Elected officials Demonstrating Candor Be Afraid, Very Afraid...

Realism provides only amoral observation, while Absurdism rejects even the possibility of debate.
Frances Babbage, playwright, "Augusto Boal"

This is unbelievable.

You can find the entire article at Huffington Post

Hmm...

“Thinking is more interesting than knowing, but less interesting than looking”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), playwright, poet


A man in sober meditation battling with a powerful internal struggle...

Stylish Ants

“Ants are so much like human beings as to be an embarrassment. They farm fungi, raise aphids as livestock, launch armies into war, use chemical sprays to alarm and confuse enemies, capture slaves, engage in child labor, exchange information ceaselessly. They do everything but watch television.”
Lewis Thomas (1913-1993), physician and writer

Take a close look at the ant just left of center (you have to click on the photo) and you can see it has a faux Mohawk. I could have come a bit closer, but the persistent creatures started for my shoes.

To The Moon...

Dick Gordon of Apollo 12 was asked what did we learn from going to the moon. He replied, "we discovered the Earth.

Forty years ago today, Apollo 11 was the first manned mission to land on the Moon. It was the fifth human spaceflight of Project Apollo and the third human voyage to the Moon.

Launched on July 16, 1969, it carried Mission Commander Neil Alden Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Michael Collins, and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin Eugene 'Buzz' Aldrin, Jr.

On July 20, Armstrong and Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the Moon, while Collins orbited above.




In this July 1969 file photo, most of Africa and portions of Europe and Asia can be seen in this spectacular photograph taken from the Apollo 11 spacecraft during its translunar coast toward the moon, during the month of July, 1969. Apollo 11 was already about 98,000 nautical miles from earth when this picture was made. (AP-Photo/NASA, file) moon0714a

1. The Apollo’s Saturn rockets were packed with enough fuel to throw 100-pound shrapnel three miles, and NASA couldn’t rule out the possibility that they might explode on takeoff. NASA seated its VIP spectators three and a half miles from the launchpad.

2. The Apollo computers had less processing power than a cellphone.

3. Drinking water was a fuel-cell by-product, but Apollo 11’s hydrogen-gas filters didn’t work, making every drink bubbly. Urinating and defecating in zero gravity, meanwhile, had not been figured out; the latter was so troublesome that at least one astronaut spent his entire mission on an anti-diarrhea drug to avoid it.

4. When Apollo 11’s lunar lander, the Eagle, separated from the orbiter, the cabin wasn’t fully depressurized, resulting in a burst of gas equivalent to popping a champagne cork. It threw the module’s landing four miles off-target.

5. Pilot Neil Armstrong nearly ran out of fuel landing the Eagle, and many at mission control worried he might crash. Apollo engineer Milton Silveira, however, was relieved: His tests had shown that there was a small chance the exhaust could shoot back into the rocket as it landed and ignite the remaining propellant.

6. The "one small step for man" wasn’t actually that small. Armstrong set the ship down so gently that its shock absorbers didn’t compress. He had to hop 3.5 feet from the Eagle’s ladder to the surface.

7. When Buzz Aldrin joined Armstrong on the surface, he had to make sure not to lock the Eagle's door because there was no outer handle.

8. The toughest moonwalk task? Planting the flag. NASA’s studies suggested that the lunar soil was soft, but Armstrong and Aldrin found the surface to be a thin wisp of dust over hard rock. They managed to drive the flagpole a few inches into the ground and film it for broadcast, and then took care not to accidentally knock it over.

9. The flag was made by Sears, but NASA refused to acknowledge this because they didn’t want "another Tang."

10. The inner bladder of the space suits—the airtight liner that keeps the astronaut’s body under Earth-like pressure—and the ship’s computer’s ROM chips were handmade by teams of “little old ladies.”

Craig Nelson uncovered these facts in various NASA archives while researching his new book, Rocket Men (Viking; $28).

Solitude-- A Chair of One's Own

“The last stroke of midnight dies.
All day in the one chair
From dream to dream and rhyme to rhyme I have ranged
In rambling talk with an image of air:
Vague memories, nothing but memories.”
William Butler Yeats (1865-1939), poet, writer



Upon closer inspection, it's a bit tattered and torn and sadly symbolic of how society treats its elderly -- tossed aside and placed out of the way...

