Watering Hole – Monday, July 11, 2011 – All You Fascist…

A few supporters of fascism:

• Governor Rick Snyder – denying the democratic process is fascism.
• Governor Scott Walker – union busting is fascism.
• Governor Rick Perry – secession is treason.

I could go on and on and on with a list of teabagger names and I’m sure that you could add names to the above list, too.  When Republicans are in the majority, they rule like fascists.

“This machine kills fascists”.

The “whites only” club is gearing up for 2012.  David Duke is touring 25 states to “explore how much support he can garner for a potential presidential run”.  I say, “run David, run”.  Let’s bring ALL the hatred to for forefront.  No more sneaking around behind the scenes and creating chaos.

Former (and current) Neo Nazis, Ku Klux Klan members, neo-Confederates, and other representatives of the many wings of the “white nationalist” movement are starting to file paperwork and print campaign literature for offices large and small, pointing to rising unemployment, four years with an African-American president, and rampant illegal immigration as part of a growing mound of evidence that white people need to take a stand.

Yes, indeed.  An African-American president is the cause of all of our unhappiness. What our nation needs is to return complete power to white men and then everything will as it should be.  This also means that women along with people of color, MUST lose their right to vote. Women better head back to their homes and be subservient to their husbands.  As for the blacks, then need to get their dupas (butts) back into the fields.  There’s crops that need picking.(sarcasm)

Not all fascists are racists.  All racists are fascists.

This is our Open Thread.  Do you have names and stories to add to the list?  If you do, Speak Up.  Even if you don’t, Speak Up.  If you have the time, check out more of the threads on this page.

Sunday Roast: The Common Cold

Aaaaaa-CHOOO!!

There’s just never a good time to get a cold, is there?  Even if you really don’t have much going on, getting a cold is not near the top of things to do.

When you have a cold (or any other virus or disease), your body becomes a battle ground.  This is why we feel so crappy!  The immune system is fighting a battle to the death with viral invaders, and we do our best to get on with life and deny anything is happening — while we share our lovely cold with people all around us.  Srsly, don’t do that.

There are four basic stages of a cold:

Stage 1: Inflammation
The first stage of a cold or flu is all about inflammation. Everything is hot and dry. Inflammation occurs as your immune system mounts an attack against the invading virus.

You feel feverish, your throat is sore, you’re thirsty and cranky — stay home with your tea and toast!  If you take medication, your cold will last about seven days, if you don’t, it will last about a week.  I don’t bother with it, since I think the body should be allowed to have its war, and get it over with.

Stage 2: Mucous
At this stage of a cold you are always left wondering how such a small body part can produce so much mucous. The mucous at this stage is clear and runny, and there is usually lots of it.

I’m familiar with this stage right now, and the snot is epic.  No decongestants!  For heaven’s sake, you want the snot on the outside, not withering on this inside.  Treat yourself to soft tissues and chicken soup with a dash of cayenne.  You’ll be glad you did…like I am.

Stage 3: Congestion
Mucous becomes thick and changes colour from the clear to white of stage 2 to yellow or green. As the bacteria that usually live in the nose grow back, they change the mucus to a greenish colour. This is normal.

This is the stage where the snot becomes boogers.  That’s highly technical mom-speak, so if you need translation, just let me know.  Keep drinking lots of warm liquids to keep things flowing (remember, better out than in), and don’t do that thing where you blow your nose and then look at it — that is just gross.

And finally…

Stage 4: Convalescence and Recovery
Convalescence and recovery while not a true stage of colds and flu is a valuable art that we have lost as a society.

Your body literally fights a war each time you have a cold and allowing some time at the end of the infection for your body to clean up the mess and repair the damage can mean the difference between another cold next month or next year.

Convalescence is very simple, all it involves is a few extra days of ‘quiet time’ (don’t schedule in any extra curricular activities), early nights and nutritious foods. You may resume exercise but don’t overdo it, intense exercise has a temporary suppressant effect on your immune system. A long walk is far better at this stage than an intense exercise session at the gym or a run.

Take it easy!  What’s the matter with you?  Your body has been a war zone, and you won.  You want to be sick again?  Fine, get your own chicken soup, and leave my cayenne and soft tissues alone.  *grump*

This is our daily open thread — I just gave you cooties!

The Watering Hole: July 9 – Photography

This is a repeat of the subject from a prior thread. I repeat it because not all critters may have seen it:

Photographer to the Tsar: Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii

I read about this guy somewhere and was immediately intrigued. I think that it was from an article in the NY Times. This photo is entitled: The Emir of Bukhara

If you want to see more of these color renditions from Tsarist Russia some more beautiful then others, try this site.

For a look into the process used, look here.

This is our Open Thread. Please feel free to present your thoughts on any topic that comes to mind.

Music Night — Pinch-hitter edition

Knock yourselves out, Zoosters.  :)

The Watering Hole: July 8 — Soap

I’m not sure why, but since yesterday’s post by Walt regarding bathroom tissue, I’ve been wanting…no, needing to wash my hands.  Might have been the sticks…

The earliest recorded evidence of the production of soap-like materials dates back to around 2800 BC in Ancient Babylon.  In the reign of Nabonidus (556-539 BCE) a recipe for soap consisted of uḥulu [ashes], cypress [oil] and sesame [seed oil] “for washing the stones for the servant girls”.  A formula for soap consisting of water, alkali, and cassia oil was written on a Babylonian clay tablet around 2200 BC.

I’ve always been fascinated by soap-making…

I think I’ll try it one of these days!

