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John Stewart puts the Shirley Sherrod debacle in context.

Price Club

What a difference a week makes. At the beginning of July my hours went from a belt tightening 34 hours a week to a, do we eat or pay mortgage, 20 hours a week at the Library. Prospects for the library to even be functional next July is slim to none. So with 22% unemployment (U6 number). I have been hopefully applying to various jobs trying to land a part time or better.

The big news in town is that CostCo, after years of red tape, had finally gotten to the point of reality here in town. I applied and read that they got over 3000 applications for a scant 100 part time jobs. We went on vacation, which may have not been a fiscally good choice. Still the decompression did help and many prayers and intersession requests.

When we got back to town I re-applied and got an interview which became two interviews. That got me a call back for a third interview. Then came a job offer and acceptance. They kept talking about this being part time position. So I was planning on dual employment until such time as they would take me on full time.

Last Tuesday I had my orientation and found out I was full time! Which could have meant I had to turn in my two weeks notice. At the library I explained the situation and requested a waiver for the two weeks. They complied and Thursday I started full time at the new job.

The building opens to the public on August 12th and there is much to be done. Lots of product needs to be put out on display and even more construction needs doing. This is the literal hive of activity and my desk bound body is getting quite the workout.

Pallets are those wooden platforms that allow a forklift to gain access and move freight. They are referred to as "boards." Building a Board, means to take a shipment load open it up and unpack the product and stack it for identification and access. These boards are then situated in an area that makes sense to our shoppers (members). So you do not have baby diapers next to automotive tools. As we only have one grand opening we are very careful to make sure everything aligns up and the product is impeccably faced. While I am quite sure that the bulk of our members will not appreciate the aesthetics, some will and overall it gives a quality and care vibe of pride. The store is looking awesome!

So I am cutting shrink wrap, breaking shipping bands, carrying boards lifting, twisting, moving and learning the lingo. The first couple of nights I was really be sore and needed some liniment, massage and ibuprofen. My steel toe shoes gave me nasty blisters and bruises. Luckily the job sight was released from construction, and I was able to switch to my new balance.

Loosing the weight and being more physically fit has paid dividends. I find myself able to perform on par or better then my co-workers. I noted several times they would up their pace to match mine. My energy level has been complimented and those thanks I pass on up to the Lord.

Yesterday we unloaded 800 shopping cards and pushed them in sets of 10 (per the rules) to a location outside. For some reason moving large heavy things has always been a source of fun. I was easily the fastest at pushing and the leg pumping action was quite the workout.

The people are great. The management know all facets of the job at hand. Seeing upper management jump onto a forklift and handle it like a pro is inspiring. I have not seen any posturing or sniping. Everyone is on task and on mission.

It feels like I won the lottery, job wise.

Bollywood style!

PolitiZoid - Same As It Ever Was

David Sticks his Oar into the Fruity Subject of Innuendo

Recently, I had similar thoughts on the same subject. David has better writers. Enjoy.

So I have a job

A full time job with the prosepect of overtime paid at time and a half (w00t!). I went to orientation expecting to have two part time jobs... They hired me FULL TIME!

I started on Thursday, unwrapping pallets of goods. Re stocking them on nicer pallets in a display manner. Then clean up all the packing materials, rinse and repeat.

These are long physical days and my poor old body feels the mileage at the end of the day. However, I am keeping pace with the younger group (where did all the people my age go?). Surprisingly, I am feeling quite recovered after a good nights sleep. I surmise my morning four mile runs have something to do with that. Not that I have been running yesterday or today.

The people are excellent and everyone pitches in, the respect I have gleaned from my co-workers has been earned without expectation of having to do so. Good hard workers one and all.

Global Warming 101.

Global warming by Doc. Roy.

1) Are Global Temperatures Rising Now? There is no way to know, because natural year-to-year variability in global temperature is so large, with warming and cooling occurring all the time. What we can say is that surface and lower atmospheric temperature have risen in the last 30 to 50 years, with most of that warming in the Northern Hemisphere. Also, the magnitude of recent warming is somewhat uncertain, due to problems in making long-term temperature measurements with thermometers without those measurements being corrupted by a variety of non-climate effects. But there is no way to know if temperatures are continuing to rise now…we only see warming (or cooling) in the rearview mirror, when we look back in time.

