tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57437350771603535952024-03-13T23:24:07.893-04:00CAN IT BE JUST ME? I sure as hell hope not...I'm just a normal guy. This is my way of trying to keep the guys in white coats from showing up at my door.CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-3951572397735472872012-08-23T16:31:00.000-04:002012-08-23T16:31:03.357-04:00Today in the News - A Murderer Still behind bars? Say it ain't so<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/23/justice/new-york-chapman-parole-denied/" target="_blank">Man who shot John Lennon denied parole for 7th time</a></span>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">How is this front page news? Sentenced to 20 years to life. This is surprising?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I wonder if he'd still be in jail if he'd committed the crime in Great Britain, say London?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">How is this such a shocking piece of news? Is it getting that bad - that serving 32 years for MURDER is that big of a deal?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I wonder how much his prison term has cost the taxpayers of New York and this country over the years?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">People getting PAID, making a living, reporting the news - and this is the best they can do.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thanks for nothing Captain Obvious</span>CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-18918427889602833992012-08-23T16:21:00.000-04:002012-08-23T16:21:51.272-04:00On a brighter note - TIFFANI<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Tiffani? Amber-Thiessen of course.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Remember Saved by the Bell:</span><br />
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<a href="http://thecount.com/wp-content/uploads/Tiffani-Thiessen-Or-Tiffani-Amber-Thiessen-0757.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://thecount.com/wp-content/uploads/Tiffani-Thiessen-Or-Tiffani-Amber-Thiessen-0757.jpg" width="427" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well she's all grown up now - and has been smokin' hot - so she rightly deserves a place here:</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.wallpaperextreme.com/Celebrities/Tiffani-Amber-Thiessen/Tiffani-Amber-Thiessen-23.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://www.wallpaperextreme.com/Celebrities/Tiffani-Amber-Thiessen/Tiffani-Amber-Thiessen-23.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My goodness...</span></div>
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<a href="http://coedmagazine.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/tiffani-amber-thiessen-42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://coedmagazine.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/tiffani-amber-thiessen-42.jpg" width="446" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Tiffani - You are barely two years younger than me. If you ever get tired of Hollywood let me know.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The ONLY woman who I think looks just as attractive as a blonde as she does as a brunette.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I ran across a recent article where you lost weight. Hope the curves are still there......</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-18831918014840275312012-08-23T16:02:00.004-04:002012-08-23T16:02:34.098-04:00Muslim Brother hood - Egypt's Future for Democracy - or Not?<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Most everyone is familiar with the Arab Spring uprisings. Many major "news" outlets called it the "grass-roots Democracy movement of the Middle East".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The Presidential Election of 2012 was a historic even in Egypt. But what about the new President of Egypt - Mohamed Morsi?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Who is he? Where did he come from?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What is the Muslim Brotherhood?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Seriously, if someone just read / scanned "Major" media outlets, the picture they paint of Morsi and the Brotherhood is one of "tolerance" and "moderation" and "democracy". Let's look at some of those articles. Let's see what good old Google has to say:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So I searched Google - News for "Mohamed Morsi"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There's the Wikipedia entry of course.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Then there is an article about him planning to visit the U.S.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Then buried under that, in small print (Google - say it ain't so) is this gem:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/19/world/middleeast/president-mohamed-morsi-of-egypt-plans-to-visit-iran.html" target="_blank">EGYPT PRESIDENT PLANS TO VISIT IRAN</a></span>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Really? This is the guy we're supporting. Well maybe he's preaching that whole "moderation and tolerance" gig. I wasn't going to include democracy- it is Iran...seriously?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">First a QUICK History of Egypt - Iran relations.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">- 1979 Shah overthrown in Iran</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">- 1979 Egypt signs the Egypt-Israel peace treaty</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">That's basically all you need to know right there. So what has changed to make this visit even possible?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"Mr.Morsi will visist Tehran on Aug 30th to attend the Nonaligned Movement meeting, where Egypt will transfer the movement's rotating leadership to IRan. The movement was established during the cold war to advocate for developing nations."</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-Aligned_Movement" target="_blank">WIKIPEDIA ENTRY FOR NON ALIGNED MOVEMENT</a></span>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Interesting reading there. Innocent enough I guess. LOL.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Plenty of good old Anti-American Policy rants too. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So let's get back to Morsi.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Born in Cairo. Educated at Cairo University (Engineering) then received a PhD in Engineering from Univ of Southern California. He was an assistant professor at California State University for several years then moved back to Egypt in 1985, where he taught at Zagazig University until 2010.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Still haven't nailed down WHEN he jointed the Muslim Brotherhood - but I digress.