Throw in Corfu, and it's a Deal

The Constitution was, in part, established to "promote the general welfare." Even at our founding, it was recognized that society is better off as a whole when it helps those who need a hand.

There's an old game we played in high school where we broke up with four players to a game. Various actions allow the players to collaborate or not, deceive or not, in amassing the most tokens. At the end of the game, the winners are the group of four who cooperated to get the most tokens as a group, not the individuals with the most. in other words, the group (society) needs to wok together.

Everyone these days seems to condemn Scandinavian social democracy. But they self tax at a pretty high rate, and in return they have great roads, clean open space, great health care, and wonderful education. Here in California, we have none of that, but boy have we kept the tax rate down.

and it wasn't "socialism" when Sarah Palin went to Canada to see a doctor, that was just good ol' common sense to get a deal.

I think this argument eats its own.When you yell "FIRE", it is the socialist fire department that we all pay for....yes, it could be privateized, but then when you lose everything in the fire, how would you pay for the service? Well, insurance....but that isn't socialized protection either,or is it....I think you can fight this one over cocktails for ever....like that argument about America is a Democracy-NO! A Republic...but, you vote for the Republic in a Democratic election.....see?

I bailed from England the year Tony Blair and his sidekick (now boss man) Gordon Brown took over the running of the country, New Labour was just a new word for Socialism.
 
As a side note I visited Iceland last year only to find they hate the British because of the way Gordon Brown has treated them, so had to put on my best faux Texan accent for the entire trip.

All the Great Civilizations that have existed since Time began, have made the mistake of adopting a Democratic form of governance, in a last ditch effort to save themselves from going the way of the Do Do Bird ....... and it killed them all .......  History has proven repeatedly that Democracy is the worst form of government in the world, if for no other reason than it is Mob Rule ... and a few Elitists learn how to turn and control the Mob, so that eventually it all goes to Hell (Not the one in Michigan)  This country was founded as and set to be preserved as, a Constitutional Republic ... We have a Republican Form of Government ....... "... and to the REPUBLIC for which it stands ... One Nation, Under God, Indivisible, With Liberty and Justice For All(of its own Citizens)"
 
 
And what did we get by embracing Democracy ???
 
 
FDR/Kennedy/Carter/Clinton is my Shepherd, I shall always want

He maketh me to lie down in Bomb Shelters

He leadeth me beside still Factories, He restoreth my Poverty
 
He leadeth me in the paths of Riotousness for his Greed's sake
 
Yea tho' I walk thru the valley of the Shadow of  the Gestapo
 
I am scared witless because he is with us
 
His Nightsticks and Tasers scare the crap out of me
 
He has prepared a table for me in the Kangaroo Court of my enemies, and he has annointed my head with Bullshit; My cup covers over with dust
 
Surely Goodness and Mercy are just around the corner, somewhere, else I shall dwell in the House of The Poor, Forever .......
 
Maybe Helen of Troy had a Face That Launched a Thousand Ships, but it was her ample pulchritude that launched Victoria's Secret, and that was back when they were making those Girly things out of Leather .......
 
That reminds me; Where is Julia ???

JALOPKIN:  I'm here and I'm very impressed by your clever post. I was off lobbying against the cuts to healthcare and education.  We will all be dwelling in the house of the poor if we continue along our current path. 
 
I'm not sure how all of this reminds you of me, but I must admit that the Victoria's Secret/girly leather garb has helped me get the attention of some very influential people.
It doesn't matter what I wear. All that matter is  how I think and what I can do to change the culture of poverty.

well at least you didn't mention the grasshopper and the ant.........
 
good morning ivan!!!

Good morning all!
Great to see you CUUKOO. I don't know whether I can take another "Ant & Grasshopper." Oh my.....
TRISTON-- Tony Blair is so slimy-- he seems like someone who would push their grandmother down the stairs if it got them a leg up....

morning bebe!!!  maybe a humble bumble bee hive analogy?

