On Earth Day, the environmental movement needs repairs

Some kind Electro-Wizard with a Phd. in Gadgetry Taped/Recorded the Cubs Game last nite, and we watched it after Services and during the Clean-Up Operation where we must make sure all the Food is eaten before Mid-Nite, and all the Wine Consumed ... It is a tough job, but somebody has to do it .......  Helluva Game tho' !!!!!!!  8 to 1 , and the Cubs had the Brewers hammered in the First Inning !!!  GREAT Game !!! This has got to be the year the Guys get a Break ... Wouldn't it great to hear Jan Gabriel goin' wild on the Radio, when the Cubs Win the Pennant !!!  What an Erf Day that would make .......

Morning all, or Bore da,as we say in Wales. It's 7.30AM this side of the water. Today,one of the UK newspapers (Daily Mail) tells  that "they" plan to make us have 9 (yes, you read it right, NINE!) different trash & recyling bins per household. Recently, "they" were telling us to eat more soya beans etc. as an alternative to meat, as livestock farts produce too much methane, which does the ozone layer harm. So- if we eat loads of beans & fart on behalf of the livestock, how does that help? Gimme grass fed Welsh Beef, or Welsh Lamb reared on the salt marshes, or even Welsh Rarebit made with local Welsh Cheese. The sun is shining on this bit of our small planet, so I'm off up the garden (organic) to water my vegetable seedlings & make yet another compost bin, and maybe eat worms. So there!

The exclamation mark was left over from yesterday.

Let me first apologize for what I'm about to say. Don't piss on me and tell me it's raining. The science isn't in, it's a scam. Oil is not fossil fuel it's abiotic, the earth makes it. God gave us the intellect to harness and use it...a resource. There is not enough space to put links to all the sites and books written to counter the mainstream line. If you have an open mind you can research it yourself. I have had my fill of all the b.s. regarding the topic. I am open minded enough to listen to realistic notions not rhetoric. I have a belly full of rhetoric and quite frankly am tired of hearing it. Follow the money trail...that's all one has to do. Don't listen to me just have the stones to break away for a minute from the drivel that posses as news and dig. Ask yourself...is my world really dirtier than thirty years ago. Mine isn't...the air here is cleaner, the water better, the fish tastier. It may not be everywhere...it certainly isn't in China. Look at archive photos of Pittsburg and tell me it's not cleaner today than a hundred years ago. Wake up people...the same folks that tell you we are heading down the road to disaster are the same ones trying to sell us the cure. The multinational NGO's. I've had head to head confrontations with Greenpeace idiots trying to paint graffiti on the side of my ship. Weak, mindless drones following orders from evil conniving power brokers. Like the serfs of the past we are not allowed to catch the kings fish or else we shall be put to death. Think for just a minute...the road we are currently on will take us back to the days of relying on the king for everything. "A government big enough to give you everything is big enough to take all you have"...to paraphrase Goldwater. God help me...now you've got me quoting Goldwater. I need more wine...

I take back my apology. One shouldn't apologize for their convictions. Todays world is already full of apologist's and can't abide another one. I stand by my comments until proven wrong. When that day comes I will be first to say so. Until that day comes I hold fast.

For those curious enough, here is a link to get you started. www.noagendashow.com

Now back to your previously scheduled programming...

KYCURM:  The Fat Guy with the Pom-Poms is Me !!!  I am Officially the Leader of your Cheering Section ... I agree 100% with every thing that you have said above ... It has always amazed me that there   IS   so much proven and Scientific Data about Abiotic Substances, but allegedly intelligent people run like a kid to an Ice Cream Truck to embrace all the crap that has been fed to us in the last Century ... Rotting Vegitation and Dinosaur Carcasses, indeed ... One of the slickest Con Men I have ever seen is Al Gore ... with all evidence to the contrary, he STILL pisses and moans about Global Warming, and people keep buyin' it !!!
 
I am just amazed ... and gratified to know that someone else feels the same way I do about this, Stuff .......  I guess what amazes me most, when hearing about and considering all the Buggaboos that the Tree Huggers whine about, is that no one seems to think that GOD Who created all the world, didn't think about any of this stuff before He made everything ... Would He REALLY give us a Planet that was designed to one day Self Destruct ???  Why then, would He have told us, "Subdue The Earth, and Take Dominion Over It ..." "I Give You All These Things For Your Use ..."  Moderation of course, being the suggested mode of enjoyment, cautioned by diligence in avoiding and precluding waste, of any  thing ...
 
Back in the 60's the Liberals that were trying to Save the Whales etc. etc. etc. were called, "Ecologists" ... Goldwater said then, that the Greenpeace Movement was being Financed and Supported by the Arabs ... I was a Big Fan of AUH2O ... People then thought he and I were both Crazy ... Truly, not much has really changed in the last half century ... But we have learned, (some of us) that it is very difficult to overcome Collective Stupidity ... and that the Destructors have gotten better at being worse, while the majority of us have been preoccupied with whirlwind conspicuous consumption ... We have gone from guaging a Man's Station in life by his Wealth and Accomplishments, to making that determination by how much he can afford to owe ... MADNESS !!! 
 
