Opining Online

Pelosi, Reid, and the Democrats do not want to take “ownership” of the bailout. Sure, it’s a lot of money and they don’t want responsibility for a spending bill of that size.

But does it go further than that? Do they fear it the spending bill will fail? Do they want they economy to fail, with or without the spending bill? I think that Pelosi is playing politics, fast and furious. She said the bill was in response to “failed” Bush policies of the last 8 years. Hasn’t it been adequately documented that the policies of the last 30+ years are responsible?

With all due respect (which may be none) I am of the opinion that Nancy Pelosi did not want this bill to pass. The reasons why may be numerous.

If I may quote myself (a comment on Ambivablog)

If Pelosi had really wanted this bill to pass, it would have. You cannot convince me that there were not 12 of the 95 Democrats who voted “no” that she couldn’t persuade to a “yes”. She has a bunch of carrots and a wheel barrel full of sticks to use, but she chose not to. Then she did everything she could to ensure that no “on the fence” Republican would be swayed to vote “yes”.

Yet she ( and her Democrat cronies) are doing a very good job of making it look like this was all the Republicans’ (and by default, John McCain’s) fault.

That takes a lot of talent if you ask me. Talent put to use NOT for the good of this nation or for its citizens.

Nancy Pelosi is not stupid, she’s mean-spirited and evil.

I do not want my blog to become a political blog. I’d much rather post pictures of my grandchildren. At one time, I thought about this place as a money-making venture. Being political is one way to do that. But it really isn’t a way suited to me. Been there, done that, found it’s only useful once every four years.

I’m a registered Republican, because I wanted to vote against David Duke 10.. 15… how many years ago was that? The only bumper sticker I’ve ever even considered putting on my car was one for Edwin Edwards, the crook, when he was opposing the racist (truly racist, not just a politically incorrect racist) David Duke.

(I also considered putting a “Don’t blame me, I voted for Jindal” sticker on my car. But I didn’t. I really hate bumper stickers.)

Bottom line - it’s Amba’s to promote if she chooses. Michael Reynolds doesn’t think I get the “politics” of this fiasco. Of course, I disagree!

I mentioned below that my husband and I some fundamental political disagreements and that I liked to focus on things where we agree.

One of those things is Congress. We’ve both agreed for some time now that most of them are self-infatuated idiots. This is not determined by party affiliation.  It’s come about watching them “work” on CSPAN.

The Anchoress has a few details: 545 people with too much power. I might add that those 545 people have a fundamental misunderstanding of their job description.

It’s performance review time for many of them. Let’s not be shy about imposing term limits.

I was watching and they were both ticking me off, so I quit. My husband and I disagree fundamentally on politics in some areas and I also didn’t want to get in a heated discussion with him about it. I like to focus on the areas where we agree.

Why were they both pissing me off? Well, Obama for dishonesty. His tax plan (or any other tax plan) cannot cut taxes for 95% of Americans and not bankrupt the country. When you consider that far more than 5% of the U.S. pay no federal income tax at all, it’s mathematically impossible. McCain for not following through on some of his statements and not responding to some of Obama’s accusations.

I was never enthusiastic about Obama. He never appeared to me to be inspiring, uplifting, intelligent beyond normal, or well-spoken above the high school debate level. Much as I disagree with Clinton on various issues, she’s mostly a policy pragmatist first. Obama is a policy shapeshifter.

My first choice on the Republican side was Fred Thompson. After that it became anybody but Huckabee. That anybody turned out to be McCain.

No matter who “wins” tonight’s debate, I’m still voting for McCain. I can’t stomach and we can’t pay for Obama’s plans. I come to that conclusion after having read his books and some (there’s tons) of his issues statements on his website.

That’s Democrat after Democrat speaking on CSPAN for the last 20 minutes or so complaining how McCain won’t let them have their way.

According to them, they had everything solved, but then McCain showed up and ruined the party.

And everyone of them says they don’t want this to be political. Yet, why exactly are they complaining about the other party — in this case, a loyal opposition party — working to get some of their views considered, their ideas included?

Whiners. Sorry, that’s just how they  are coming across. They are definitely making this political in every way they can by making McCain “look bad”. Is this because they are embarrassed that Obama is so “above it all”?

Yep, that’s me. According to the New York Times

Still have a landline? You’re showing your age. The young, hip, cool people have cellphones only, and that is bad news for traditional phone providers. In a survey of Internet users, JupiterResearch found that 12 percent “do not subscribe to fixed voice service, and nearly two-thirds of them are ages 18 to 34.”

We disconnected our landline about 4 years ago, when we realized that the only time we ever used it was to answer telemarketing calls. What seems out of place is that our children still have landlines. I think it has something to do with satellite TV service or something.