2) Why Do Some Scientists Say It’s Cooling, while Others Say that Warming is Even Accelerating? Since there is so much year-to-year (and even decade-to-decade) variability in global average temperatures, whether it has warmed or cooled depends upon how far back you look in time. For instance, over the last 100 years, there was an overall warming which was stronger toward the end of the 20th Century. This is why some say “warming is accelerating”. But if we look at a shorter, more recent period of time, say since the record warm year of 1998, one could say that it has cooled in the last 10-12 years. But, as I mentioned above, neither of these can tell us anything about whether warming is happening “now”, or will happen in the future.

3) Haven’t Global Temperatures Risen Before? Yes. In the longer term, say hundreds to thousands of years, there is considerable indirect, proxy evidence (not from thermometers) of both warming and cooling. Since humankind can’t be responsible for these early events, this is evidence that nature can cause warming and cooling. If that is the case, it then opens up the possibility that some (or most) of the warming in the last 50 years has been natural, too. While many geologists like to point to much larger temperature changes are believed to have occurred over millions of years, I am unconvinced that this tells us anything of use for understanding how humans might influence climate on time scales of 10 to 100 years.

4) But Didn’t the “Hockey Stick” Show Recent Warming to be Unprecedented? The “hockey Stick” reconstructions of temperature variations over the last 1 to 2 thousand years have been a huge source of controversy. The hockey stick was previously used by the IPCC as a veritable poster child for anthropogenic warming, since it seemed to indicate there have been no substantial temperature changes over the last 1,000 to 2,000 years until humans got involved in the 20th Century. The various versions of the hockey stick were based upon limited amounts of temperature proxy evidence — primarily tree rings — and involved questionable statistical methods. In contrast, I think the bulk of the proxy evidence supports the view that it was at least as warm during the Medieval Warm Period, around 1000 AD. The very fact that recent tree ring data erroneously suggests cooling in the last 50 years, when in fact there has been warming, should be a warning flag about using tree ring data for figuring out how warm it was 1,000 years ago. But without actual thermometer data, we will never know for sure.

5) Isn’t the Melting of Arctic Sea Ice Evidence of Warming?Warming, yes…manmade warming, no. Arctic sea ice naturally melts back every summer, but that meltback was observed to reach a peak in 2007. But we have relatively accurate, satellite-based measurements of Arctic (and Antarctic) sea ice only since 1979. It is entirely possible that late summer Arctic Sea ice cover was just as low in the 1920s or 1930s, a period when Arctic thermometer data suggests it was just as warm. Unfortunately, there is no way to know, because we did not have satellites back then. Interestingly, Antarctic sea ice has been growing nearly as fast as Arctic ice has been melting over the last 30+ years.

6) What about rising sea levels? I must confess, I don’t pay much attention to the sea level issue. I will say that, to the extent that warming occurs, sea levels can be expected to also rise to some extent. The rise is partly due to thermal expansion of the water, and partly due to melting or shedding of land-locked ice (the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, and glaciers). But this says nothing about whether or not humans are the cause of that warming. Since there is evidence that glacier retreat and sea level rise started well before humans can be blamed, causation is — once again — a major source of uncertainty.

7) Is Increasing CO2 Even Capable of Causing Warming? There are some very intelligent people out there who claim that adding more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere can’t cause warming anyway. They claim things like, “the atmospheric CO2 absorption bands are already saturated”, or something else very technical. [And for those more technically-minded persons, yes, I agree that the effective radiating temperature of the Earth in the infrared is determined by how much sunlight is absorbed by the Earth. But that doesn't mean the lower atmosphere cannot warm from adding more greenhouse gases, because at the same time they also cool the upper atmosphere]. While it is true that most of the CO2-caused warming in the atmosphere was there before humans ever started burning coal and driving SUVs, this is all taken into account by computerized climate models that predict global warming. Adding more “should” cause warming, with the magnitude of that warming being the real question. But I’m still open to the possibility that a major error has been made on this fundamental point. Stranger things have happened in science before.

8 ) Is Atmospheric CO2 Increasing? Yes, and most strongly in the last 50 years…which is why “most” climate researchers think the CO2 rise is the cause of the warming. Our site measurements of CO2 increase from around the world are possibly the most accurate long-term, climate-related, measurements in existence.