HAZEL:  What do y'all get for a Case of Merlyn over there ???  It is almost impossible to find over here ...
 
I'm going to have about three fingers of, Glenfiddich, watch an old Picture Show or two, and hit the sack .......
 
See Y'all Later ...

Wow! Ken, Ducky, that was a good rant. Had a look at that link- Nice one. And don't forget to recycle your wine bottle.

JALOPKIN~ I am enjoying Petermanseye as it gives me an insight to a different culture- what on erf were were you talking about? I mean the sport? Drinx after services, is, I sincerely hope, a reference to the catering trade.

HAZEL:  Sorry Ma'am ... Baseball is the Game ... I was talking about the Cubs Big Win over the Brewers ... Several of the Villagers are in and around Chicago, and tho' I live way down South, I have always been a Cubs Fan ,,, I   DO   have Family in a Chicago Suburb called, Skokie ...
 
No Catering Hazel ... We have a Full Sabbath Meal each Friday nite, in a room to the side of the Synagogue ... and the RULE is, that there can be no Food or Wine left over ... If there are no Fressers to volunteer and help consume all that is left before mid-nite, I have to do it myself ... There is usually a little Wine left, and tonite one of the Volunteers from the Congregation had shown up with some Whizbang Electronic Equipment, and VideoTaped the Game while we were in Services, so's we could watch the Game as we cleaned up ... and it was an enjoyable treat ...  The Cultures aren't really all that different .......
 
BTW;  Why is it that Liberals have to do the Negative, always, and call an Impassioned Discourse, a RANT ???  Most of the people I have ever heard use the word, "RANT" were of Flamingly Questionable Gender ... Hazel ... tell me it isn't so .......

JALOPKIN~ forgive my ignorance. O yes, the cultures are different, or we are (see late yesterdays trail) two nations divided by a common language. Now you have explained, I understand the tidying up & making sure all the food & drink is consumed by midnight, to be part of religious observance. In the catering trade, "service" is the task of getting plates of food in front of the customer. Kitchen staff, waiters etc get to eat when service is over, customers gone, consume all the leftovers & clean up the kitchen...
My Dad was a vicar (different firm, same boss!) so it was his duty to consume leftovers from services.
Here in Wales, it would have been a rugby match that go everybody around the screen.
 
Use of the word rant- hmmmm.. just checked, I'm definitely female.
Me, Liberal? I can go the right of Atilla the Hun on some issues!

Ivan, Hazel, KC: Please Sir/Madam, can I have some more? {{holding out bowl}} While I do steer by my own roadmaps into what different "camps" mistakenly assume is their exclusive territory (Oh my, a heart AND a brain?), I am delighted to hear the above conversation and await with interest the possible patella reflexes (!).

Hazel: have stolen "different firm, same boss". I'll be over with my coffee in just a sec... :)

Triston & JaxZ,

I must apologize for crabbing over your use of a foreign language. I don't make the rules or know what they are and as someone who has taken more opportunities to say less than everybody, nothing is up to me.

Now, maybe that van full of thugs from Fayette County, Ky. parked in the driveway will go away. 

Stoney! I did NOT consider that crabbing! (Like my puncuation? It's sincere.) Teasing, yes. Always welcome. Good grief, I thought I had "sound and fury signifying nothing" franchise. :-P Ooooo, I have a sawed off shotgun I'll loan you...

Stoney: Besides it was rude to go on for more than a remark or two, same as if we'd been physically standing in a group. I got carried away and needed to be reminded. Did the shotgun get rid of the Fayetteville gang?

JaxZ: First, welcome to the fray. You say "weapons" officer, USAF? am I right? Fire Control Technician USN at your service. NATO Seasparrow to be exact. Served aboard a "Spru" can for a few years. Thank you for your interest in today's topic and your comments. Hazel: I really try not to rant these days, it's hard on the blood pressure, but there are a few topics that I get a bit passionate about. Ivan: Bless you brother...I half expected to sign on this morning and find that I had been virtually drawn and quartered. The support, as always, is much appreciated. To all: Let me now step aside and revel in the forthcoming comments, that I may be enlightened.

Just out of curiosity . . . who is at fault for the earth being cleaner now than it was 30 years ago? (Other than hairstylists who finally convinced the leftovers from the 1980's that they really didn't need THAT MUCH hair-gunk)? Who pushed for cleaner water/air/etc?