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Morsi was actually the SECOND CHOICE for a Presidential candidate backed by the Muslim Brotherhood. The first choice was:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Khairat El-Shater </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But he was disqualified by the election commission because he had just been released from an Egyptian prison in 2011. What?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Yup - he's millionaire businessman and a leading member (and financier) of the Brotherhood. Apparently after Anwar Sadat's assassination, in 1981, he was exiled and labeled an "Islamist Dissident". He went to England. (No surprise there). He returned sometime in the 80's, became an active member of the Brotherhood. In 1995 he became the head of the Cairo branch.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">He was jailed (for the second time- the first time for protests against the government in 1968) in 2006. He was charged with supplying students with weapons and military training.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Apparently he was DQ'd because it hadn't been more than 6 years since he was released from prison.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So then comes Morsi. Apparently he was already a member of Parliament.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/s/khairat_el_shater/index.html" target="_blank">Khairat el-Shater - Muslim Brotherhood Candidate</a></span>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/18/world/africa/egypt-presidential-bid-appeal/index.html" target="_blank">Ban on Egyptian Presidential Candidate Upheld</a></span>
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<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/12/world/middleeast/muslim-brotherhood-leader-rises-as-egypts-decisive-voice.html?pagewanted=all" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">More on el-Shater</span></a>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So this guy was their FIRST choice? Okay. So back to Moris, after all - he is the President of Egypt now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Apparently the Muslim Brotherhood, under the former governments, was banned from sponsoring a Presidential candidate. So they founded the Freedom and Justice party. Morsi was named the President of the party when it was founded in 2011. They won numerous amounts of Parliament seats when they contested elections in 2011.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/world/middleeast/muslim-brotherhood-wins-47-of-egypt-assembly-seats.html?_r=1" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Islamists win 70% of the seats in the Egyptian Parliament</span></a>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There have been many rumors and stories that the Salafit Al-Nour party joined forces with the Brotherhood backed Freedom and Justice party. Publicly Salafists claim this to be untrue, as they believe the F&J party to be TOO moderate, when it comes to using Sharia law (Islamic law) as basis for governing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Clear as mud?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BTW - the Brotherhood proclaimed they wouldn't sponsor a candidate for the Presidency - this was before they sponsored el-Shater. Also Morsi resigned from the Brotherhood after winning the Presidential Election.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So what about the Muslim Brotherhood?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well do some reading. They are not (or at least in the past haven't been - people and organizations can change right? Change their public or outside perception at least) exactly the "tolerant" and "moderate" organization they are purported (by the "major" "news" outlet - sorry the use of those terms simply required two different sets of quotation marks) to be.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Some of the founding and most influential members of the Brotherhood are often quoted by proven terrorists and their organizations.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ever heard of HAMAS? They are essentially a result of the Brotherhood gaining ground in Palestine (the brother of the Brotherhood founder started the Palestinian branch in the 1930's).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Essentially the Muslim Brotherhood put</span>s on a front of
charity and moderation. No one can
refute these things they have done in Middle Eastern countries. But even their
own history involves “Secret Councils” or basically military versions of their
group that worked to overthrow the Egyptian government (among other ties to
VARIOUS and plentiful terror based groups).</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">They are remaking, or honestly have remade, their public
image. They performed a vigorous PR
campaign that basically convinced people across the world that they are NOT a
terror organization.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Funny, so many proclaimed jihadists, many convicted of crimes as
such, have cited Brotherhood members when justifying their actions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sayyid Qutb was one. He was often cited as a heavy influence by
Osama Bin Laden among others.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Qutb was a scholar who actually studied and taught in the United
States as early as the 1940’s<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sayyid_Qutb#Nasser_and_Qutb">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sayyid_Qutb#Nasser_and_Qutb</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Qutb’s
opinions on the United States and Western societies are well known among
Islamic Fundamentalists, and in reality many consider him when trying to
explain the birth of “modern” Islamic extremism. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/presence-feb06.html">http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/presence-feb06.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Very
informative article about Qutb and what he believed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">He
was a huge part of the Brotherhood and helped with the Egyptian revolution of
1952. After the Brotherhood tried to
assassinate Nasser (the second President of Egypt) who they had helped
overthrow the former government – thousands of Brotherhood members were jailed,
including Qutb.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">He
was executed by the Egyptian government after years of imprisonment and
apparent torture. He’s considered by
jihadists to the be the “original” martyr of their cause – an inspiration.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">The
list goes on and on. But apparently, if
you have a good publicist – and you can “distance” yourself from the violent
offshoots and wings you helped found and sponsored – then everything is okay.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Now
try to make sense of all this after all the recent articles about how the U.S.