9) Are Humans Responsible for the CO2 Rise? While there are short-term (year-to-year) fluctuations in the atmospheric CO2 concentration due to natural causes, especially El Nino and La Nina, I currently believe that most of the long-term increase is probably due to our use of fossil fuels. But from what I can tell, the supposed “proof” of humans being the source of increasing CO2 — a change in the atmospheric concentration of the carbon isotope C13 — would also be consistent with a natural, biological source. The current atmospheric CO2 level is about 390 parts per million by volume, up from a pre-industrial level estimated to be around 270 ppm…maybe less. CO2 levels can be much higher in cities, and in buildings with people in them.

10) But Aren’t Natural CO2 Emissions About 20 Times the Human Emissions? Yes, but nature is believed to absorb CO2 at about the same rate it is produced. You can think of the reservoir of atmospheric CO2 as being like a giant container of water, with nature pumping in a steady stream into the bottom of the container (atmosphere) in some places, sucking out about the same amount in other places, and then humans causing a steady drip-drip-drip into the container. Significantly, about 50% of what we produce is sucked out of the atmosphere by nature, mostly through photosynthesis. Nature loves the stuff. CO2 is the elixir of life on Earth. Imagine the howls of protest there would be if we were destroying atmospheric CO2, rather than creating more of it.

11) Is Rising CO2 the Cause of Recent Warming? While this is theoretically possible, I think it is more likely that the warming is mostly natural. At the very least, we have no way of determining what proportion is natural versus human-caused.

12) Why Do Most Scientists Believe CO2 is Responsible for the Warming? Because (as they have told me) they can’t think of anything else that might have caused it. Significantly, it’s not that there is evidence nature can’t be the cause, but a lack of sufficiently accurate measurements to determine if nature is the cause. This is a hugely important distinction, and one the public and policymakers have been misled on by the IPCC.

13) If Not Humans, What could Have Caused Recent Warming?This is one of my areas of research. I believe that natural changes in the amount of sunlight being absorbed by the Earth — due to natural changes in cloud cover — are responsible for most of the warming. Whether that is the specific mechanism or not, I advance the minority view that the climate system can change all by itself. Climate change does not require an “external” source of forcing, such as a change in the sun.

14) So, What Could Cause Natural Cloud Changes? I think small, long-term changes in atmospheric and oceanic flow patterns can cause ~1% changes in how much sunlight is let in by clouds to warm the Earth. This is all that is required to cause global warming or cooling. Unfortunately, we do not have sufficiently accurate cloud measurements to determine whether this is the primary cause of warming in the last 30 to 50 years.

15) How Significant is the Climategate Release of E-Mails? While Climategate does not, by itself, invalidate the IPCC’s case that global warming has happened, or that humans are the primary cause of that warming, it DOES illustrate something I emphasized in my first book, “Climate Confusion”: climate researchers are human, and prone to bias.

16) Why Would Bias in Climate Research be Important? I thought Scientists Just Follow the Data Where It Leads Them When researchers approach a problem, their pre-conceived notions often guide them. It’s not that the IPCC’s claim that humans cause global warming is somehow untenable or impossible, it’s that political and financial pressures have resulted in the IPCC almost totally ignoring alternative explanations for that warming.

17) How Important Is “Scientific Consensus” in Climate Research?In the case of global warming, it is nearly worthless. The climate system is so complex that the vast majority of climate scientists — usually experts in variety of specialized fields — assume there are more knowledgeable scientists, and they are just supporting the opinions of their colleagues. And among that small group of most knowledgeable experts, there is a considerable element of groupthink, herd mentality, peer pressure, political pressure, support of certain energy policies, and desire to Save the Earth — whether it needs to be saved or not.

18) How Important are Computerized Climate Models? I consider climate models as being our best way of exploring cause and effect in the climate system. It is really easy to be wrong in this business, and unless you can demonstrate causation with numbers in equations, you are stuck with scientists trying to persuade one another by waving their hands. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that climate models will ever produce a useful prediction of the future. Nevertheless, we must use them, and we learn a lot from them. My biggest concern is that models have been used almost exclusively for supporting the claim that humans cause global warming, rather than for exploring alternative hypotheses — e.g. natural climate variations — as possible causes of that warming.