CUUKOO-- No!!! The bumble bee hive analogy can only lead to stinging rebukes....
 
Oh, I am so killing myself w/ my wit....

it's good to smile!! by choice..

Democracy is four wolves and a lamb debating what's for lunch.

Because.... I've been in sales for 25 years.... my undergrad degree was in political science with a minor in economics.... I've had family members who were socialists (Spain) .... I was an anti-Communist activist in junior high school.... I was at one time a libertarian (when I foolishly thought humans were rational).....  I'm a humanist and really do think all men are brothers (or should be).... still hold and will always hold many of the Sermon on the Mount values I was taught as a kid (when I was still a believer).....  --------
 ...for all these reasons I won't post today.  I'm so conflicted about all the systems: free enterprise, utopian socialism, modern political socialism, monopoly capitalism, fascism, Leninism, Maoism, and so on........... I'm so conflicted it's best I go no further than this post.  -------  The play (human history) will roll out as it is destined to.   Nothing humans say will change how matters unroll.  

Staying out of it this time... could be cowardice, could be that I'm packing for a trip... either way, let the fur fly!

A Churchill quote comes to mind: "The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries."

Good Morning bebe: Perfect description of Blair and company.

Good Morning JALOPKIN: Brilliant posting so true.

Doc Nolan: You are very wise, today's subject is explosive, the two most dangerous subjects my parents taught me to NEVER discuss were politics and religion.

So I to am going to follow your example, but will make one small comment, England under Maggie Thatcher was prosperity under Tony Blair ....... poverty!

Eschewing the political ramifications of economics for a moment, I'm about to indulge in a personal rant about economics... 
 
In receipt of Owner's Manual #76, I have come to the following conclusion:
 
I'm for whatever economic system will convince J. Peterman that it would be profitable to supply women's trousers in the same variety of inseams as he provides for men.
 
Dare I say that the elegant and graceful women he so eloquently describes in his catalogue would find that items #1067 and #2388 end rather unfashionably north of their ankles?
 
Perhaps he feels that women blessed with inseams longer than 32" do not need to wear his garments to appear "fluid, sensual and elegant"?
 
Clearly, capitalism is not working here, and I'm not sure that socialism would either...what economic system might persuade our estimable host to embrace gender equity in the trouser market?
 
 
 

With out question the most socialist corner of U.S. society is
the military.

Not only dose every one in it work for the government but
they have:

Free or subsidized housing

Socialized medicine

Government subsidizes grocery stores (Commissaries)

Government subsidized gas stations

Government subsidized produce stores (PX)

Government subsidized golf courses

Government subsidized marinas

Government subsidized campgrounds

Government subsidized collage tuition

Government provided burials

Government pensions

Government insurance pools

The only free collage education for all students is in the academes

Yet military officers often decry socialism.  Individuals who have never (if they are career
officers, especially ones who went to the academes) lived in or earned a living
in a free market system.  The hypocrisy is laughable.

Thanks Natalie.  That Churchill had a quote for everything didn't he?

 This is for my American cousins who are not familiar with the British system:
 
The House of Commons equates to the American Senate, the person who maintains order is called the Speaker and the Speaker sits at the head of the assembly, to his left sits the Labour Party (Democrats) to his right sits the Conservative Party (Republicans)
 
Churchill started his political career as a member of the Labour Party, however with his inherent disgust at his party he made a historic gesture by standing up and walking across the floor and sitting with the Conservative Party, from that day on he was a stance Conservative.    

Peter Lake, who was deep in the mist of a bad dream was suddenly screeched and shaken awakened by the sudden reverse breakin' of the train's mighty wheels as it shuddered to a stop to avoid running over a field mouse that was just sitting on the tracks wondering how he came to be sat there all the while being totally unaware that he was soon to be lunch for an eagle-eyed falcon that was lazily gliding in circles overhead . . . . .. 