is SUPPORTING the current Egyptian
President (sponsored by the Brotherhood).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Apparently
if we don’t believe the “mainstream” media, we must all be crazy conspiracy
theorists.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-60803395833318205962012-08-23T09:08:00.000-04:002012-08-23T09:08:18.003-04:00Really? This is considered reliable data?<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So I'm surfing the latest news this morning. I usually try to read all sides of the stories - so my first dragnet was simply Google - News.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The top entry was this one:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/08/23/2964467/poll-shows-obama-with-small-lead.html" target="_blank">POLL SHOWS OBAMA WITH SMALL LEAD IN SWING STATES</a>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Right under that was one from the Daily Beast:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2012/08/23/poll-0-percent-of-blacks-back-romney.html" target="_blank">POLL: 0 PERCENT OF BLACKS SUPPORT ROMNEY</a></span>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">That one sure got my attention, so off I go to read that article. I mean, there surely has to be at least ONE black person who would vote for Romney...right?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I start reading the story and it's simply a blurb referring to the same poll as the leader article. So I follow the link where it cites this particular poll. That led me to another Daily Beast article posted last night. It references the same poll again, but it has a link to the "NBS NEWS/Wall Street Journal Poll" that's being quoted in all these stories.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://firstread.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/21/13399788-nbcwsj-poll-heading-into-conventions-obama-has-four-point-lead?lite" target="_blank">NBC/WSJ Poll: Heading into the conventions, Obama has a four-point lead</a></span>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So that story rolls along and I read this part:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>"Obama and Vice President Joe Biden gets support from 48 percent of the registered voters, and a Republican ticket of Romney and new running mate Paul Ryan gets 44 percent."</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Last time I checked, 48+44=92. So that leaves 8 percent undecided? Voting for a third party candidate? Not really giving a shit? Hung up because America's Got Talent was coming on?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Sections/A_Politics/_Today_Stories_Teases/August_NBC-WSJ_Int_Sched.pdf" target="_blank">FINALLY!!! A link to the ACTUAL poll!!!</a></span>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Go check that out - it might be interesting for you to note that this poll was done via the phone, including 300 cell phone only respondents.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1000 Registered voters were polled (I'm assuming they simply took the word of the people responding on the phone? I mean how many probably hung up on them. I wonder how long it took to actual get 1000 people to answer and then answer multiple questions - much less make sure they were registered voters.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">All results are shown in percentages</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>The margin of error for this poll is + or - 3.1 percent.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>So out of the 1000 people responding, the margin of error is 31 people?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Does that mean the answers could have been recorded wrong? The people conducting the poll made a mistake? The caller couldn't understand the respondent?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>What exactly does that mean?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So we start looking at the actual questions on the poll:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">For statistical purposes only, would you please tell me how old you are? (IF “REFUSED,” ASK:) Well, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">would you tell me which age group you belong to? (READ LIST.)+ </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">18-24 .................................................................... 9</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">25-29 .................................................................... 7</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">30-34 .................................................................... 10</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">35-39 .................................................................... 8</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">40-44 .................................................................... 10</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">45-49 .................................................................... 7</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">50-54 .................................................................... 10</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">55-59 .................................................................... 11</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">60-64 .................................................................... 12</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">65-69 .................................................................... 5</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">70-74 .................................................................... 5</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">75 and over .......................................................... 6</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Not sure/refused ................................................ -</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">+ Results shown reflect responses among registered voters.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Fair enough - makes sense.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">To ensure that we have a representative sample, would you please tell me whether you are from a Hispanic </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">or Spanish-speaking background?+ </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Yes, Hispanic ................................................... 8</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">No, not Hispanic .............................................. 92</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Not sure/refused ............................................ -</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">+ Results shown reflect responses among registered voters</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And again, for statistical purposes only, what is your race--white, black, Asian, or something else?