Censorship through Kindle and Other Devices

Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some books are to be read only in parts, others to be read, but not curiously, and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention.
Francis Bacon (1561-1626), philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist, and author.

The joys of reading and the agony of censorship, which almost half the population seems to be okay with, can be experienced by readers who own a Kindle.

If you had downloaded George Orwell’s famous novels “1984” and “Animal Farm” you no longer have them on your Kindle because the publisher decided it did not want to give the rights to Kindle, so Amazon.com used its wireless connection to each Kindle to delete copies on the owners' Kindles and refunded their money.

If you have decided to call your friends on your iPhone or other network tethered devices you need not feel so superior.

Daughter sent THIS to me and you too should read it and be aware:

"tethered appliances," that is, appliances like the Kindle and the iPhone that feature a combination of hardware and software services connected by a network. The manufacturer of the tethered appliance can easily discover what consumers are doing with the product, can restrict what end-users do with the hardware, and can alert the features of the product by remote control. It simultaneously offers the possibility of privacy invasions and retroactive alterations of features. The Kindle story shows that it also offers the possibility of private censorship.

RIP Walter Cronkite

Objective journalism and an opinion column are about as similar as the Bible and Playboy magazine.
Walter Cronkite (1916-2009) journalist

I am delighted that I was able to see Walter Cronkite live a couple of years ago where he was interviewed by Anderson Cooper.

All the news reports on Cronkite tonight show how far news delivery has declined, which also includes understanding by viewers.

Sadly, that's the way it was and is today.

The post I wrote about seeing Cronkite: My Post

Mel Gibson to Star in Jodie Foster's Beaver

It's the most disturbing headline I've seen in a while. Full story here, but you've already read the best part. Trust me.

Happy Birthday to My Wife

You are the love of my life -- and I am happy to be celebrating another Bastille Day with you.

Please Act Now!!

If you have an ounce of charitable feelings, please I deplore you to support "Buy One Anyway." Without these people we would have never known about:

• Watergate
• No stinkin' WMDs in Iraq
• Brownie doing a heck of a job
• That Cheney was holding secret meetings with energy company CEOs
• That Rumfeld used scripture to duped "W" moving forward with bad military choices
• That $9 billion allotted for Iraqi reconstruction went up in smoke

Please watch this video and act generously.




Tip of the hat to On The Mark for pointing this out.

SOUR '日々の音色 (Hibi no neiro)'

Most awesome video I've seen all year.

Is it always illegal to kill a woman?The 15 Creepiest Vintage Ads Of All Time

Check them all out at Retro Comedy.

Hat tip to Boing Boing for pointing these out to us.

Why I follow Rob Corddry on Twitter

Some might wonder (hello, wife) why I follow Rob Corddry on Twitter. This is why.

Photos from the Musee Mecanique

The Musee Mecanique in San Francisco is "one of the world’s largest privately owned collections of mechanically operated musical instruments and antique arcade machines." Pretty cool stuff -- the kids liked it, and so did I (no surprise). Here are some detail shots.

Pistol Packin Parishioners

“Every gun that's made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed. This world in arms...is spending the genius of its scientists, the sweat of its laborers.”
Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969), 34th President

The Misanthrope pulled this article from EnViSiOn, A Canadian Perspective Visually and Verbally Expressed with Passion

I have to thank Jonathan Turley for this article, and for proving to me that Arkansas is a creepy place.

Guns and God: Arkansas Legislators Move to Armed the Faithful in Church

Legislators in Arkansas do no want to have to chose between god and guns. They are pushing legislation to allow citizens to pack heat in the house of God. Grant Exton is a gun owner and president of the state’s Concealed Carry Association insists that they are simply trying to give all churches the right have armed congregationalists. Gun owners can then lock and load for Jesus.

This does not go over well with Little Rock pastor John Phillips for good reason. In 1986, he explained: “A gentleman came into the church. He was mentally deranged, and at the end of the sermon, pulled out a gun and shouted something about baptism and proceeded to shoot me in the back a couple of times. I still carry one of the bullets embedded in my spine.”