And Peter stood up stretching, the only thing he remembered from his dream was the words from a sign above a tunnel which read "Anything not forbidden is compulsory"*, and he was filled happiness and gratitude to be awake, alive and free in his world.

That's all that comes to mind this morning ........ I definitely need a dopio espresso.

Good morning everyone. It's especially grand to hear your voice again cuukoo1.

Peace out....

* T. H. White

This means that Doc Nolan is uniquely qualified to answer the question about that sermon I've always wondered over: "Blesséd are the cheesemakers"??? What was that about?

Once upon a time, I had the opportunity to explain the idea of a "social contract" to a variety of groups of people. It's strange how simply the marketing style of an idea can completely change the perception and therefore acceptance of a concept. Of course this is no surprise, and in the modern world we call it advertising (Rory Sutherland's TED Lecture is right on the damned mark for that - get thee hence to TED and track that lecture down).

I think some of the better forms of advertising for what America "means" - if it can be distilled into a ditty or a tune - were the old Schoolhouse Rock cartoons on Saturday morning TV. I can still sing the Constitution song without pause; on demand, I will sing it for any one of you.

Like the Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution is one of those places where any American can go to check if their idea of America is in line with the hopes in which America was conceived by its Founders. I like to sing the Preamble through in my head every so often and ponder whether we haven't experience a little slippage. Maybe the lofty goal of this country has been lost, or killed off, by those who want their own gain and others' loss. We are the planet's oldest Constitutional Republic, sure, but like every generation since the apostle Paul I wonder if we are not to be the last of the free Americans.

Surely, once an inspired text like the Constitution is handed to down to the meager minds of politicians, lawyers, and accountants, the clock begins ticking toward the (inevitable?) demise of the dream. How do you bear up a humanitarian Paradise under the weight of cost accounting, legal precedent, and avarice? And people wonder why all of the Great Myths of Humanity always include a penultimate, epic destruction and regeneration scene. I daresay the same will be true for the grand American experiment.

Oh, darn. I was SO hoping that we would be discussing food today instead of politics. Oh, well, here's my handful of change on the subject at hand.

I have to say that the "subsidized" things mentioned by thr that active duty military get go along with a pay scale that is very low compared to the public sector. I personally know enlisted people from E-1 (privates and airmen) to E-6 (Master Sergeants) with families who are eligible for food stamps. One of the reasons that base pay is low is because the military are "paid in kind" by having access to military hospitals and doctors (it's free for the soldier and his dependents but the dependents are served on a space available basis), commissaries, base/post exchanges that SOMETIMES have lower prices than an off-base store, and the recreation facilities, such as golf courses, rod and gun clubs, recreation centers and movie theaters. Government insurance pools still have to have premiums paid into them from the soldier's base pay. That government subsidized college tuition (actually tuition reimbursement so long as you have better than C grade) he mentions is just like programs civilian employers have. The GI bill benefits are not free; every new recruit has to put rather large chunks of money into the program from their first year's paychecks into it to be eligible to receive the benefit. Enlisted soldiers get their inital issue of unifroms free and then every so often get a stipend to replace worn out items (I can say from experience that hte uniform stipend is not enough to pay for all the necessary replacements, especially when you work in a maintenance career field). Officers have to pay for their uniforms out of pocket, even the cost of their initial issue is deducted from their first paychecks. Also, at any moment, any military member can be called away to go overseas to fight or support the fighters in Iraq, Afghanistan and other very dangerous places.

Not everyone gets government pensions, either. And if a veteran is injured and discharged with a less than 30% disability, they don't get a medical pension. They might get some money from the VA but when they get old enough for Social Security, the amount of the VA disability benefit is subtracted from the original social security amount.

By the way thr, I was never an officer (I was medical-ed out as a staff sergeant) and lots of the officers I know held regular jobs and worked their way through college before joining the military. West Point, The Air Force Academy and Naval Academy in Annapolis only train a small portion of the officers in the services. Those people who sign up already having college degrees go to officer training school for 6 to 9 weeks then are sent out to do their jobs. They have life experience behind them and are some of the best leaders I have had the privilege of working for.