19) What Do I Predict for Global Temperature Changes in the Future? I tend to shy away from long-term predictions, because there are still so many uncertainties. When pressed, though, I tend to say that I think cooling in our future is just as real a possibility as warming. Of course, a third possibility is relatively steady temperatures, without significant long-term warming or cooling. Keep in mind that, while you will find out tomorrow whether your favorite weather forecaster is right or wrong, no one will remember 50 years from now a scientist today wrongly predicting we will all die from heat stroke by 2060.

Tax cut expiring... more problems...

Tax cuts are unrealized revenues, not unfunded spending.

Unfunded spending occurs when money, based on faulty premises, is secured for spending on entitlements.

Historically tax cuts have produced more revenue, because people tend to spend more for goods and services, which, in turn, creates more production and hiring, thereby increasing the tax base (revenue) for the federal government to spend.

If the Bush tax cuts are allowed to expire at the end of the year, tax payers will be paying more to the federal government and less for goods and services. That may create a bump in tax revenue, but the private sector will remain stagnant. Without a healthy private sector economy, the federal government will begin to experience shrinking revenue to pay for entitlements and the salaries of public employees.

In this country the federal government is obliged to protect the citizens from enemies, foreign and domestic. With the remaining income from tax revenues, the federal government uses the remaining revenue for goods and services as legislated by Congress. They produce the budget and the President approves or disapproves.

The budget for 2011 is way overdue for the President's signature. Perhaps they see the dilemma they may be facing by allowing the tax cuts to expire and unemployment at 9.5% and AARA not producing the intended results.

Documents show media plotting to kill stories about Rev. Jeremiah Wright | The Daily Caller - Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment

Documents show media plotting to kill stories about Rev. Jeremiah Wright | The Daily Caller - Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment

This is huge. Freeking huge!

Jonah Goldberg: Rep. Ryan's "Roadmap" a realistic plan to remake the tax system - latimes.com

Jonah Goldberg: Rep. Ryan's "Roadmap" a realistic plan to remake the tax system - latimes.com

If you are not familiar with Rep. Paul Ryan. You should be.

Mystery for White House: Where Did the Jobs Go? - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com

Mystery for White House: Where Did the Jobs Go? - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com

Um... There are no jobs because the Administration is destroying the mechanism that creates them...

The American Spectator : America's Ruling Class -- And the Perils of Revolution

The American Spectator : America's Ruling Class -- And the Perils of Revolution

IT Crowd: truest moment ever!

This speaks loudly to everyone who ever worked IP help desk...

Carl Sagan 4th Dimension Explanation

One of my favorites that CS recorded.

Pet Shop Boys - Domino Dancing (HD)

Yes, I am still a fan!

Thoughts Echo'd about the Republican party

• Cowardly.
• Washington Insiders, blind to We the People.
• Fearful of the MSM and the DC social set.
• The mistakenly believe that if they do not rock the vote, when they are in power the Democrats will act the same way.

Huffington Post

“If you’re looking for the usual flame-throwing, name-calling, and simplistic attack dog rhetoric....don’t bother coming to The Huffington Post.” ~~Arianna Huffington

Yeah, she actually said that! To me its more like Mos Eisley.

Star Wars Subway Car

Improve anywhere FTW!

Morning Bell: The Lawyers and Lobbyists Full Employment Act | The Foundry: Conservative Policy News.

Morning Bell: The Lawyers and Lobbyists Full Employment Act | The Foundry: Conservative Policy News.: "By delegating so much to the regulators, Congress is inviting everyone interested in the outcome to make more campaign contributions, as they intervene in the regulatory process to influence the regulators. Nothing is settled. It’s a gold mine for members of Congress."

Essen

Okay so far we have learned that the Human was designed to run across various terrain for long periods of time. Also, our brains have constructed devices to put over our feet that render the amazing running ability null to some humans. All in the name of comfort and safety.

So moving on to a leap that probably I should not make... How are people supposed to eat?

Hunter-gathering-farmers with a brain capable of innovations such as preserving food for later, is really damn versatile. It is easy to imagine gathering stuff to eat and running prey to death, using tools and traps to speed up the process. Learning what seeds are and how to use them.