KC: Not an officer, just enlisted. USAF Fighter Aircraft Weapons Specialist at YOUR service Sir. I was too wimpy to be Navy, I get seasick. Even crossing the Channel. :( Also, though we shared many models of aircraft, including mine, they weren't to the best of my recollection, allowing women in my field on combat ships yet then. Always proud to stand (or drink) next to a fellow serviceman. {{salute}}

Hear, hear!  It's nice to not feel so lonely....

JaxZ: I work with a "wild weasel" tech. Similar yet different to your position I think but not sure. I return your salute smartly. Michael: I appreciate the "hair gunk" analogy. On that you are right. As to regulation...the countries of this world with the most draconian regulations have the worst environments. Free people left free will not shit in their own bed. 

KC: "Wild Weasels" are a particular tasking of a variety of fighter aircraft, and a tough one at that. They were always teased unmercifully with a moniker that is unnacceptable by today's PC-ness. We called them weeeeeEEEEeeeezles. I'm proud to know them. By the way, thanks for sharing "carrier landings at the O club" with us, that's a brilliant bit of fun.

At the risk of oversimplifying complex issues far beyond my comprehension..... yet again.... I've always remembered what my Mom would say whenever we would go and visit someone, ‘ whenever you are a guest in someone's home, especially if you would like to be invited back again sometime; always be respectful and try not to break anything'. I do believe there may have been an ‘or else' added at the end for emphasis and that the same laws of survival also applied to restaurants, theaters, museums and forest preserves. 

I do try to remember that I'm just a guest whenever and wherever I may walk on this earth. I'd like to say I'm always conscious of this thought and act accordingly, but that would be wishful thinking. I think I'm getting better at it though. I can't even remember the last time I was kicked out of a restaurant.

Peace out..... looks like we'll be listening to the sound of rain on the roof of the train tonight. That should be a nice way to ease into the days end.

KC:  if you're looking to be enlightened by, say, the likes of me, you won't be.  I'm not quite as right as our Ivan, but more and more lately, I find myself saying "Damn Ivan's right again" and I'm wondering, could I be wandering furter to the right of Ivan?
 
I think even Ivan would say, there is no such place.
 
But I agree with you, in your comment above.  And you're right, no one need apologize for their convictions.  Otherwise it would be less of a conviction and more just a quibbling point of view.  Which yours isn't, as evidenced by your passion. 
 
So, Saturday brings surprises, doesn't it?  Shared opinions where you thought it wasn't possible.  Just one of the great things about Saturday, you just never know what a Saturday will bring.
 
Hope to see you on the train regularly, KC. 
 

further

Peter: My opinion is only one droplet, but I don't believe you oversimplified. I think you state a foundational truth.

PL: Your subtle nudging is noted and will be taken into account. Yes, the rain should serve to soothe the savage beast. May the drinks and discourse flow freely tonight as we leave the station for our nightly excursion. Let us leave behind the ego's. Mine has already been checked for today. Peace Out...

KC: I'm not talking about draconian regulation systems. I'm talking about simple, basic regulation that tries to keep toxins out of drinking water. The sort of things we've had since the 1970s or so. I'm not one of those that thinks we need to regulate everything (Keep your filthy government hands off my imported cheese, dammit!), but I am definitely not one to trust big businesses to do what is best for people in the long run.

JaxZ:

I waved a sheaf of reading comprehension quizzes out the window and they were outta here yelping like whipped curs.


As to a cleaner planet: there is a big difference between countries deciding on their own to take measures that are scientifically practical to benefit the water, air and soil and submitting to international DEMANDS to indemnify the poorest cultures who have struggled for millennia in areas hostile to agriculture, animal husbandry and human habitation. Why is it suddenly our fault?

The philosopher king, Sam Kinnison, had it right thirty years ago: "Go where the food is!"   The members of a big flock of sandhill cranes are sounding off overhead.

Well so much for safe drilling in the Gulf hey guys? What a blowout that was! It's always about money. I imagine you'll find the power companies, and even oil companies trying to develop solar-power subsidiaries, much like the tobacco companies "quietly" buying up large plots of land in Californie upon which they will grow marijuana when it becomes legal. California friends tell me that this has actually been going on for years and is not because of recent pending legislation. I wouldn't doubt that they've got secret labs where they are sneaking nicotine into the formula to make marijuana addictive. They won't go quietly into the night, they'll go right on screwing us about, and getting tax dollars while making obscene profits. I know jobs are at stake, but people can learn to do other things.

 
"Just out of curiosity . . . who is at fault for the earth being cleaner now than it was 30 years ago?"

Richard Milhous Nixon who proposed the EPA and signed it into law. 

Sam Kinnison would have made a great president.
 
Al Gore is a laughing all the way to the bank buffoon........... 

Exactly! Stoney.  A Republican, who also knew that corporations would not protect their workers from unsafe work environments unless they were told to.  Thus, OSHA. 
 
Perhaps I missed a key sentence that would have made this clear for me, but I don't understand the notion that the most draconian environmental laws translate into the worst environments.  Wasn't it also pointed out that America is a lot cleaner than it was 30 years ago? 
 