As far as socialism itself goes, there isn't a single country on the planet that practices true socialism just as there isn't a country that practices true communism. Both styles of governance work well in small groups if the people are like minded and have a perfect chunk of land that can guarantee the production and distribution of enough food, goods, and services to all members. But when that isn't the case, then things get changed to deal with the imperfections.

Greece has always had problems due to its geography and resources, going all the way back to before the Athenian democracy. And that democracy wasn't for everyone, BTW. To be a citizen and have voting rights you had to be a man and born to at least one Athenian parent. Women, slaves, foreigners who moved to the city and freedmen (1st generation freed slaves) had no political input at all.

Actually, I'm glad that I live in a country where we try to take care of people who need help. I think it's what makes us who we are as Americans.

I’m sorry Dancingkatz missed my point.  I am well aware of all the issues you
mentioned about being in the military and I do not begrudge them there benefits.  I was speaking of the officers who lambaste
anything that smacks of socialism while they live in a socialist system.  

http://designative.info/2010/02/10/watch-rory-sutherlands-life-lessons-from-an-ad-man-talk-at-ted/

Dancingkatz - Very well said indeed.  

The military offers low pay with good benefits for an all too often high risk job that requires you to be on the clock 24/7 and thats what the good folks in uniform sign up for as well as fulfilling a sense of duty. It's an exchange of value.

In the private sector it always boils down to "I'll pay you this wage and provide these benefits as long as you perform up to expectations . . . . the choice is your. It's also an exchange of value.

I have to tell you all that, this jibe I posted earlier is NOT original with me ... it was the product of a fellow named, John Henry Faulk, and it was penned before most of you were born ... I simply thought it appropriate, and had decided NOT to back away from todays Topic ....... Still, I promise that I do not want to intentionally hurt anyone elses sensitivities ... that is absolutely NOT a thing that I enjoy doing ... Anybody that would arouse that much ire in me, that would make me want to intentionally hurt their feelings, I would probably just shoot and save a lot of time ...
 
JULIA:  It was just the Gaffe' ... about the Leather Pants thing ....... No intents offended
 
thr:  You will forgive my being so dense, but I have also "missed your point" ... The Structure of the Military, and the precise way that structure creates Orderliness, ensures Safety and Security for all American Citizens, and enable the Military to Stand in The Gap for us all, that we may sleep peacefully and unafraid ... may appear to be, Socialistic but I think that is not quite an accurate assessment ... Simplified, Streamlined, Orderly, Directive ... but Socialist ???  If we all lived under those conditions, that might be the case, but the Military is just a small piece of the American Citizenry, and the Orderliness is necessary because Lives and the Welfare of the entire Nation depend on the efficiency and effectiveness of the MIlitary in doing its job ... There is no time in the Military for ineptitude or the antics of Morons in the workplace, that plague every Business and Industry on the earth ... The Military cannot afford the mistakes that slackers make while bumbling their way thru OJT ... Highest and Best use of Resources, Available Funds, Manpower, and Intelligence (notice that I did NOT say Intellect) is the key to the success and efficiency needed for the Military to properly do its job ....... I am Thankful for every man in the Military, and Proud of them ... Active or Retired ... and I say this not just because I am a Veteran of thirty-one years, but because with all its faults, the Military has kept this country to where I don't have to fight the assholes of the world in   MY   Back Yard, endangering my Children and my Home ... I support Veterans to the fullest, every way that I can, and shall continue to do so for the next seventy years, regardless of who the Bonehead in the White House may happen to be, because it is the Military that will STOP the Islamization of The United States, and no one else ....... Socialists???   I Don't Think So .......

PETERLAKE:  Lovely .......

thr: Perhaps I have missed the point you were trying to make. We might not be speaking the same language. Perhaps, it might help if we each provide a description of what our personal definitions of socialism (or whatever -isms we are talking about) are, in order to preclude confusion....