If BellSouth or AT&T or whoever it is providing this area with landline phone service would provide DSL, we’d get a landline again, but last I checked (about 2 years ago) the answer was still “never”.

Shouldn’t that translate into too big to exist? Take, for instance the health problems faced by extremely tall or extremely obese humans.

Sure, biological examples are not automatically comparable with economics. But doesn’t it follow that if the blood supply cannot feed the organs, that death will occur? Barring some exotic and dangerous operation?

What about that old saying warning one not to put all their eggs in one basket? Would heeding this have helped the “too big to fail guys” in fending off disaster?

Should we go read again about the couple that killed the goose that laid the golden egg? Where does hubris fall in this tableau? Perhaps the milkmaid and her pail? It’s time to reread Aesop’s Fables.

Is this election fun or what? Go grab a beer and enjoy!

Surfed there from Vodkapundit, via Jules Crittendon.

He was born March 7, 2008. Until he came to live with us on August 27, 2008, he’d never seen the inside of a house, but loved to roll in the mud and water at an exotic animal petting zoo with a water buffalo. He’d also never been bathed and never been combed or groomed in any way at all. He was literally filthy and his coat smelled sour.

As we were told by the previous owners, this dog does not have an aggressive bone in his body. He’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever petted. His previous owners had named him Maverick and we decided to keep the name even though it really doesn’t fit him at all.

The first thing we did was have him groomed. This involved clipping his hair very, very short. And that’s why you haven’t seen a picture of him before now. His hair has finally grown out enough that he doesn’t look like a very large skinned rat with a cute face. I don’t really want to accuse the people we got him from of neglecting him… but they did.

My husband met Maverick’s mother and father, and I’d say he’s got a bit of growing to do. He weighed 58 lbs. on August 28. He’s grown at least 2 inches in height since then and put on a little meat around his ribs.

His breed is Great Pyrenees and he’s supposedly pure bred. You know what that means; either the mother or father isn’t pure bred or this dog doesn’t meet some kind of criteria that makes him breedable.

I know next to nothing about his previous owners, and frankly do not want to. I’m just glad we’ve got him now. Have I mentioned how sweet he is? And how eager to please us humans? Have I mentioned that he’s going to be a very big dog?

I can’t wait for his curly coat to grow back, because then he is going to be even more beautiful.

With news today that Obama may have tried to influence the Iraqi government to “delay an agreement on a draw-down of the American military presence“, it’s almost impossible to not to think of Reagan being accused of negotiating with the Iranians to “delay” release of American hostages until his inauguration.

Now, as much as I think Carter was a horrible president (and even worse as an ex-President) he did do a few things right. One is that he spent his last day and night in office working tirelessly for the release of the hostages.

The election was long over.

In Lou Cannon’s Reagan, (out of print?) it is described this way:

…Jimmy Carter was doing his utmost to free the hostages during his last hours as President. Reagan aides had cooperated, joining the defeated President during the transition to send a single message to Iran which said, in effect, “Don’t expect a better deal from Ronald Reagan.” The negotiations had nonetheless dragged on, to the consternation both of Carter and the Reagan team. “The best thing that could happen to us would be to have the hostages free when we took office,” Reagan’s counsellor Edwin Meese had said privately three days before the inauguration. It almost happened. At one point during the long night before the inauguration the release seemed so assured that Carter and his aides drank a champagne toast to the captured Americans. But it was a premature celebration. By dawn, Carter had recognized that he would no longer be in office by the time the hostages left Iran. (pp. 20-21)

Of course the more dastardly charge is that Reagan was in contact with the Iranians before the election, urging them to hold the hostages just a little longer to keep Carter’s ratings down. In fact, as early as June, it was a fear of the Reagan campaign that Carter himself was delaying the release so it would be an “October Surprise” and tried to preempt such a surprise by bringing it up to reporters. Thinking that Carter would do such a thing is pretty rotten too. (p. 293)

However, accusing Carter of such isn’t exactly be accusing him of a crime, whereas accusing Reagan of doing it before taking office is. Both accusations stink.

For further reading on Obama’s latest problem and more links, see The Anchoress and Bookworm Room

Thank Goodness! I was never able to get anything to work on the new site. Fortunately they changed before I had time to cancel my account.

Congratulations to them for quickly recognizing a mistake and for quickly correcting it.

I’ve been paying for SiteMeter for this blog for several months, just not displaying it. After finally getting “migrated” to the new service, I’m going to cancel it.

Somehow, the designers of the new service managed to remove all utility, ease of use, 99% of the information and hid the rest.

Good Grief! This has to be the most underhanded McCain campaign trick of all - so flagrantly displaying that Change may bring Horror and Disaster as well hope, light, and goodness.