How did that happen, if not for corporations being forced to change their practices? There's a reason the Cuyahoga doesn't catch fire anymore and it ain't because Dow/DuPont/Monsanto/insert name here suddenly grew a conscience.
 
Like Michael, I don't advocate more and more regulation.  I just know that a soulless entity like a corporation (who these days seem to be headed by soulless jackasses) is not going to worry about me when the bottom line is involved.  There must be a middle ground.
 
 
 
 

Stoney: He said in his "best" London accent "Fink nuffin hofit Mate hapology aint needed".

It is all becoming clearer now; those people at S.E.C. that were surfing porn instead of watching my 401 turn into a 201, are going to be demoted to those govt. employees that actually have to count those cow farts....

My thoughts are all across the board on this one -- I was THERE for the cleanup after the '89 spill, and in many other global sites afterwards --we HAVE to look suspiciously at ourselves and our collective roles in this horrendous mess.  There. That's it.

and just WHAT DO YOU DO WITH ONE MILLION POUNDS OF TAINTED/POISON HAMBURGER FROM ONE PLANT THAT WAS DESTINED FOR THE SCHOOL SYSTEM?!?

RY: compensatory purge-atory? What did Ivan say yesterday? Eeeeeeewwwwwweee!

RY: Good lord, that was NOT directed at your last remark RY, it was towards the bovine flatulence. This one is way beyond me.

It takes several days production to even come close tothat amount, so the lack of proper inspection becomes very apparent,and if it was not caught,the cost in lives,and ruined lives,does not seem to be passed back to the corporation responsible. If it was a local producer to a local school,there would be hell to pay. And the school is not given any real advantage by buying from a mega factory. You must factor in storage and transportation that would be reduced from local suppliers. I do not know how we make this right, but I do believe that some of it is wrong.

KC --thanks for the web referral --
 

 
JaxZ,

Actually, I believe Ivan said: "Eat it all up before midnight."

Let me clarify a point lest I be misunderstood. I am in no way supportive of "corporate America" any more than a draconian government. Anything too big is no good. Dupont/Dow/Monsanto et. al. are today's robber barron's. They and big Pharma would have us believe that we need all their products to survive. But I continuously ask myself what it is I really need. I found the following...food on the table and shelter from the weather. Nothing more, everything else are niceties not necessities. I have no truck with big companies anymore than big government.

Stoney: I was referring to a Making It's Mark post I thought he made, but worse than missing the mark (!) I attributed it to the wrong speaker, it was RY using various exclamations. Sorry for not clarifying. I'm going to sit quietly, finish writing my article and only listen in and not blurt. :)

Where are you JULIA?????
 
SHANDONISTA-- Nice to see you in full fettle!!!!
 
KC-- On Tuesday, I believe, Frontline had a documentary on Monsanto & it was really one of the most horrifying things I have seen. If you get the chance check it out. I apologize for not knowing the title. I am not sophisticated enough to do links, paste, etc-- so I guess I'm pretty useless w/ my tip......

Yeppers -- there was one here who referred to another on this Train as a pseudo-intellectual, with absolutely nothing to do except blabber on and on, even prior to morning ablutions ----
This has been an interesting journey and I ahve chosen my depot.  Be well and buy PETERMAN! 

Frontline/Nova report: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/harvest/index.html

JAXZ--- thanks! I'm glad someone out there has a clue on how to post a link because I sure don't..........
 
Did you see it? I have to say it blew my mind.
 

Did anyone ever think corporations actually cared about anything other than the bottom line?  Really and truly, did anyone really believe that, ever?
 
Corporations make money.  That's their cumulative mission statement.  (What do you intend to produce, 'Corporation'?  Must I tell the truth?  Yes.  Um, nothing.  I intend to make money.)  That's what they do.  Do they care?  No.  Are you surprised?  Tell me you're not.
 
And what is the government but a really big Corporation?  It has its articles of incorporation, and other fancy paperwork, but in reality, the soulless guys at the top?  They're in it for money, and power -- or power and money, they are one and the same. 
 
Every now and again there will be a Mr. Smith and he goes to Washington, but after a short stint there he goes back home, because nobody wants to eat lunch with him, he has no hidden agenda, and so he isn't worth the time it takes for a sandwich. 
 
Now what? 
 
Labels don't help, I don't think they hurt either because who really cares except at election time?  It's not the Republicans, Democrats, Liberals, Conservatives, Moderates or whoever who's at fault for the current condition of our government, nor are any of them going to come up with a panacea.
 
It's Michael Douglas in "Wall Street' multiplied by a tiny % of our population -- they're the ones who run things, from boardrooms in corporate office buildings across the globe and offices in the Senate Office Building in Washington D.C. -- the same jackarses sit in both places.  The same players play in both venues.
 