This could pose a difficult choice for gun owners of what weapon is best suited for a particular sermon. A Glock might be suitable for a New Testament sermon, but the Old Testament is strictly non-automatic weapons only. Easter might call for something cute like a derringer while Christmas deserves a MAC-10.

End Times

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
End Times
thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Newt Gingrich Unedited Interview

Jason Jones visits the offices of the New York Times to find out why the last of a dying breed prefer aged news to real news.

Chocolate Rabbit News Rabbitly Breaking --

"I don't see much sense in that," said Rabbit.
"No," said Pooh humbly, "there isn't. But there was going to be when I began it. It's just that something happened to it along the way."”
From Winnie the Pooh

Here at Toner Mishap we spare no effort (I mean that literally) to get the story. Today we investigate, the bitter chocolate battle over the legal right to trademark a chocolate bunny taking place in Europe. We went through our Rolodex of numbers to find quotes from some of the best known rabbits and their perspective:

• Bugs Bunny said, “hell no, I am so hopping mad. Of course you can’t trade mark a figure that belongs to an entire race.

• The Hare (The Tortoise and the Hare) asked, “Who wants to race?”

• Br'er Rabbit replied, “Not only would I have been tarred, but I could have been made illegal too. This makes no sense.”

• Velveteen Rabbit said, “I hope this ruling takes the stuffing out of the whole industry.”

• Peter Rabbit said, “What happen to eating healthy? We don’t need junk food.”

• Easter Bunny dismissed the question saying, he was just hare for the holidays.”

• Harvey, Could not be found for a comment.

• Trix Rabbit yelled, “It’s for the kids, gimme a break.”

• Monty Python Killer Rabbit was laying low and had no comment

• Playboy Bunny in a high pitched petite voice said, teehe, teehe, I have no idea need to get my hare peroxided.

• March Hare said, "Hey, I have an excellent idea, let's change the subject."

• Roger Rabbit said, “How about finding some chocolate vixens?”

• Pregnancy Rabbit was dead. P.S. James and Linda you better see your doctor

• The Energizer Bunny was in route and unavailable for comment

• Thumper raged, “Someone needs to put their foot down about this issue.”

• The White Rabbit said, “Dude, take a chill pill.”

• The Nesquik Bunny asked, “How do you spell it?”
  

That’s all folks, my time has gone by much too rabbitly. I just got hare, but need to tend to my day job before they cut my celery.

Pensive Bob Dylan Playlist

"Dylan is so brilliant. To me, he makes William Shakespeare look like Billy Joel."
George Harrison (1943 – 2001), singer, songwriter, Beatle

I love listening to music and as a result I have spent an inordinate amount of money buying music, so much so that I raised daughter not to have the same love of music. I have more than 15,000 songs on my computer which allows me to make many tailored plays lists. I have so many playlists that scrolling to the Rolling Stones or Yo-Yo Ma in the car can take about five minutes. As a result, I have started adding an “A” before more frequently listened to lists (e.g., aRock & Roll, aFrank Sinatra, etc.). I even have the same artists divided into categories such as Frank Sinatra Sad, Frank Sinatra Swinging, Frank Sinatra Live, Bob Dylan Pensive, Bob Dylan Rocking. So periodically when I run out of time and things to write about I will unselfishly share my lists:


Bob Dylan Pensive
This is has become one of my favorites because of his last two CDs “Together through Life” and “Modern Times”
1. I feel a Change Comin’ On (“Together Through Life”)
2. Workingman’s Blues #2 (“Modern Times”)
3. Life is Hard (“Together Through Life”)
4. Moonlight (“Love & Thief”)
5. Blowin’ in the Wind (“Biograph”)
6. Jolene (“Together Through Life”)
7. Forever Young (“Biograph”)
8. Just Like a Woman (“Before the Flood”)
9. If you See Her, Say Hello (“Blood on the Tracks”)
10. My Wife’s Home Town (“Together Through Life”)
11. Beyond Here Lies Nothin’ (“Together Through Life”)
12. Things Have Changed (Tall Tale Signs)
13. Lay Lady Lay (“Biograph”)
14. The Man in Me (“New Morning”)
15. You’re Gonna Quit Me (“Good as I Been to You”)
16. One More Cup of Coffee (“Desire”)
17. Every Grain of Sand (“Biograph”)
18. Everything is Broken (“Everything is Broken
19. What Good Am I? (“Oh Mercy”)
20. Tomorrow Night (“As Good as I Been to You”)
21. Sittin’ on Top of the World (“As Good as I Been to You”)
22. Most of the Time “(Oh Mercy”)
23. Tangled up in Blue (“The Bootleg Series Vol. 1-3”)
24. Simple Twist of Fate (Blood on the Tracks”)
25. Idiot Wind (“Blood on the Tracks”)
26. Dreamin’ of You (“Together Through Life”)
27. Don’t Fall Apart on Me Tonight (“Infidels”)
28. Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands (“Blonde on Blonde”)
29. Meet me in the Morning (“Blood on the Tracks”)
30. One More Weekend (“New Morning”)
31. Mississippi (“Tall Tale Signs”)

There are 56 more songs, but this should get you started.

I'm not here to make friends.

This is the most (only!) reality TV I've ever watched.

Notes on Happiness

Happiness, n. An agreeable sensation arising from contemplating the misery of another.
Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914), writer, quote from “The Devil’s Dictionary”

A couple of weeks ago I found a commencement speech by David Foster Wallace from a few years back and it seemed to carry universal truths (also, I added the slashes next to freedom and inserted happiness). The New York Times has on its list of most e-mailed articles, “The Joy of Less” by Pico Iyer that I have included a couple of paragraphs from, but I encourage you to read it all. I also pulled out my book on “Happiness, A History” by Darrin M. McMahon and added a couple of additional thoughts. finally I have taken their paragraphs broke them up and included bullet points for easier blog reading.



From Wallace:

• If you worship money and things, if they are where you tap real meaning in life, then you will never have enough, never feel you have enough. It's the truth.

• Worship your body and beauty and sexual allure and you will always feel ugly. And when time and age start showing, you will die a million deaths before they finally grieve you.

• Worship power, you will end up feeling weak and afraid, and you will need ever more power over others to numb you to your own fear.

• Worship your intellect, being seen as smart, you will end up feeling stupid, a fraud, always on the verge of being found out.

• The insidious thing about these forms of worship is not that they're evil or sinful, it's that they're unconscious. They are default settings.

• The really important kind of freedom/happiness involves attention and awareness and discipline, and being able truly to care about other people and to sacrifice for them over and over in myriad petty, unsexy ways every day. That is real freedom/happiness. That is being educated, and understanding how to think. The alternative is unconsciousness, the default setting, the rat race, the constant gnawing sense of having had, and lost, some infinite thing.

From Iyer:

• Perhaps happiness, like peace or passion, comes most when it isn’t pursued.

• The millionaires I know seem desperate to become multimillionaires, and spend more time with their lawyers and their bankers than with their friends (whose motivations they are no longer sure of).

• I remember how, in the corporate world, I always knew there was some higher position I could attain, which meant that, like Zeno’s arrow, I was guaranteed never to arrive and always to remain dissatisfied.

• My two-room apartment in nowhere Japan seems more abundant than the big house that burned down. I have time to read the new John le Carre, while nibbling at sweet tangerines in the sun. When a Sigur Ros album comes out, it fills my days and nights, resplendent. And then it seems that happiness, like peace or passion, comes most freely when it isn’t pursued.

• If you’re the kind of person who prefers freedom to security, who feels more comfortable in a small room than a large one and who finds that happiness comes from matching your wants to your needs, then running to stand still isn’t where your joy lies.

• In New York, a part of me was always somewhere else, thinking of what a simple life in Japan might be like. Now I’m there, I find that I almost never think of Rockefeller Center or Park Avenue at all.

From McMahon:

• Might not the search for happiness entail its own undoing? Does not our modern commandment to be happy produce its own forms of discontent?

• Happiness, … is a characterization of an entire life that can be reckoned only at death. To believe oneself happy in the meantime is premature, and probably an illusion, for the world is cruel and unpredictable, governed by forces beyond our control. A whim of the gods, the gift of good fortune, the determination of fate…