+ </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">White .............................................................. 74</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Black .............................................................. 12</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Asian .............................................................. 3</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Other .............................................................. 4</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Hispanic (VOL) ............................................. 4</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Not sure/refused .......................................... 3</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">+ Results shown reflect responses among registered voters.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Not sure / refused? So that's 3 percent of 1000. So 30 people either refused to give their race or they were not sure of their race? Mixed race? That makes sense right?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Honestly I know plenty of people that are black,white, Asian etc - even mixed race. None of them have ever seemed confused about what race they are.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Maybe the people responding to the poll were simply offended? Maybe they thought it didn't matter (and honestly except for the initial article title 'O PERCENT OF BLACKS BACK ROMNEY" it would't have mattered to me either.)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Q3 All in all, do you think things in the nation are generally headed in the right direction, or do you feel things </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> are off on the wrong track? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <u>8/12+</u> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Headed in the right direction ..... 32 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Off on the wrong track .............. 61 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Mixed (VOL) ........................... 4 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Not sure ................................ 3 </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">(This poll also shows prior responses by month- going back a year.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>32 percent - that's 320 people - really answered that they thought this country was headed in the right direction?????</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Who the hell would take the time to actually take the poll and answer like this? Really?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Remember these are supposedly REGISTERED VOTERS.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>That's a scary number right there - 320 people - If you transpose these numbers onto the total numbers of total registered voters (remember a poll is a sampling) that would mean that </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>The rough numbers I could find told me that there were 169 MILLION REGISTERED VOTERS (86 million Democrat, 55 Million Republican - 28 million "others")</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>So 32 percent of 169 MILLION = 54 MILLION</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>So 54 MILLION PEOPLE in this country think everything is hunky dory and chugging right along as it should??? REALLY?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Q4 In general, do you approve or disapprove of the job Barack Obama is doing as president?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <u>8/12</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Approve ................. 48 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Disapprove............. 49 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Not sure ............... 3</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>So 49 percent DISAPPROVE of the job he's doing. So 82 MILLION people disapprove of the job he's doing - but more than half of them think everything is okay?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>WTF?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Q5 Do you generally approve or disapprove of the job Barack Obama is doing in handling the economy?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>54 percent disapprove ( 91 MILLION)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Q6b In general, do you approve or disapprove of the job that Congress is doing?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>82 percent disapprove ( 138 MILLION)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Honestly I'm shocked the number wasn't higher. Maybe some family members of politicians were poll respondents? Maybe those 12 percent who DID APPROVE (6 percent were NOT SURE- again WTF?) were simply ready to get on with their day.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I’d like to ask you a question about the November 2012 presidential election… </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Q7 Please tell me how interested you are in November's elections, using a scale from one to ten, on which a </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"ten" means that you are very interested in November's elections and a "one" means that you are not at all </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">interested. You may choose any number from one to ten. (IF "NOT SURE," RECORD AS "DK.") </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>This ought to be interesting. Remember 10 is the most interested, 1 is not interested at all.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>10 - 62% very interested (104 million)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i> 9 - 6% (10 million)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>8 - 13% (21 million)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>7 - 6% ( 10 million)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>6 - 3% (5 million)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>5 - 5% (8 million )</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>4 - 1% (1.6 million)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>3 - 1%</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>2 - 1%</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>1 (NOT INTERESTED AT ALL) - 2% (3.2 million)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Wonder what the numbers would have been if the subject had been American Idol, Jersey Shore, Big Brother or Tom and Katie's divorce???</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Most of the other questions are pretty standard. Check it out. Until you get a bit further down:</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Q24a Has what you have seen, read, or heard about Mitt Romney’s previous business experience managing a </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">firm that specializes in buying, restructuring, and selling companies made you feel … more positive or more </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">negative about him, not made much difference in your opinion or do you not know enough about this to have </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">an opinion at this time? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Okay- I can see this. They gotta be asking questions about Obama too...right? Wrong.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>So what would you say the MAJORITY of people actually know about the things Romney actually did when he was in the business world ("buying, restructuring, and selling companies")???</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Fair to say that most know only what they've seen on television ad (CAMPAIGN ADS) or blurbs they've read or seen on the news.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <u>8/12</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">More positive ........................... 25 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">More negative .......................... 28 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Not much difference ................. 27 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Don’t know enough .................. 20 </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Has what you have seen, read, or heard about Mitt Romney’s tax returns and the percent he has paid in </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">federal income taxes made you feel … more positive or more negative about him, not made much difference </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">in your opinion or do you not know enough about this to have an opinion at this time? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>WTF? REALLY? Aren't polls supposed to be unbiased? What the hell is this even doing here? </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Hey I'm not a big Romney fan - but really? Like I said - nothing about the negative stuff being slung about Obama. Just rating the overall job he's doing as POTUS.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> <u>8/12</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">More positive ........................... 6 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">More negative .......................... 36 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Not much difference ................. 41 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Don’t know enough .................. 17 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>That's pretty telling right there.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>36 percent........................</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>How the hell is this supposed to even really mean anything?</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Makes you think - if this many "news sources" are already throwing this "hard data" out there and citing this poll, makes you wonder what other "data" or "polls" are useless bullshit.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>I'm getting a headache - time for another cup of coffee.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<br />
<br />
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CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-75687217777318659462012-08-22T16:54:00.000-04:002012-08-22T16:54:06.029-04:00Nothing like a redhead (don't care if it's out of a bottle - just saying)<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Christine Hendricks.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">No more words need to be spoken.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="http://rashmanly.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/christina-hendricks-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://rashmanly.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/christina-hendricks-01.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A REAL woman, who LOOK like a REAL woman is supposed to look.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="http://i744.photobucket.com/albums/xx85/96bearcat/Christina-Hendricks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i744.photobucket.com/albums/xx85/96bearcat/Christina-Hendricks.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.catwalkqueen.tv/Christina%20Hendricks%20in%20Tadashi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.catwalkqueen.tv/Christina%20Hendricks%20in%20Tadashi.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Nothing else needs to be added.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Except...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Maybe...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="http://cdn.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/multimedia/dynamic/00363/chr_363603s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cdn.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/multimedia/dynamic/00363/chr_363603s.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What the hell? The guy whose most famous line is:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"When the fuck did we get ice cream?" </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">He gets to go home to that at night?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Lucky bastard. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-22383556412256740812012-08-22T16:41:00.000-04:002012-08-22T16:41:04.837-04:00Harry - I really don't care.<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Almost every news page I've visited today has mentioned the "scandalous" photos of Prince Harry nude in Vegas.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Really?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Nothing to set my day off on the right tone to have this shit rubbed in my face.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">- He's a friggin' PRINCE for cryin' out loud (There is NO better opening line-NONE)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">- He's rich (Okay maybe there is one opening line just as good or better - but they do kind of go hand in hand - just saying)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">- While I actually have to WORK, this guy is living it up in a VIP suite in Vegas with attractive (I'm assuming for Harry's sake - he IS a Prince you know) NAKED females</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thanks for that important piece of news. Just want I wanted to read about today.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Who really gives a shit? At this point I think the Queen is even over it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Anyone else see her doing a little dance, maybe "churning the butter" chanting "Go Harry...Go Harry...Go Harry"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Okay maybe not. Cut me some slack. It's humpday.</span>CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-69031614814385099332012-08-22T16:33:00.002-04:002012-08-22T16:33:18.141-04:00Anyone else that dreads this time of year?<br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I can’t be the only one.