It’s not just me either. See Althouse,

UPDATE: But wait… can this be true? Talk about a rapid response. Now I wonder which of username/password combos will work, the new or the old?

It finally happened to me. A few days ago, I left a comment defending Palin’s views on abortion and how her personal views don’t seem to be reflected in her governing. It was amidst 10 or so “yeah, me too” posts agreeing with the view that Sarah Palin is bound to make abortion completely illegal.

When I went back today to see if there were responses to my comment that I should answer, my comment was not there. My comment was not nasty or profane, simply disagreeing.

Now, I’m not naming the blogger. Her site is not normally politically oriented and it’s not required that any blogger leave any comment displayed. It’s her space. I tend to leave up anything that’s not laced with profanity or obviously spam. This is my space.

I’m not complaining, but simply noting that this is the first time it’s ever happened to me. Even DailyKos let my comments stand during the 2004 election. (I’ve not commented since then there.)

I suppose I just never expected it to happen to me.

It’s windy enough that I expect we’ll be without power shortly, though it shouldn’t last too long. A lot of the crews from this area are in Texas or south Louisiana where problems are much worse, so I won’t complain.

The forecast is projecting 50 mph winds later this evening and tonight. Flooding is never a problem here as the house sits on a hill, but a tornado would be horrible. We are surrounding by trees. Tall ones. Oak and pine. 

I’m not really worried about anything other than having to clean up the yard, and that’s not much.

By ELIANE ENGELER, Associated Press Writer

GENEVA - The United States leads the world in economic loss from deaths caused by armed crime, according to a global survey released Friday.

I this possibly because someone in the U.S. is capable of producing more economic gain than in some other countries?

The U.S. registered an estimated loss of up to $45.1 billion in terms of economic productivity because of violent crimes, said the report by the U.N. Development Program and the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey.

Continue reading “Not Buying This”

And for this amazing ability I get a T-Shirt! A Pajamas Media T-Shirt.  (Didn’t they know I’d prefer a link and that would have cost them less?)

That’s right folks, out of 5200 people who entered PajamasMedia’s veepstakes, I was one of 48 to correctly guess the VP picks of both parties. That makes me one of the smartest (luckiest?) 0.9% of those brave (or silly?) enough to enter the contest. 

I have my left hand on the pulse of Obama and my right hand on the pulse of McCain. If there are any political questions you’d like answered, feel free to post them in the comments and I will bestow my wisdom accordingly. 

September 11, 2001

Where are you? Who is going to be the first to come out with “Palin Pink” as a lipstick color? It surely can’t be an expensive cosmetics company. That would just taint the candidate, don’t you think?

Has anyone dared ask her what brand cosmetics she uses? Surely Charlie Gibson will do so. Surely he realizes how important this is.

In fact, I think it is important to define the exact shade of pink that “Palin Pink” will be. Because if Jamie Spears ever decides to actually send Bristol some burp cloths, she needs to know what color this actually is.

I’m fairly jealous actually that Sarah Palin does not appear to need expensive cosmetics. Unlike myself, I think she’d be as well off with Maybelline, Mary Kay, or Clinique, or brands I’ve never heard of because I’ve never been in a place that expensive.

Listen up, lipstick makers — whoever comes up with it, I’ll buy it

A serious discussion here between my son and myself. I, the 55+ female says that Hummers are serious NOT chick magnet. My 30+ son thinks they are.Who’s right?NOTE: We’re not talking about the military Humvee with a 50 caliber… which would no doubt be a chick magnet, we’re talking about the cute yellow or black ones on the car lots.   

Robert Novak writes How a Tumor Is Changing My Life. 

And I want to hug that pit bull! Oh yeah, that sounds a bit lesbian, so sue me. She’s one hell of an orator (Obama, uh, listen up — you uh, really don’t shine in uh, that department, you know, uh, despite what’s been, uh, written about you…)

If Sarah Palin was snide and sarcastic, then I like snide and sarcastic. No, I love snide and sarcastic.

If Sarah Palin is wrong to treat her “special needs” child as normally as possible, then I’m wrong too in treating my “non-special needs” children as normal. Good grief, what is a mother to do when faced with any child — set him or her up to fail due to “special” treatment? And, yes, I do speak from experience here as the mother of a special needs child who is now a special needs adult. He is still his own entity, not an extension of me.

Admiration is something I have for few people. My mother and father have earned it. My grandmother and step-grandfather have earned it. A few very special aunts, uncles, and cousins have earned it. My children — they too have earned it, each in their own special way. But… to bestow any semblance of this admiration to a politician is unheard of in my world. Yet, Sarah Palin has earned, at the very least, a consideration that she might possibly deserve my admiration.

Oh yeah, and I want to adopt Piper and Trig. Would that be OK with you Sarah?