These are the bad guys.  These are the soulless ones.  But knowing who they are doesn't afford us the power to do anything about it,  Money is power.  And they've got the money. I guess that means that they've got the power, too.  Which we know.  But knowledge isn't power...money is.  Round and round...
 
So now what?
 
 
 
 
sigh.
it's the fog talking ...
 
 

I watched a tie-in program on the tens of thousands of deaths in India over this issue, and of course "Food Inc.", whch depicted problems that took the last farm my family owned away.

JEKOKO-- I am sometimes very quick, but today a tad slow. Please explain your last, mysterious comment--- it's like the Nat'l Enquirer at the checkout-- some headlines just MAKE you open up that sucker & see who has..... cellulite......

Sorry Beebe, forgot to say "You're welcome." :)

So, is turning my kitchen into a garbage recycling plant going to make any difference to the impact of corporate abuse of the planet? JALOPKIN asked me an interesting question- maybe I have been drinking too much gender-bending tap water! I certainly feel as agressive as a totesterone laden young man at times, which, come to think of it, is a pretty good deal for a grumpy old woman.

PARK4:  Sweetie, I have always been so far to the Right of John Wayne, that any farther to the Right and I'd be ON the Left ....... A fellow who knows my Family in New York, who REALLY DID go to Columbia ... and was actually Graduated from there, once called me, "an Erudite Redneck"  and said so with some amazement and appreciation ... (I recount this not boastingly, but simply anecdotally ...)
 
Saturdays are mt Rest Days, my Play Days ... and today someone else is handling my duties at the Temple, so I get to Goof Off, and that means I can run thru the Village and hear the strains of CCR in my mind .......
 
HAZEL: That may explain why most of the Vicars I have known were such accomplished Topers, and all this time I thought it was all about their Golf Game ....... When one stops to think about it, there is not much so exacting and pleasingly correct as a Proper British Butler executing French Service at Table ....... (Maybe a little Paul Potts playing in the background)
 
TRISTON:  Is that simply London ???  Or is it SoHo ??? The Accent(s) found in the British Isles are easily understandable and Quaint, Regionally ... and I have always felt sorry for people who have to eat things with names like, "Spotted Dick" .......  That is bound to affect anybody's delivery .......
 
BEBE:  Sam Kinneson made enough money that he should have been able to afford a decent haircut ... He was alleged to be an Ordained Minister and seemed to have no knowledge of the proscriptions in the Bible speaking against long hapr on Men ... I know all of the Arguments and Uproar against what I just said, and there is no need to repeat them ... Each person is entitled to his own opinion and feelings, even if they are wrong ... I was just commenting on the mountain of paradoxes that were Sam Kenneson, and I don't understand how it is that he ever became famous ... He had yeoman skills as a Pianist, couldn't carry a tune in a bucket, was NOT funny, and was a deliberately abrasive, foul-mouthed, visible disgusting excuse for a human being ... But, that is just my opinion ... shared with millions tho' it be ....... just my humble opinion ...
 
STONEY:  A fond and Righteous Memory of Milhouse !!!  Good On You, Sir ... I was a Fan, and not because he is the Man who issued my Warrant, but because he kept the Dog ...

Ivan.
 
How you amaze and amuse.
 
I'm so glad you don't have to go to Temple today.
 
The last line. 
Brilliant.
 
Stay here all day.
 
 

JALOPKIN~ not familiar with Merlyn, but if it's good, the reason you can't get it over there is 'cos we drink it all over here, an ecologically sound practaice to lower its carbon footprint.

Hear hear Park4 I could not agree more nor am I anymore enlightened than you as to the answer. My soul tells me the answer must lie in all of us. Educating ourselves, edifying one another and carrying our call to those who would do us in..."we're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore". There's a movie line in there somewhere...
 
We could start by researching the companies we buy from and making more informed choices. That would at least effect the bottom line to the point that they may start listening.

SHANDONISA~ in the UK, Frontline is a spray on product for eliminating parasites.

IVAN,IVAN,IVAN..... I really only made the Sam Kinnerson comment because it amused me at that second. I vaguely remember him as a loudmouthed, abrasive pigdog who probably lived very hard. & maybe was bathing optional....... yuck........
 
PARK--- stop being so reasonable- it makes me look like bad......
 
IVAN-- I am obviously quite thick brained today---- explain that last part--- he issued your warrant???? & he kept the dog??????????
 
Inquiring minds want to know..................

TRISTON~ Spotted Dick is great comfort food for the eater & the eaten.

Hazel leese: Reading your last is bringing out the sailor in me. But, I shall refrain from any untoward comments. I fear I've already made a bit of an arse of myself today. My boss's mum was from the Isles and he keeps a can of Spotted Dick on his desk in case of emergencies. What those emergencies might be, I'm sure I don't know.

Ummmm- safer not to comment, in case I get banned from this page, which is giving me a lot of pleasure.