You get the idea that our brain keeps working to take the hassle out of survival...

"Wow Thag, we just ran that elk to death and it took four hours! I wish it did not take so long and so far!"

"Hmmm, what if we run it into a canyon and throw rocks on it from above?"

"Good Idea Charlie!"

You would think that we would get hungry, eat until we are sated then move on to another project. But, that is not really what goes on. Instead we are eating at intervals that suit our surroundings. Plus, we have that food preparation (I do not mean microwave).

I guess it kind of kills off the instinctual. It does make it easier then going hungry for a few days then coming across a carcass...

So convenience, lack of hassle and subscribed intervals have dampened whatever other stuff we had programmed into our heads and allowed us time to make shelter, medicine, clothing, transportation, plumbing, cheese in a can, Air Conditioning and World of Warcraft.

Not a bad trade off in my mind. Although, there is that nagging oh look how awful we have become notion, that public school, no doubt, has brain washed into me. It has also allowed the creation of the Diet and Exercise industry.

And still we eat when we do not need too and way more then we should... I keep hoping I can re-develop that God given trigger that says: "STOP EATING"

Ah well... At least my brain is allowing me to count calories in the meantime...

Fr. Barron comments on the BP Oil Spill

BP Gulf oil spill from a spiritual angle.

Liberals anti-education, pro-indoctrination?

What don't the Democrats understand about education? The science speaks for itself: vouchers work. Students who attend private schools of their parents choosing graduate at higher rates than students who do not. It is not surprising that Obama sends his kids to private schools. Why shouldn't everyone have this opportunity?

Federal Tax Collections Have Not Increased; Interest From the Fed is the Reason Year-Over-Year Receipts Are Up | NewsBusters.org

Federal Tax Collections Have Not Increased; Interest From the Fed is the Reason Year-Over-Year Receipts Are Up | NewsBusters.org

Over $54 billion of it is from the Federal Reserve. As best I can tell, it represents dividends and interest on TARP lending and investments. This component of miscellaneous receipts is up by a factor of about 2.7 from fiscal 2009's

Aspergers Quiz

I found this hanging around some street corner of the InterWeb.

Took it myself and got:

Your Aspie score: 29 of 200
Your neurotypical (non-autistic) score: 180 of 200
You are very likely neurotypical

Obama Lies Baby's die!

We the people now pay for abortions!

Remember how President Obama promised that his health care legislation wouldn't cover abortion?

Remember all that stuff with the Stupak amendment, which was later abandoned?

Remember how the deal in abandoning the Stupak amendment involved a presidential order that would keep federal dollars from going to abortion?

Remember how pro-life legal experts said the presidential order wasn't worth the paper it was written on?

Remember all that?

Gosh, did Obama lie?

Status per Employment

Now a catchup of sorts.

I spent a year unemployed. It sucked because I figured I would get a new job in a short period of time. When I realized it might take longer then expected and decided to go to school. I was unable to get the classes I wanted and then got a job at the library.

The Library seemed promising as several of the employees get moved up to the County tech department. Of course economic downturn happened and the c0unty downsized and outsourced and slashed budgets.

I got cut back to 34 hours a week. We tightened the budget and I kept my eye for any County Openings. As they decided not to replace person after person it was ever so much more obvious that County Government was not a career option.

So July this year I was slashed to 20 hours a week. Which means we get tol slowly spiral into financial ruin. Whee!

I had applied to various jobs all along the way. With the way things are now, 20% unemployment, any job gets tons of resumes and most HR departments do not even send out a response. I did land one interview and it looked promising, nothing ever came of it though...

We finally got a Costco coming to town. I put in an application and waited. They promised good jobs at good wages. With not much else in town, why not? It would be nice to work hourly again. It would be nice to work full time again. (nice in the paycheck sense).

The newspaper ran a story about the 100 jobs and 3000 applications. This was not encouraging, even after I got the call for interview. As per typically, I interview very well. I got through the first two rounds with charm, wit and confidence. Getting a call back for the third interview was very welcome indeed. By this time over 4200 applications and well over 2000 interviews had taken place.