That said I believe that the military culture is not a socialist system. The tangible benefits are part of the compensation package. Everyone who works any job gets a compensation package of some kind, whether it's just minimum wage with no benefits to hundreds of thousands on dollars, stock options, a luxe company car, 6 weeks of paid vacation a year and a corner office with a view and personal assistant.

The fact that someone, whether officer or enlisted is in the military doesn't preclude them from having their own political/social/economic opinions. Nor does it preclude them from expressing those opinions. They can't actively participate in PACs or attend political rallies in uniform but otherwise they are as free to express their beliefs as anyone else.

Just some more loose mental change... and I still have some pockets I haven't checked yet. :)

Something that THR missed is that the military is most emphatically NOT a Democracy, and, while it may have the *appearance* of Socialism, does not engage in socialist dialectic.  The military is composed of volunteers who give up some of their Constitutionally-guaranteed rights to protect those rights for the remainder of the society that lives under them.  Yes, there is order, discipline, and internally-provided benefits for the person in uniform.  These are mainly so the servicemember does not have to worry about providing for his family, but may instead concentrate of the job at hand.  Less than 1% of the citizens of this nation serve in uniform, protecting the other 99+%.  It's a cruddy job, full of sphincter-clenching moments, followed by protracted boredom, for which we are compensated at lower-class levels.  For which also, we are reviled by the very society we are sworn to protect.  We are the wolves, trained to guard the flock, let loose when our politicians wish to make a violent point.  Greece has learned the hard way that no democracy nor republic lasts forever.  It takes careful nurturing and constant vigilance to ensure continuance.  The same applies here.  I, for one stand ready on the parapet to defend this nation and our ideals, even though I am now officially retired.  The Old Wolf still has a good bite.

Tib Dupre - I salute you good sir.

JALOPKIN: You did not in anyway hurt my feelings, you never have, I decided to opt out of today's discussion as I have very strong feelings regarding Socialism, one of the two reasons I left my birth country and the country I loved was because of the dramatic change in the political way my country was going. The other reason being I am married to an American wife, and we both felt we could give a better future for our children in America, that has indeed proven to be true in the short time be have been here.

All American Hot dogs and Hamburgers tonite in the club car. And Jazz. Funny thing about music;sounds better when everyone plays the same tune.....

TRISTON:   GOOD  ON  YOU, Sir !!! And I appreciate your Response ...  I like England and always have enjoyed my time spent there, but have been continuously amazed that Englad, who had been dealing with the Arabs since before the turn of the Century, has allowed such an influx, and such a stronghold to have occured, that Arabs and Islamic Interests have so much control over British Policies and the dispensation of English Common Law ... I expect to see, and delight in seeing, Jaguars in Coventry ... I DON'T want to see Camels .......

RoadYacht: I'll bring the apple pie... my grandma's recipe. Think a dozen pies would be enough or should I recruit my aunts and cousins to bake as well?

Dancingkatz: Only a dozen! sniff sniff said he pouting.
 
RoadYacht: Can we start with some Thelonious Monk?

RoadYacht, do you want cole slaw, potato salad, and macaroni salad to go along with the burgers and dogs? 
 
And is that Jazz live or recordings of the classics? *grin*

 Can I volunteer to play Bass Guitar?

I'm getting ticked off at the Photo Contest site. I was browsing the pics, and saw one I wanted to vote on, but when I clicked to go to where I could score it, I didn't go to that picture.  I've been clicking "skip this one" over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and ...
 
Well, you get the picture.
 
Mr. Peterman, will you please get your software experts to do something to the code of the Photo Competition site so that I can go right to the picture I want to score instead of seeing everything except what I want to score?  With 1200+ pictures, I don't have the time to refresh the scoring page in the hopes that I'll get to see the image I wanted to reward.
 