I simply can’t be. (see what I did there?)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Anyway, unless you’ve been living on a deserted island with
a volleyball named Wilson (am I legally allowed to reference that here? Oh
well.) you are fully aware it’s an election year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The “media” is slinging their version of the “truth” (damn
that was physically painful to write) and each campaign is slinging their
version of “Why you should NOT vote for the other guy – so naturally you have
to vote for me.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">WTF? When did this
become our political reality (okay those two words combined aren’t exactly an
everyday occurrence)???<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Commericials. Websites being slammed with ads for the
prospective candidates. All that I can
deal with. The one thing that tends to
make me miserable during this time of the year (besides the obvious direction our
country seems to be heading) is the difference in my workplace – more specifically
my co-workers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It will usually start around September or so. That’s when my normally “normal” co-workers
stop discussing Big Brother (insert another Reality show here) and start on
Politics.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The funny thing is that they almost NEVER have an actual
opinion. They are simply puking up the
stuff they hear on whichever radio, website, tv channel or God Forbid –
Facebook page they’ve been paying attention to.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Now granted it’s normal for me to get emails from otherwise
very intelligent co-workers and associates regarding the latest BS chain email
or stupid urban legend that’s trying to take hold. I used to take the time to explain why the
information they were passing along was false, but that was a failing
proposition. It sometimes tended to make
these people actually try to defend their position – and that is DEFINITELY not
valuable use of my time. In fact,
drinking myself into oblivion would be a much better use of my time – again – I
digress. As of late I simply find the
link to Snopes or another reputable source which points out exactly WHY the “hot
topic” of the hour is total bullshit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My strategy seemed to have worked. The frequency of those emails have been cut
drastically. Do I think I actually
educated these people?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hell no. They simple took my off their forwarding list for
email. Is anyone actually that
optimistic?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So for those of you who have this same issue…if you want to
try another strategy – besides wearing earphones all day, pretending to be
mute, or maybe yelling “Ralph Nader for President!!” I’ve come up with an
almost foolproof plan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As they vigorously regurgitate the garbage that seeped into
their brain, simply respond with:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">“What’s their voting record on this subject?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The blank look they give you is worth it. I swear.
The trick is to SAY THIS, then immediately put them on ignore. Only the really persistent ones will go check
their favorite “news” site (the truly original might actually hit up Google –
odds are against it though) and report back.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The same response normally works wonders.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">See you after the dust settles in late November.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And good luck.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-8823704794063925442012-08-22T16:14:00.001-04:002012-08-22T16:14:42.730-04:00A blog? Why the hell not...<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So this is my attempt to satisfy, at least temporarily, the voices in my head.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My way of sharing my thoughts and the things I've always wondered about.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Maybe stupid news or what have you, either way here it is.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5743735077160353595.post-61812649624757103612012-08-22T16:12:00.000-04:002012-08-22T16:12:33.140-04:00I'm Tired- My ManifestoI wrote this awhile back. This (technically 'these' but you get my drift) is the reason for this blog. Even if another living soul never reads it (quite possible) it'll make me feel a bit better regardless.<br />
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So here ya go:<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Tired<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of perusing countless media outlets to simply read the same old shit. Rhetoric flies from either side of the aisle like insults at a celebrity roast. I’m tired of reading the same gripes from the left and right. <br />
<br />
The “Conservative Right” are all war-mongering religious zealots, that would love nothing more than to take away as many of your personal freedoms as possible in the name of “National Security”. <br />
<br />
The “Liberal Left” are all tree-hugging wannabe Socialists (or communists) that hate Capitalism and stand to destroy every principle this country was built on. <br />
<br />
Take your pick. Fill your glass and drink the Kool-Aid. It’s free you know. <br />
<br />
Unemployment is at record levels. Foreclosures are on the rise. Amid all this turmoil, what are the elected public servants, the leaders of our country, doing? They are doing what they’ve been doing for way too many years. While each side publicly blames the other for all the country’s ills, our roller coaster ride to hell continues unabated. <br />
<br />
There is so much finger-pointing going in Washington D.C. I’m surprised every member of Congress doesn’t have a physical therapist on call. <br />
<br />
Talking heads continue to make a living (and a pretty good one at that) by pointing out the obvious, adding to the blame game and simply trying to stir up their “faithful” viewers and listeners. Since when did pointing out the obvious become a high-paying profession? <br />
<br />
