican Party. I like his statement:
"Compromise is not a dirty word. It is not something that should be avoided at all costs. In fact, our ability to see past our differences and forge a way forward based upon a shared common vision is what has always contributed to our greatness." Amen!
02. Reinstitute the Draft?
David J. Iacomo wrote a letter to the Times advocating a renewal of the Draft, with very few deferments... "... to eliminate draft dodgers like former Vice President, Dick Cheney, from getting five deferments." I didn't know that. But Mr. Cheney has always had heart trouble. Maybe that was the reason for the deferments. Surely he wasn't afraid to go to war. (Did you know that in the Civil War, a young man could sell his place in the draft, and not have to fight?)
03. Benghazi Villain?
Stop blaming Hillary for Benghazi, Abu Khatala is here now. The Lybian is in DC to be tried for masterminding the attack on the 11th anniversary of the Sept 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. He has said that he is not guilty.. He may make a plea deal to avoid the death penalty. ..
04. The KKK is Back
On June 28th, members of the Maryland Traditional Rebel Knights met and expounded at the Gettysburg battlefield. Their Vice President, Albert Fike told the crowd of 50 people that "minorities" would never be equal to white people, and denounced inter-racial relationships, homosexuals, and President Obama.
05. Pizza Stabbing
The pizza guy that was stabbed by 3 persons, was actually stabbed by 4 hungry teen-agers, who will now get to have their food delivered to their cells by Chester Proudfoot.
06. I didn't know that.
On this date in 1613, London's original Globe Theatre was destroyed in a fire caused by a cannon shot during a performance of Henry VIII.
07. Click and Clack Survey
The automotive experts wanted to find out why men never pay with change, while women will root around in their pocket books until they find the right change. So, they did a survey. These are some of the results:
a. Men can't count.
b. Men like the feel of heavy stuff in their pockets.
c. Women are better able to handle details.
d. Men put change on their bureaus every night and it gets stolen by their kids, so they don't have change to put into their pockets in the morning.
e. Women keep every bit of change ever received, in their pocketbooks, forever.
Well, it sounded funny on the radio. Sorry.
08. Do snakes like music?
A bagpiper called Click and Clack for advice on how to get snakes out of his car.. they have found a home behind his dashboard. (He should have contacted Tammy McCormick, who I mentioned yesterday, who has a snake catching company.) C + C advised him to sit in the back seat and play Amazing Grace over and over on his bagpipes while a front window is left open.. It won't take long before you will see those slithery creatures racing to escape the sound.
I wonder if snake meat is one of the ingredients of Haggis?
09. Immortality?
We talked a bit about this yesterday and today NPR had an hour long show that I was only able to listen to sporadically. A man caught a 50 pound lobster! Why so big? Because Lobsters have no cell breakdown material (whatever that is called). So, their cells keep being rejuvenated.. and theoretically they could live forever.. unless hungry humans capture them.
Tortoises have been found to have 120 or so of rejuvenation material for their cells.. after 120 rejuvenations, their breakdown material kicks in and they get ready to die. Tortoises can live to be way over 100 years... Humans, unfortunately, have only 50 or so of rejuvenation material, so we get the proverbable 70 years, or a few more if we retain our ability to reproduce. When we are no longer able to reproduce, nature may feel that we are no longer important in the chain of life... at least that might be true for men... what about women who lose their eggs and still live long lives?
A scientist who studies worms with a 14 day life span, has been able to manipulate their rejuvenation material and give them a 28 day active life span. She says that eventually she will be able to give them a much longer lifespan. She has formed a company to look into somehow doing the same thing to humans. With the worms, she takes the "Grim Reaper Gene" and replaces it with the "Fountain of Youth" gene. Her company is called The Elixir Company.. look for it on the stock market.
I warned you that I did not hear all of this program, so some of the information above may not be accurate. However, I think there is enough there to allow you to do some Google searches, if you are so inclined.
10. Immigrant Kids
In 2008, George W. Bush signed into law a bill that says we have to take care of any kids who appear from other countries on our "doorstep." We have to get them together with their relatives or find a way to send them back home. (What? back to abject poverty and gang violence? What does it say on the Statue of Liberty?)
The President is trying to follow the law with all of these kids who are suddenly coming to America, so why is he being ridiculed by the GOP?
11. The Working Man
With the increasing distance between the "haves" and the "don't have much of anything" in the good old US of A, country music is trying to talk about it. Check out Toby Keith's song: "Get Drunk and Be Somebody." The verse about the boss: "I give him forty hours and a piece of my soul..Hell, I don't even think he knows my name." And the chorus: "Well, all week long I'm a real nobody/But I just punched out and its paycheck Friday/Weekend's here, good God almighty/I'm going to get drunk and be somebody."
12. But are we out?
The Nation Magazine quotes a tweet from Senator John McCain. "Last American combat troops leave Iraq. I think President George W. Bush deserves some credit for victory." The Nation says "the Republican senator from Arizona, remembers to thank the man who launched Operation Iraqi Freedom." (looking for non-existent Weapons of Mass Destruction. says me.)
.............................................................
No comments:
Post a Comment