 Rhyselle:  I too got "ticked off" but for a slightly different reason, I can't help but notice my entries show something like 20 scorings with a average score of 1, watching the "Browse" section I noticed people are scoring their own with a 5 then someone else scores it with a 1 making an average of 3 for just a few moments before it dives into the 1's, seems to me the almighty dollar is "encouraging" people to work their way through scoring everyone with a one and their own with a five.

I think the answer for the Photo contest would be to remove the prize and just have "Bragging Rights"

I admit that I have pics in the contest, but I'm not voting on my own... which means, I'm sure, that I can totally kiss the community prizes goodbye... but I saw three of them that just screams "Peterman" to me and I can't get them to show up to be scored... yet I've seen the same picture of a baby sticking his tongue out FIVE times in the last fifteen minutes.  GRRR!
 
It would also help if the pics were shown in browse without the scoring and in the order they were submitted instead of changing location depending on what the scoring happens to be.  I have been looking for the pictures that a friend submitted, and still haven't been able to locate them in the Browse area... I, personally, don't want to know how others scored the photos.
 
Randomization has its uses, but right now, I want to scream at my computer screen.

The water's too deep at this end of the pool for me today.
 
I'll stay in the shallow end and wade through my chores of the day.
 
 

Rhyselle: You bring the cole slaw and I'll bring the Cole Porter...we'll share the potato salad.
 
 
As for the topic of the day...booo!
 
 
Opinions are like sphincters...we each have our own. Too much is already "said" about forms of government...very little is actually "done". The only thing people are vigilant about are espousing their beliefs while their sphincter genuflects, pouring out even more bile onto an already steaming pile of drivel. The proceeding was brought to you by...Metaphors "r" Us...
 
I must be off...
 
 

KORTHAL-- I'm wading over to join you baby! Would you care for a bloody mary as we lounge in the water?
 
RY-- two Hebrew National dogs on soft buns w/ mustard & relish for me & KORTHAL, please. We might need seconds.....
 
 
& thirds......

KORTHAL--- my humour will have you rolling-- let's "wade" this one out......
 
Make it stop, make it stop....

Bebe & Korthal, Save room for me--and Bloody Marys, too!!  My strong feelings of the day are going for R&R and decidely NOT politics.  So, we'll watch the others flounder around and not get in too deep over our heads (like that Bebe?).  Cheers!

CAROL--- I've got a place right here. C'mon, scooch over. There.
 
You are now killing me! I'm making a new batch of bloodies....
 
 

BEBE:
 
I'll take that bloody mary you offered but I've got to keep on keeping today.
 
#1 My sister's dog suddenly died.
 
#2 My aunt is in terrible shape and in rehab in Florida.
 
#3 My next door neighbor died in Pa so I'll be going there for the service on Monday.
 
#4 2010 isn't going my way.

I have to admit that I didn't read the entirety of the post - I read half and skipped to the ending. I read books similarly (no offense).
Providing for the poor, indigent, hungry, abandoned, abused, injured, needy....goes beyond politics. It's  altruism - and it's at the core of what makes us human. We'll never be able to separate it from society as long as humans are social, group oriented animals [sorry, it's in the jeans ;-)]
  

Korthal---What an awful day!  Rest assured your friends in the Village are wishing you much strength to get through all of that!  

CAROL:
 
Thanks to you and all my friends here.
 
BEBE has bloody Mary's in the club car for us all, thank the lord.

And MICHAEL said someone mentioned pie.
 
I hope it's PECAN with HOMEMADE VANILA ICE CREAM.

Seems like today started off with a Bloody Mary Mornin' .......  I hope it got better for y'all as the day went on .......  It is strange that of all the Legends and Folkloric Stories about Bloody Mary, and who she was (Real or Imagined) Unless one is somewhere way out in the Pacific the Stories of Bloody Mary, the Queen on Bali Hi never come up ... First I ever heard of Bloody Mary she was sposta be a Comic Strip Character named, Mary Worth, who was known on the Streets as Apple Mary ... Seems that each day she would sell an Apple to Judge Crater, and remind him to call his office, because someone was looking for him ...