“Political Analysts” (funny… I’ve never seen that job title in the classifieds) continue to get paid to spew their opinions. People around the country continue to regurgitate these snippets, forward emails, and do their best find someone to blame. Looking anywhere but in the mirror is always the easiest thing to do. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of listening to “experts” talk about red states and blue states. I’m tired of hearing about the left and the right. What happened to the middle? You know, the part of the aisle where the majority of our population would fall if common sense was actually common. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of listening to each “new” batch of candidates try to convince us how they will be different. I’m tired of trying hard to ignore the fact that a staunch Conservative member of Congress and a liberal Democrat member of Congress have more in common with each other than they do with the millions of American citizens they are supposed to represent. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of an election process that promises that each vote makes a difference, when in reality I had no say in the candidates that I am forced to choose from. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of watching Republicans and Democrats blame the other side. I’m tired of these same paid, elected, public servants using the general populace and the welfare of the country as a way to prove the other side is at fault. It’s okay if the Economy goes into the toilet, as long as you can blame the other side of the aisle. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of a country that is more likely to vote for their favorite contestant on the latest reality television show than vote for their own state’s political representatives. I’m tired of knowing that the average person is likely to know more about their favorite celebrity than they do about the voting history of their own elected officials. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of co-workers and acquaintances suddenly becoming hot-topic experts as the election and its campaigns gain steam. I’m tired of national media outlets talking about this candidate’s love life or this candidate’s mistakes. I’m tired of people vocally backing their candidate, and when you ask them why they will vote for them, you get a blank stare, or worse yet, they simply parrot the “talking points” that they heard on the news or read in an email. <br />
<br />
Welcome, you’re the next contestant on “Run the Country into the Ground and Get Paid to Do it.” <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of left-leaning people telling me how bad capitalism is, when most couldn’t pass an Economics 101 course at the local community college. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of right-leaning people railing about Socialism and Communism, when the majority of them don’t know the true definition of either term. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people protesting, labeling themselves as “Occupiers” and members of the “99 percent”. I’m tired of seeing them camped out for days at a time in a public park, costing that locality thousands of dollars in expenses from their presence, all the while griping about the way the government wastes money. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of these same people spending their days posting updates to their blogs from their laptops and smart phones, all the while preaching that corporate America is destroying this country. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of them talking about not being able to find work, preaching about a “Living Wage”, all the while spending their days unencumbered by the responsibilities most of us are saddled with. Just how do these people afford these laptops and smartphones that they are constantly using? <br />
<br />
I’m tired of this same group whining about not being able to find work, all while camped out in a public park. Funny I haven’t seen one of them with a classified section of a newspaper in their hand, actually looking for a job. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of people taking out student loans to attend college for four years, or more, acquiring a degree in a field that has no practical applications, then bitching about not being able to find work and how they are saddled with massive student loan payments. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of watching protestors close down a major port, all the while preaching how they are doing it for the “99 percent” for the workers, and the only people who truly get hurt are the workers themselves who can’t work and don’t get paid because of the protest that is supposed to help them. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m really tired of reality shows congesting the nightly television listings. Some can be entertaining, but how many times can you rename, rehash and then sell the same product? <br />
<br />
I’m tired of nightly “news” updates on the Hollywood elite and their marital woes. I could care less where they vacation, I could care less what they name their children and I could care less what they do outside of the time they spend on the screen, doing their job trying to entertain me. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of people becoming famous for being famous. Being paid for being a shallow idiot is one thing, constantly having to see this person is another. Enough already, move on. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of professional athletes threatening to cancel a sports season to garner more money. Newsflash, the fans are what makes it possible for you to do what you do. I know the work and sacrifice you have gone through to get where you are, I know it wasn’t easy. How much is enough? Do you think it makes you look good when people hear about you whining that ten million dollars is not enough? <br />
<br />
I’m tired of people bitching about corporations and the profits they make. How do you think they make those profits? You are a consumer primarily after all. If you don’t agree with their compensation, don’t support their company. Oh, and to the majority of people bitching about how corporations are screwing us over by moving jobs overseas to make profit margins larger? Please check your 401K or pension plan at work. You might be shocked to realize that the amount of money you have to retire on is affected by these “evil corporations” since your funds are invested in many of these companies. If you are going to talk the talk, pull your money out and walk the walk. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of a tax code that is so complicated and cumbersome, with so many loopholes, that an entire industry depends on inability of normal, intelligent people to understand this code. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of a system so convoluted, that the agency that wrote it offers free help to taxpayers, but is careful to note that it’s not responsible for any errors made by their own employees. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of paying taxes, hearing about how we don’t take enough taxes in to keep the country running, but then seeing millions of people get a refund check from the government every year. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people rallying under the cry of “Government Excess” and “Overpaid Government Workers” then bitching when their 911 call is put on hold because half of the police force was laid off, or bitching when they have to stand in line at the Unemployment, Social Security or Welfare office. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people bitching about how bad the Police are then expecting the Police to help them in an emergency without hesitation. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people whining about “Predatory Lending” and the “Evil Banks” foreclosing on them, when they are living in a house they couldn’t afford in the first place. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people who made thousands of dollars on the sale of homes during the boom, using that money to buy an even bigger home, then bitching when the bubble burst and their five-hundred thousand dollar McMansion is now only worth three-hundred thousand. You signed the contract, you’ve been paying the mortgage payment. Suck it up, you aren’t special. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people ending up thousands of dollars upside on a mortgage who can easily afford their mortgage payment, but instead buy another house, taking advantage of the market, then walking away from the first house. Guess what? Letting the bank “Take back the house” costs us all money. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people having children they never intend to actually parent. Children are not lawn ornaments, or something to brag about at the next dinner party you host. They are living, breathing human beings who will likely to turn out like their parents if fate doesn’t step in. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of people who struggle simply to survive, who struggle to have enough to eat, popping out kids before they are old enough to drink alcohol legally. One unplanned pregnancy is a mistake. Mistakes happen to everyone. Especially those in environments where parenting is scarce (See above). Having that second child when you still can’t afford to support yourself? That’s not a mistake. It’s reliance on a support system that is its own worst enemy. A support system that is growing faster than the rate of growth for the portion of society that props it up. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of people ignoring everything around them, honestly fiddling (or more accurately watching TV, surfing the web, playing video games, or waiting in the fast food drive thru line) while Rome (that would be us) burns to the ground. Sticking your hand in the sand does not make anything go away. It just keeps your illusion running awhile longer. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of spending more time watching commercials than the actual television programs. What little free time I do have, I do not want to spend it being reminded how mindless the majority of this country really is. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of paying extra for a DVR, just so I can fast forward through the commercials I don’t want to watch in the first place. How about I pay a fee upfront, every month, and I don’t have to watch any commercials. I know advertising is what pays the bills for broadcasting companies, I get that. I want to opt out, and will gladly pay for the privilege. <br />
<br />
I’m tired of continuously paying automobile insurance, watching my rates increase every year, all the while knowing I have never had an accident or ticket or caused my insurance company to pay out a dime in my name. If I take all the money I’ve spent on insurance, I would have been much better off to go without insurance, invest the extra money, so when I do have an accident I could have paid cash out and still had money left over. It’s a lottery that by design, we never have a chance of winning. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people who drive slower than the flow of traffic in the left lane of a multi-lane highway. I’m tired of these same people either not noticing the line of cars behind them piling up, or knowing they are impeding the flow of traffic and not caring. Either way they are a danger to all the other people driving on the road. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people who are truly convinced they are excellent drivers, as they weave in and out of traffic, not realizing that the reactions of other drivers are the only thing keeping them from causing bad traffic accidents. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people piloting a three thousand pound potential weapon, while texting or talking on their cell phone instead of knowing what’s going on around them. If you believe you are an exception, and that you can do it without any consequences, I have news for you. You are not an exception. In all honestly you are probably more dangerous than most. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people who leave no following distance when traveling sixty miles per hour or more on the highway. If just one person in that bumper to bumper line of traffic jams on the brakes, you will not have time to stop. That is in ideal, dry conditions. It just gets progressively gets worse as road conditions deteriorate. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of the idea of personal responsibility becoming a thing of the past. A society that pays someone millions of dollars because they spilt hot coffee on their lap is not being progressive. It’s moving towards extinction. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of people filing lawsuits when the mood strikes them. Many times knowing large companies know it’s cheaper to simply settle, or pay money up front, than it is to go to court. <br />
<br />
I’m tired. I’m tired of products and services costing more and more because of the lawsuits being filed, or even the potential of lawsuits being filed. Someone may receive a payout, or settlement, but the actual money isn’t coming from that company. It’s paid out of the pockets of consumers who deal with that company. <br />
<br />
So if you haven’t figured it out by now, I’m tired. I can’t be the only one. Well, I guess I can be the only one. <br />
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<br />CanItBeJustMe?http://www.blogger.com/profile/04297679833920760037noreply@blogger.com0