From the cool hallway at the national guard outpost building I sat awaiting my turn. I was bemused by a passing train with thoughts of how annoying it would be to be stationed here. As my name was called I did the typical meaningful stride with firm handshake and introduction

Interviews are something I actually enjoy doing. Assuming the interviewee is not just reading from a script. You have about ten to fifteen minutes to show why your the best thing that will ever happen to that company. Steering the conversations towards your strengths and avoiding your weaknesses means you have to have an idea what your strengths are and an idea on how to spin your weaknesses. I have been accused of being a fast thinker, this serves me well.

Let me just say that I was offered and accepted the job. Success!

My interviewee was the assistant manager at Costco and I could tell he had put in his time. He did have a few scripted questions but they went to the side as he pursued his own. I figured my strong suit would be in selling electronics. At Costco this department is called Major Sales, it also includes jewelry (I found this out at the earlier interview). I had gone to several websites and familiarized myself with some basic cuts and settings as well as going to costco.com and perusing the catalog.

I felt very good about the rapport. Then I hit a bit of a snag. I usually carry all my application information on a clipboard. In this case I had left it at home. The interviewer asked me for a couple of reference phone numbers. He let me borrow his phone. Diana, my daughter picked up. Tina was out shopping and so I related what I needed and how to get it, Diana is quite savvy and in short order had the information and I jotted it down. The interviewer remarked "That was some excellent communication, precise and succinct."

What an excellent ending note!

Mark Levin

Mark Levin

Obama is very clear. There will be no resting until his promises to the American people have been realized.

Bush's Debt vs. Democrat Debt

Fiscal year 2007 budget, is the last one passed by a Republican Congress. So Bush had a deficit of $161 billion.

The next year, under Democrat control, the budget created before the recession began, deficit of $459 billion. In 2009 it up to $1.4 trillion.

Yet the deficit is the Republicans' fault?

One Job Forward, Two Jobs Back | The Weekly Standard

One Job Forward, Two Jobs Back | The Weekly Standard

Your government at work! I wonder how many jobs I could create with 1.25 million?

First rig sails away over deep-water drilling ban | Business | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

First rig sails away over deep-water drilling ban | Business | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

Since no company will invest money to prepare to drill during an appeals process that remains unpredictable, rig owners are bound to leave for greener pastures, and they’ll take the jobs with them.

Thank you Prez Obama, The Business Friendly!

Doomsday: How BP Gulf disaster may have triggered a world-killing event - by Terrence Aym - Helium

Doomsday: How BP Gulf disaster may have triggered a world-killing event - by Terrence Aym - Helium: "Doomsday: How BP Gulf disaster may have triggered a 'world-killing' event"

Alone again, Naturally.

The in-laws headed North this morning. As much as I enjoy company and vacation. There is a certain large exhale when you realize that things are going to quiet back down.

Shocking Obama news!

I was shocked to find some people out there have the opinion that Prez. Barry is anti-business!

Look in the next days for Obama to say how great he has been for business!

Unrest

I get in a state of non-relaxation. I sit down I feel the need to get up and do something. The somethings are usually trivial things that have no long term effect. Folding the kitchen towels and hanging them over the oven handle.

The Queue: He's back and he's awesome

The Queue: He's back and he's awesome

'Climategate' professor gets his job back - Telegraph

'Climategate' professor gets his job back - Telegraph

Mr. Jones been cleared by his peers, who are also guilty. What a shock!

Cataclysm Spoiler: Sylvanas' plans no one saw coming

Cataclysm Spoiler: Sylvanas' plans no one saw coming

How Stupid is doing the right thing?

While working at a movie theater I came across a large wad of bills. It was on the floor in the very back and there was about $200.00. The other ushers wondered what to do. Seeing as how I was not 100% trusting of our night manager I put the dough in my pocket and went through various options I had available to me. It never occurred to me that the money was now my own. Mostly I kept thinking of how panicked I would be if I lost that much.

As we began closing for the night, I was still at a loss for how to handle the situation. A knock from the glass covered front drew our attention. There was a look of desperation that tagged him as the one. One of my co-workers, who was aware of my find, motioned me over. The man told us how he had lost a good sum of cash. My own mind wanted some additional confirmation so we let him in to "look" for the cash. His beeline to the exact seat was enough for me. So I produced the wad and he looked quite relieved. He peeled off a 20 and offered it to me. I declined

The discussion came up that the smart thing to do would be to pocket the money. The ethical spin being that it would teach the looser of the cash a valuable lesson.