Comic Strip never said whether or not Judge Crater was found, Apple Mary just didn't show up one day ... the scruffy little Wire Haired Terrier that followed her around all the time was seen sitting with his back against the building for a couple of years after she stopped showing up, right on the corner where Apple Mary would stand hawking her Apples, rain or shine ....... (She'd prolly had better business if she'd been selling Bloody Marys) Not sure if Judge Crater was ever seen again ... and ya know ... Apple Mary was the only person who knew the True identity of, The Whistler ... a character who excited Radio and Saturday Morning Serial Fans at the Orpheum for eight years before either George Sanders or Flip Wilson were doing, The Shadow .......

Just now I got a Flash ... Louise Beavers as Bloody Mary, in a Tropical setting but I'll be dipped if I can remember the name of the Picture ... but what the hell ... Ms. Beavers' biggest claim to fame was that she once flipped Hot Cakes for a woman who bathed every day in Milk, and was dating Marc Antony .......

Luck would have it that a chorus and a lynch mob are both examples of the same dynamic....yikes...AND THAT IS WHY all the Hot Dog condiments are serve yourself, at the buffet table,along with the aforementioned cold slaw,potato salad, (and yes,potatoe salad for you that want it)and chips...fries are on the hot table, with the German potato salad with caraway and Kraut, and the "mixins' for the Bloody's are next to the ice bucket,:sausages,shrimps,celery,cheese,oyster or clam,pickle spear,pickled asparagus,olives of all kinds,and ....your choice of snood    (that is a shot of beer, for Y'All that don't come from here)...And, there will be Monk,and Bird, and Gillespie,and Brubeck,and Manhattan Transfer,and more....

....and Girl Scout cookies and tea for the ice cream set

Jalopkin:  I'm not offended.
 
I think the woman in the milk bath with Marc Anthony is J.LO. 

JULIA:  That was a Gaffe' on a 1934 Film called,  THE SIGN OF THE CROSS ... And Cleopatra was played by a very young, very naked Claudette Colbert  ... and in a later Film, the Original IMITATION OF LIFE that Starred Colbert, Louise Beavers who was damned near a Dead Ringer for Hattie McDaniels, played Colbert's Maid/eventual Partner ... in the Hot Cake Business ... I was kinda mixing the stuff around, just to mess with you .......

The premise of the lead-in, which is that Greece is sinking into socialism and that this is the cause of its financial troubles is nothing if not plain wrong. Greece has a problem with hyperendemic corruption, and its deficits are frothy manifestations of this core problem. For a political party in Europe to have the adjective "socialist" associated with carries nowhere the gravitas of such a label in the U.S. Greece's biggest problem is that it is having great difficulty selling government bonds. These are fetching so little at auction as to push interest rates to 6-7%. Italy is ripe for such a crisis as well based on current economic conditions.

Maybe ... that is what happened to Atlantis .......

Vbaker220 ~ I have the same request for a variety of inseams and hem lengths in the women's things, too, but for the opposite reason. I can't bring myself to pay so much for elegant attire and then chop 4" off the bottom.   
 
Triston Cambridge and Rhyselle ~ I, too, am ticked off by everything both of you mentioned and I have given up trying to score any pictures in the photo contest, in disgust.  
 
Rhyselle ~ I did see your beautiful sunflower photo. Where did you take it? I saw some fields of sunflowers in Italy and loved them so much I painted my kitchen in their cheery sunshiny yellow. Just like Tommy Typical stated yesterday, they are so like big smiling faces.
 
Dancingkatz, Peter Lake, Tig Dupre, and JALOPKIN ~ Thank you for your comments about the military. I believe we would all be better off if everyone was required to do a term of duty; to serve, protect and defend this country that so many US citizens simply take for granted. A different perspective is what my lawmakers and most of my neighbors need...
 
korthal ~ I do hope things start going your way soon.