Kentucky Curmudgeon~ Sorry, can't resist it. Hello Sailor!

Hazel Leese: Hello yourself you vixen you...he said with a raspy tone.

Kentucky Curmudgeon- Ha ha ha, nothing finer than the anonimity of computers - I send you virtual kiss, on the bit of anatomy of your choice. X Tomorrow, maybe we can stay focused on the topic of the day?

BEBE:    Evidently, I have socks older than you are ....... but thats OK, and I do not say that to denigrate you in any way....... But, you ARE young ... In 1952AD Senator Richard Nixon was smeared by Liberal Democrats, and some alleged Communists in the Federal Government(they might all have been the same) because Nixon had been a fierce opponent of Communism(tho' not a crackpot like "Tail Gunner Joe") and he was about to become Eisenhower's Vice Presidential pick for the next election ... Some of the lies the DNC told then said that a group of wealthy Business men, from the Silk Stocking District, were secretly/illegally funneling giant sums of Money to Nixon, in Quid Pro Quo, which they said accounted for his more than comfortable lifestyle, that seem'd  to be a little beyond the capabilities of an honest Public Servant ... Of course they glossed over Nixon's being born and reared in a Traditional Quaker Family and Community in California, that his Dad (even after suffering huge Business losses) left Tricky considerable Holdings, that were being worked and grown by the Quaker Community he was a large part of, that Nixon was a Full Partner in one of the most Prestigeous Law Firms in the Country, and that his Profits were still being paid to him, piecemeal, long after he entered public life OR ... that Pat Ryan's Daddy was a Retired NAVY man turned Gold Miner, who left her much more than anybody ever knew he had found ... so you see, Finances were not a problem for Nixon and he proved it in his speech, every word of which I listented to as it was being Broadcast Live, on the Radio with Pictures(as my Aunt Ruth  used to call it) Some one had given Nixon's Daughter Tricia, a Golden Retriever puppy, which the DNC claimed was part of his, "Filthy Luchre" ... Tricia loved the Dog and had named the Dog, CHECKERS ... After the Speech, thru which Nixon had politely but very directly told the world to kiss his Quaker Ass,  the last Line he spoke was, "and I am keeping the Dog ..."  It became known as, "The Checkers Speech" but it was a very great part of what propelled him and Eisenhower into Te Whitehouse ....... The  country was wanting a Strong,Conservative Ass-Kicker at the helm ... Just like we need now ... a Republican ... to lead this Constitutional Republic ... And not apologize for being RIGHT, even if it   IS   unpopular ... What happened to Nixon later was a matter of his doing whateverybody else in his position was doing, but its being blown out of proportion and presented in the Blackest Light ... The Fourth Reich is good at that you know ... Bernie Madoff was banged for running a PONZI Scheme, but the Government has been doing it on a grander scale for decades, and nobody puts THEM in jail ... what they do is erroneously called, "Social Security" ... Anyhow, thats the deal about the Dog ... Five months before he Resigned, Nixon issued my Warrant, and raised my Rank in the NAVY... but that too is a whole nuther story .......

Tomorrow maybe, as for today you have a middle aged man blushing. Somehow this whole business is getting out of hand. But like watching a wreck in slow motion I can't seem to turn away. For the sake of civility I will stop while the stopping is good. There may be children about. Anonymity does have it's rewards.

Ivan: That is the best explanation of the "Checkers" speach I've ever heard. Thank you.

HAZEL:  The Scots have Scots' Whiskey, the Irishers have, Irish Whiskey, and the Welsh have, Merlyn ... Hellsfire, the English have even got, "English Whiskey" now ....... I was introduced to Merlyn in Cardiff many years ago, and brought three Bottles back with me, that lasted until about six years ago, and them I found one lone Bottle in a Shop in Nassau about two years ago, but had it shipped to me later by a friend because I was heading to the airport at the time ... It has been, impossible to find over here ... it is just different enough from all others of its ilk to make it a proper quest ....... But, we'll talk more of that later ...

Since today's topic seems to have been ironed out as it were and I've already worn out my welcome. Here is a bit of self promotion www.kentuckycurmudgeon.wordpress.com it's a little place I jot down idle thoughts and post a picture now and again.

This may sound a bit like I've got my knickers in a twist but sometimes I hear some generalizations about how all our problems seem to have been caused by the ‘big bad corporations who would seem to have spent an inordinate amount of energy trying to destroy the planet and all things good about human nature. 

I think in many cases they are all lumped together to make them an easy target for all that is wrong with society as well as the planet. When you've got targets the size of global enterprises to blame, it eliminates the need to look at ourselves, our families and our communities as perpetrators of some of these wrongs.

Just as there are good and bad people, there are good and bad corporations. Just as ‘bad folks' can stumble upon and embrace the light of being a good person, parent, friend and neighbor; so too can large corporations.