This is perplexing on many levels.

Absolutely absolute.

According to Hobbes, there are nineteen Natural Laws.

• The first Law of nature is that every man ought to endeavour peace, as far as he has hope of obtaining it; and when he cannot obtain it, that he may seek and use all helps and advantages of war.
• The second Law of nature is that a man be willing, when others are so too, as far forth, as for peace, and defence of himself he shall think it necessary, to lay down this right to all things; and be contented with so much liberty against other men, as he would allow other men against himself.
• The third Law is that men perform their covenants made. In this law of nature consisteth the fountain and original of justice... when a covenant is made, then to break it is unjust and the definition of injustice is no other than the not performance of covenant. And whatsoever is not unjust is just.
• The fourth Law is that a man which receiveth benefit from another of mere grace, endeavour that he which giveth it, have no reasonable cause to repent him of his good will. Breach of this law is called ingratitude.
• The fifth Law is complaisance: that every man strive to accommodate himself to the rest. The observers of this law may be called sociable; the contrary, stubborn, insociable, froward, intractable.
• The sixth Law is that upon caution of the future time, a man ought to pardon the offences past of them that repenting, desire it.
• The seventh Law is that in revenges, men look not at the greatness of the evil past, but the greatness of the good to follow.
• The eighth Law is that no man by deed, word, countenance, or gesture, declare hatred or contempt of another. The breach of which law is commonly called contumely.
• The ninth Law is that every man acknowledge another for his equal by nature. The breach of this precept is pride.
• The tenth law is that at the entrance into the conditions of peace, no man require to reserve to himself any right, which he is not content should be reserved to every one of the rest. The breach of this precept is arrogance, and observers of the precept are called modest.
• The eleventh law is that if a man be trusted to judge between man and man, that he deal equally between them.
• The twelfth law is that such things as cannot be divided, be enjoyed in common, if it can be; and if the quantity of the thing permit, without stint; otherwise proportionably to the number of them that have right.
• The thirteenth law is the entire right, or else...the first possession (in the case of alternating use), of a thing that can neither be divided nor enjoyed in common should be determined by lottery.
• The fourteenth law is that those things which cannot be enjoyed in common, nor divided, ought to be adjudged to the first possessor; and in some cases to the first born, as acquired by lot.
• The fifteenth law is that all men that mediate peace be allowed safe conduct.
• The sixteenth law is that they that are at controversie, submit their Right to the judgement of an Arbitrator.
• The seventeenth law is that no man is a fit Arbitrator in his own cause.
• The eighteenth law is that no man should serve as a judge in a case if greater profit, or honour, or pleasure apparently ariseth [for him] out of the victory of one party, than of the other.
• The nineteenth law is that in a disagreement of fact, the judge should not give more weight to the testimony of one party than another, and absent other evidence, should give credit to the testimony of other witnesses.

Fleet of Feet

As a new hobby, running has become much more interesting to me. It started with a book and hurt feet. Now a five mile run is just something to do.

I have experimented with breathing rhythmics, gait, stride, foot landing, gravity and speed.

You Just Might Be Canadian If...

You bring a portable TV on a camping trip so that you don't miss Hockey Night.

You can repeat the entire Molson's Canadian 'The Rant'.

You hum David Foster's '88 Calgary Olympics theme in the shower.

You know that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) don't always look like that.

You think it's normal to have a grain elevator in your backyard.

You can sing "O' Canada" in French and actually know what the words mean.

You send angry letters to the CBC demanding the return of the Hinterland Who's Who spots so you can finally find out what happens to the arctic ptarmigan in winter.

You stood in line for hours for Another Roadside Attraction tickets.

You think Great Big Sea isn't Atlantic-centric enough.

You know the French equivalents of "free", "prize" and "no sugar added", thanks to your extensive education in bilingual cereal packaging.

You still haven't taken down your "NON" posters from the 95 Referendum.

You know more than 3 guys named Gordon.

You think Ashley MacIssac isn't Celtic enough.

You remember "Jodie" from Today's Special and wonder why you keep seeing her reading news on the CBC.

You can eat more than one maple sugar candy without feeling nauseous.

You think -10 C is mild weather.

You have twins named Donovan and Bailey.

