Target; Tattoos; Maryland Laws; North Korea; Israel; Spying; Newspaper Format; Saint Eligius; Hobby Lobby; World Cup; Free Scam; Dandelion; Taxi

A nice 95 degree Summer day. 


Before I get into the news, I want to talk about how Elaine and I spent this afternoon.  First, we went to see Kim and get haircuts.. and coloring for Elaine.  My hair is all white and I  am not going to color it, because people expect us old dudes to have gray or white hair.  However, a woman can drop 20 years off of her perceived age by getting some color, usually blond.  Elaine looks quite young with her blond hair.


After seeing Kim, we went to our newly renovated Target store.  It appears to me that they upped their prices for groceries to cover their renovation costs.  As far as I can see, their prices are higher than Giant Food and WalMart.  There is a notice on their wall that reads: "By shopping at Target you help us give 5% of our profit to the community.  That's over $4 million per week."


If my math is right, that equates to a yearly profit for Target of 4 Billion 160 Million dollars!
The only community group that was shown as a recipient was the Maryland Food Bank.  However, there is a website where you can go to check up on them: www.target.com/community


As I get older and more judgmental every day, I also made this observation:  A beautiful blond girl, who looked to be a teen-ager, came in to shop with a person, who I assume was her mother.  The girl was wearing what could be considered to be a bikini if it were worn at the beach.  And on her arms and legs were black tattoos of dragons and other mythical creatures.  Why oh why did her mother allow her to disfigure herself that way.  Will she ever get a husband?  A job?  Any one to take her seriously?  Perhaps she may be old enough to make her own tattoo decisions.. but obviously not old enough to foresee the outcome for her future.


OK.. I got that out of my system.. and remember, I do have a tattoo.. although it is just my late wife's initials on my arm.  And of course, I was lucky that my present partner has the very same initials. 


I promised Elaine that I will not be so judgmental in the future.


On with the news:


01. New Maryland State Laws


Some 200 new Maryland State laws took effect today, including a 1/2 cent gasoline tax, the right to a State-supplied attorney for poor defendants when bail is being set, preparation for  raising the minimum wage to $8 (headed to $10.10), raising State Estate Tax exemption to $1.5 million (heading to $5 million), banning the selling of 95% alcohol to drinkers age 21 to 24,  etc.


02. North Korea Detainees


The first American who will be tried by North Korea for acts against the State is Jeffrey Fowle, who left a Bible in his hotel room.


The second American who will be tried is Mathew Miller, who Korea said tore up his visa while  yelling that he was seeking asylum.


Now, we find out that there was a third detained American. I don't know his name or what his crime was specifically, but he was a Christian evangelist sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for "trying to topple the Government."


03.  Israeli Kidnapping


The three kidnapped Israeli teenagers were found murdered today.   Israel will enact strong vengeance on Hamas for this act.


04.  Spying Permission?


The Carroll County Times reports that the United States has long had no-spying arrangements with Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.  This group of Nations was called The Five Guys.  However, the ACLU says that the US also has certain "certifications" that allow it to spy through companies and agencies in any entity in the world.  Huh?


05.  New Format


Speaking of the Carroll County Times.. they have a new format for the newspaper.  It may take me a while to get used to it.  I'm sure they received guidance from their new boss, The Baltimore Sun.


06.  Troubled Saint?


Saint Eligius lived from 588 to 660, and is the patron saint  of goldsmiths, and these days of bitcoins and litecoins.


However, Eligius Wachter, of Westminster, Maryland is not so revered.  He was arrested twice yesterday for three separate incidents:


a. Disorderly conduct;
b. Pulling a fire alarm;
c. Throwing a rock through the door of a deli.


In addition, he is charged with "panhandling."  Hardly lives up to his name, does he?


07.  More on Hobby Lobby


Judge Alito says that the ruling addresses only the contraceptive mandate.


One can opt out only if the organization has a "sincere religious belief that life begins at conception."


Justice Anthony Kennedy, fifth vote for the majority, says that "the Administration has already found alternate ways to guarantee contraceptive coverage for women who work for explicitly religious non-profit organizations." Huh?  How?


On the Diane Rheem Show this morning, Nina Totenberg (sp?) and some other notables hotly discussed the Hobby Lobby decision.  Some quotes from the show:


" The decision concerns FDA approved contraception material only."


"Hobby Lobby doesn't have problems with their retirees investing in companies that create contraception material and they buy from China that abuses Christians."


"The decision will be a great money-raiser for Democrats because it is another assault on women's rights."


"Five male catholic judges decided this one."


"In the U.S., the government protects people who switch religions; in other countries, they kill  you."


"What about women whose conditions mean that a pregnancy would kill them?"


"One use of IUD's is to prevent bleeding, rather than prevent pregnancies."


I could have recorded some of these comments erroneously, so don't take my writing of the quotes as exactly as spoken.


08.  No Joy in Mudville


The United States team lost today in the World Cup.  (As expected, but disappointing still for many.)


Will soccer become as popular now in the US as it is around the world?


09.  Free Medical Equipment Scam


"Congratulations!  You've been selected to receive, absolutely free, a (name of a medical device)..."


This came from Maryland telephone number: 410-123-6548.  I picked it up because my "Caller ID" showed "Maryland" and that number.  I thought that maybe it was a local friend calling.  Instead.. it was that scam that probably everybody in Maryland is being subjected to.


First:  there is no free lunch!  A company might send you a free alarm system in return for either your Social Security Number or your Medicare number..  They will, in turn, submit a claim for a large amount of money to your insurance company or Medicare.  This is Medicare Fraud.  Don't get involved, because you will pay in the end.


10.  Scam Avoidance Advice


If you do not have the following, you need to arrange to get  it, and soon.. otherwise the scam artists will get you, believe me. 


Get "Caller ID" placed on your phone.  And make sure that  your phone has an answer machine attachment, either built into the phone, or separate from it.


Now.. when someone calls, you can look at the number and decide if it is worth your time to answer the call.  If you do not answer, and it is an important call from a relative or friend.. or even from the drugstore calling about a prescription... they will leave a message and you can call them back.


11.  A Beautiful Yellow Flower is in Danger


Today, our development was sprayed to control weeds and kill insects and spiders.  People with pets were advised to keep them inside for a while.  One of the weeds that people think they need to kill is a beautiful yellow flower called the dandelion.  I love this flower and made sure that I had a lot of it in my last house in Gamber.  Besides being beautiful, the dandelion's green leaves make a great salad ingredient and can be cooked like spinach... in fact, during the Great Depression, one of my jobs in the early Spring was to pick bags of the plants and greens so that my Grandmother could cook it up.  Sometimes, that is the only solid food we had to eat.  What harm does the plant do? Let it live!


Richard Lederer wrote the following in the Mensa Bulletin in 2012:


"The English used to  call the yellow, shaggy weed a 'lion's tooth' because the jagged, pointed leaves resemble the lion's snarly grin.  During the early 14th century, the lion's tooth plant took on a French flavor and became the dent-de-lion, 'tooth-of-the-lion.'  Then it acquired an English accent: dandelion."


12.  Taxi!


A stark-naked woman jumps into a cab and gives the driver an address.  The cabbie just looks at her and makes no attempt to drive.
"What are you staring at?" the woman asks.  "Haven't you ever seen a naked woman before?"
"I'm not staring," he replies.
"Well, if you're not staring, what are you doing?"
"Wondering where you're keeping the money to pay me."


(Borrowed from Readers Digest.)


.....................................................................................