I have experienced and witnessed the evolution of several companies who have realized that to sacrifice the environment, exploit their employees and cheat their customers in the name of short-term profits and success will no longer be tolerated.

Many of today's corporations have voluntarily become leaders in their particular industries to make them more eco-friendly. The most successful of these have begun these earth-friendly processes long before it become mandatory. Many have initiated and/or supported a wide variety of ‘clean up' efforts through process improvements, voluntary remediation efforts and encouraging/supporting the voluntary efforts of their employees through matching funds, sponsorships and time off.

Of course its profit driven! That's why they are in business, but at least there is more of recognition that keeping their eye on the long-term effectiveness and impact of their assets, employees, communities and their customers is the key to continuous success.

There are so many people, places and things that we can point our fingers at and lay the blame upon their doorstep; but if life has taught me one thing; it's that it's not only the biggest and most obvious targets that are the culprits. Some of them may actually be working towards becoming a solution.

No doubt some horrible things have been done in the name of profitabilityand we are all still paying for it. But lot of good stuff has been done by individuals, organizations, communities and even quite a few Fortune 100 companies too.

Just my opinion. I may be wrong but not totally;.... and seldom in doubt.

Enough of this serious stuff. Time for a ride on thesepia train and to dream a while....

Peace out

PL: I second all that you say...I take it the train is fueled up and ready for travel. I'm on my way save a seat and a glass. If you're taking orders...I'll have your best Bourbon...Wild Turkey 101 if the bartender has it. In a glass, neat of course.

KC - my favorite attribute of thesepia train is that not only does it take you wherever or whenever you wish to be, it always has an endless supply of whatever you would like to eat, drink, read, listen to, or watch.  The good folks of the EyE supply the rest.  Your seat is saved and there is a neat Wild Turkey 101 with your name on it.  It'll have been just poured as you take your seat.

Much food for thought. Laughter. Banter. A very good day.

Yes indeedy it is. He exclaimed.....yes indeedy

JALOPKIN~ I have lived in Wales for the past 30 years and resent being branded "English". I have learned the Welsh language & worked as a carer & Social Worker in the community. If anything, my race is "Mongrel"- born in Uganda, East Africa, parents both British, back to UK aged 11- hated it, eventually found a refuge in North Wales.Cardiff? That isn't Wales, come back & see the real stuff in the North. Come to mention it, I do like a drop of Irish, 'tho I made the mistake of marrying one & that was a disaster!

An excusion on thesepia train is worth infinite hours of therapy.  Not physical, that other kind.  And we owe its existence to an even tempered clear thinking gentle man, and gentleman, who expresses himself better than I ever could, and makes me feel childish for getting into a snit, about what I wrote, upthread.  It seems to be taking me forever to grow up.
 
There are people you meet and enjoy, and there are people you meet and while you're enjoying them, you know you're learning something very good from them, a lesson that escaped you somewhere back when...
 
I'm awfully grateful for all of this, and all of you.
 
"Life is good."
gg

What an exhilarating day on the "train" today and this evening....No wonder I have such wanderlust amongst you wonderfully fine folks.  Isn't it a great thing that we can pick our own friends and fellows...  And how grand for a grown up to have a fantasy land like "Thesepia" to travel to....we can all be Peter Pans in our own manner that way.

Not sure if it's on your side of the water, but just spotted an ad on this page-
www.wellhungmeat.com ; - , and the Morgan is still there, and the Mercedes... sometimes, the ads are more interesting than the subject. It's 12.20, so goodnight & God Bless - or, in Welsh, Nos da.

Hazel: I must confess I didn't make it North of Fishguard (because of the MC quarantine). When I come back, can I swing up there and see your favorite bits of the real Wales? I'll send you a ticket to see the real Maine in exchange if you like...

Carol: Excellent description!

Hazel: Sleep well!

PARK--- being a park fan I'm obviously biased, but what you wrote was excellent & true & needs NO apology!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I didn't see it as a snit at all, but what you feel to be the sad truth.
 
 
IVAN--- of course I know the "Checkers" speech, but of course I obviously don't since I learned all I now know about it from you. It has always been rumbling around in my brain like other minutia, but I never took the time to look it up.Thank you professor Ivan...........
 
PL--- what is there to say except that you rock!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And you say it so clearly & so eloquently that it amazes me every time. Thank you.
 
 
Still stumped on the Jekoko mystery...................

Hi bebe!
(I can no longer use a "!" without being awfully self conscious).
 
Anyhow, that's how the tired and soggy part of me (which is me, today) sees "all of it." 
That kind of stuff clicks around in the like dice rattling in the head, and on a gray quiet day, out it comes.  I wish it hadn't.
 
That's one thing about Peterman's Place here:  without saying so, you know either from experience or plain good sense, that what you write is pretty much going to be out here for better or worse, once you hit send.  No do overs in anything.  If you don't think hard and long about what you're going to say before you send it, you could spend days trying to undo whatever you did via whatever circuitous route you can find. 
 