You know the ingredients for poutine.

You know what happens in the Evergreen Forest when Bert Raccoon wakes up.

You dressed as Bruno Gerussi for Halloween. You spent hours sifting through garbage on the beach to prepare for the role.

You know that the 'Extra Creamy' in Kraft Extra Creamy Dinner is 'add more milk.'

You know the difference between real snow and "television" snow -- the white stuff that passes for snow on tv and in films.

Someone accidentally stepped on your foot. You apologize.

You stepped on someone's foot. You apologize, then apologize for making them apologize.

You pity people who haven't tasted a "beavertail".

Your Saturday nights in the Atlantic provinces include eating beans and brown bread as you watch Hockey Night in Canada.

You know that the Canadian Alliance is just the Reform Party with better hair.

You know that, contrary to general belief, the Inuit have about the same amount of words for snow as do English speakers. Your favourite Inuit word for 'snow' is "navcaq" (snow formation about to collapse).

You wonder why squirrels and seagulls somehow manage to get in every zoo exhibit (including the parking lot and squirrel and seagull exhibits).

You eat chocolate bars, not candy bars.

You only know three spices: Salt, pepper and ketchup.

You know that a pike is a type of fish, not part of a highway.

You drive on a highway, not a freeway.

You have Canadian Tire money in your kitchen drawers.

You brag to Americans: Shania Twain, Jim Carrey, Celine Dion & more, are Canadians.

You know that the C.E.O. of American Airlines is a Canadian!

You design your Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.

You know that the last letter of the English alphabet is always pronounced "Zed".

You live in a house with no front step, but the door is one meter up from the ground.

Your local newspaper covers the national news on 2 pages, but requires 6 pages for hockey.

You know that the four seasons means: winter, still winter, almost winter, and road work/construction.

You know that when it's -10 degrees outside, it's a warm day.

You perk up when you hear the theme song from "Hockey Night in Canada."

You are in grade 12, not the 12th grade.

"Eh?" is a very important part of your vocabulary, and is more polite than, "Huh?"

You call it a BUN not a "Roll".

Its called a WASHROOM not a lavatory or powder room or rest room.

You have more kilometers on your snow blower than your car.

You have 10 favorite recipes for moose meat.

You've taken your kids trick-or-treating in a blizzard.

Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled in with snow.

You owe more money on your snowmobile than on your car.

At least twice a year, the kitchen doubles a meat processing plant.

The most effective mosquito repellent is a shotgun.

Your snow blower gets stuck on the roof.

You think the start of deer season is a national holiday.

You head south to go to your cottage.

You frequently clean grease off your barbeque so the bears won't prowl on your deck.

You know which leaves make for good toilet paper.

The major parish fund-raiser isn't bingo, it's sausage making.

You find -40C a little chilly.

The trunk of your car doubles as a freezer.

You attend a formal in your best clothes, your finest jeweler and your Sorrels.

You can play road hockey on skates.

Congressman Ryan on President Obama’s Visit to Racine, W

WASHINGTON – After President Obama’s Town Hall meeting in Racine, WI, First District Congressman Paul Ryan offered the following reaction to the visit:

“I’m pleased the President came to Racine today, but I was rather shocked by the harsh partisan tone the President brought with him. The very real challenges facing Southern Wisconsin cannot be met by Washington’s failed economic policies. Wisconsinites understand that you can't take money from the productive sector of our economy, funnel it through Washington, and create jobs.

His speech sounded more like a campaign speech by a divider, not a uniter; by a partisan, not a President. It tells me that the President is not interested in learning from economic mistakes; but rather is set on repeating them.

The President told a city with an unemployment rate over 14%: ‘The stimulus worked. You just don’t know it.’ That is out of touch and it encapsulates the frustrations I hear every week in Wisconsin.

The President told Wisconsinites that if the Federal government hadn’t taken over two auto companies, workers at Chrysler and General Motors would have lost their jobs. These comments are hardly a comfort to the thousands of former auto workers in Janesville, Kenosha, and Oak Creek. The disconnect between Wisconsin and Washington couldn’t be wider.

Those running Washington have doubled-down on a failed debt-financed spending spree. We need to chart a new fiscal and economic course, reform government and put in place a plan for growth - and a plan for prosperity.”