I think there's a life lesson in there, something we should practise in the real world.  Even an opinion can be regrettable, if only because it puts a pall on the flow of things.
 
But hey.
It's night time.
This long day is coming to a close.
Tomorrow is new, and bound to be interesting in some way.
 
You know what we need, bebe?  We need a movie, we need a TNT movie schedule for the evening, so those of us who want to lose ourselves in film, can do just that.  I haven't looked at TNT in ages.
 
But I will, and I will return with the evening schedule, which thesepia train with be showing in the classic movie car.
 
If gg is reading, maybe she'd like to join us, you and me, for a movie?  And anyone and everyone else too. 
 
Let me see what's on Now Showing.
 
PS:  I'm a bigger bebe fan than you are a park fan.  You should know that.

Oh...Mrs. Robinson! 
 
Right now,  on TCM, they're showing a great movie if you lived it.  I think a lot of us did.  It was a simpler time, when Simon and Garfunkle songs followed you wherever you went, and the answer to everything was "plastics." 
 
8:00 PM Eastern
Graduate, The (1967)
A recent college graduate has an affair with his neighbor's wife, then falls for their daughter.
Cast: Anne Bancroft, Dustin Hoffman, Katharine Ross, Murray Hamilton Dir: Mike Nichols C-106 mins, TV-MA
 
 
10:00 PM Eastern
Magnificent Ambersons, The (1942)
A possessive son's efforts to keep his mother from remarrying threaten to destroy his family.
Cast: Joseph Cotten, Dolores Costello, Anne Baxter, Tim Holt Dir: Jack Moss BW-88 mins, TV-PG
 
It says directed by Jack Moss but I swear this was directed by Orson Welles.  Either way, good movie, from the novel by Booth Tarkington.  A sort of dark movie, thick with social commentary and meaning.  The rich and their troubles, back in the turn of the last century, (thereabouts.)
 
But for now, it's Dustin Hoffman, as The Graduate. 
 
Enjoy!
I know I will.

PARK4 - I'm with bebe and didn't read anary a hint of snit in your post.   Just a well expressed and thought out opinion.  There are so many worthy perspectives and they seem to like hangin' around here at the EyE for all to enjoy, roll around in our mind, and ponder.  All worthy of being heard. I too am full of gratitude and appreciation of all here who speak from the heart what is on their minds and willing to listen, weigh and respect the views of others.
 See ya on train - Hudson john  

oooh, there is wet cement at thesepia train station platform,and we can all leave palm prints and well wishes

KC 2010 member of the Eye...I think that's what I'll put in the cement along with my paw prints.

It would seem that my foray into self promotion has bore fruit. Let me thank those of you who visited and left comments. Please feel free to visit anytime. It may not always be fresh but it is always sincere.

{{sneaking in}}.....drawing heart with and arrow through it next to KC 2010...{{sprinting away}}

{{darting back in}}...writing "from Hazel" next to heart.. {{running a w a y . .

JaxZ: You little imp...I'm in enough trouble already without your help. But, thanks all the same. Any publicity is good publicity I suppose. The train has pulled away from the station and the Turkey is just what the dr. ordered. Thanks to all for a great day at the Eye...

HAZEL:  There was no sleight intended ....... And I applaud the substance of your Travels, and all you share with us ... Cyrum Am Byth !!!
 
BEBE:  You are too kind, but it is kinda hard to dismiss such things when they happen right in one's face ... I am just Blessed with a good long Memory ....... Always happy to share ...
 
PARK4:  And YOU Missy Ma'am ... I am delighted that I can amuse you ... I have wondered at times if anybody really pays any attention to this stuff ... Even if no one ever did, it a Blessing for me to be able to exchange ideas with you  ...
 
PETERLAKE:  Reassuringly, expansively, even-keeled, as always .......
 
STONEY:  Bluntness and Certainty that I really appreciate ...
 
 
Everybody in this Village has been a Blessing to me ... I was in such need of intellifent conversation ... Bless You All, and THANKS !!!

That should be, INTELLIGENT ... actually .......

It was.

 
All right, who made a fanny print in the wet concrete?

if both cheeks were the same size..... it wasn't me.

STONEY, you and Peter Lake are crackin' me up !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  You guys musta been employed once upon a time by M. Python & Co.  ....... 

 
Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin is considered the father of Earth Day:

http://www.earthday.net/node/92

As boys, we watched him on an outside stage waiting to make some remarks at a movie premier in our town.

It was so cold, windy and snowy that all of the toadies and baskers in the glow had bailed on him as he stood up high and exposed to the elements.

He made a couple of jokes for our benefit and as we debated whether or not he was actually a regular guy, he honked his schnozz into his off-white silk scarf.

There you go. That settled that.

Satin, now that I think about it.