This is our daily open thread — srsly, don’t you feel better
now that your hands are clean?

The Watering Hole: July 7 – Bathroom Tissue

Cleansing instruments used in lieu of bathroom tissue from the Nara period (710 to 784) in Japan. This illustrates why the Samurai (侍) were so tough.

Image is courtesy of Chris 73 via Wikipedia.

The first written reference to bathroom tissue is from the writings of Yan Zhitui dated to 589 CE in China. This was not recognized as good hygene by visitors tp that country from the Middle East and Europe where washing with water (Using the left hand for the task.) was the vogue. The bidet was to follow. Many materials, yes, including corn cobs, were used to remove the offensive material from ones person.

Mass production of bathroom tissue commenced in the United States during the mid 19th century CE.

Today, we take the product for granted.

For the straight poop on the subject, look here.

This is our Open Thread. Please feel free to present your thoughts on any topic that comes to mind.

Oh My Aching Back

Georgia has put tough immigration laws into effect and as a result, many immigrants, both legal and illegal, are refusing to work in the fields picking crops.  It is estimated that up to 40% of Georgia’s produce will be left to rot in the fields.

The governor of Georgia created a plan to help with the labor shortage.  Probationers are encouraged to work in the fields.  Unfortunately, it is not working out so well for the growers as these new workers quit half way through the day.  Productivity is low and is not sufficient to complete the harvest.

Mendez put the probationers to the test last Wednesday, assigning them to fill one truck and a Latino crew to a second truck. The Latinos picked six truckloads of cucumbers compared to one truckload and four bins for the probationers.

“It’s not going to work,” Mendez said. “No way. If I’m going to depend on the probation people, I’m never going to get the crops up.”

Conditions in the field are bruising, and the probationers didn’t seem to know what to expect. Cucumber plants hug the ground, forcing the workers to bend over, push aside the large leaves and pull them from the vine. Unlike the Mexican and Guatemalan workers, the probationers didn’t wear gloves to protect their hands from the small but prickly thorns on the vines and sandpaper-rough leaves.

Be careful what you wish for.

The Watering Hole, Wednesday, July 6, 2011: Harrumph Day

An argument has been put forth that the 14th Amendment allows the President to continue to pay the country’s bills even after the debt limit has been reached. The relevant portion of the 14th Amendment states:

The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.

This was, in the context of the Civil War, an affirmation of the debts incurred by the North, and a repudiation of the debts incurred by the South. It was saying to the countries and businesses that backed the South that they backed the wrong horse, and would not be reimbursed. It also told those that previously owned slaves that they would not be compensated for their loss of “property.”

But does this grant the President the power to continue issueing checks when Congress has prohibited the government from borrowing funds to cover the checks?

No.

Article I, Section 8 states the Congress shall have the power to borrow money on the credit of the United States. The Congress. Not the President. So, when the government has borrowed all that Congress has allowed, it can borrow no more. Government spending is automatically capped at the same level of government income. The President lacks the authority to incurr any additional debt.

Thus the 14th Amendment’s reaffirmation of the validity of the debts of the United States is not in conflict with the Article I, Section 8′s granting of authorty to Congress to create the debt in the first place.

This is our Open Thread. If you have an ox to gore, an ax to grind, a beef of any sort, or just want to gripe about he tripe in the lame-stream media, you’ve found the right place. If you have words of wit and wisdom, love and beauty, prose or poetry you wish to share, you’ve found the right place. During the day there may be other tidbits appearing below this thread. Just go see, or you might miss it.

The Watering Hole: July 5th – Figures

So, it’s not ok to have a beer (or several) and use a car. I agree. But to have a beer (or several) and pack a gun? No big deal:

Reuters

Ohio Republican Governor John Kasich on Thursday signed into law a bill that allows gun owners in the state to carry concealed weapons into bars and other places where alcohol is served.

I like the part where it says the Cincinatti Bengals will continue to ban weapons in the stadium…

This is our Open Thread. Just get going, you know what to do. And during the day there may be other tidbits appearing below this thread. Just go see, or you might miss it.

Hail, Hail, America

Lyrics by Insidiousprophet and posted with permission.

Hail, hail America,
Land of such greed,
Owned by corporations,
The bankers and Wall Street….

Unemployment in the millions,
Our jobs shipped overseas,
Wage war on the middle class,
The homeless fill the streets….

Represent the lobbyists,
Bailing out the banks,
Throw money at the war machine,
To wage war instead of peace….

Hail, hail America,
Land of the deceived,
Send our troops to foreign lands,
To die for corporate greed….

Tax cuts for the wealthy,
Austerity for the rest,
Pushed to the brink of poverty,
They cry out in protest….

Citizens united,
Death to democracy,
The black robes have decided,
The fascists smile with glee….

Hail, hail America….
Hail, hail America….
Hail, hail America….
Hail, hail America….

Watering Hole – July 4, 2011 – Independence Day

I have been contemplating several ideas for today’s “Open Thread”.  My thoughts started with the re-writing of the history of our nation.  Should I focus on Sarah Palin’s poor knowledge of the birth of our nation when she claimed that Paul Revere rode a horse, while ringing bells and firing a musket and telling the British that they couldn’t take our guns from us?  Or is Michele Bachmann’s revisionist history more interesting when she insisted that nine year old John Quincy Adam was a “Founding Father” and that Lexington and Concord were located in New Hampshire?  Instead,  I decided to focus on our national anthem.

Why does the United States have a boring war song as its national anthem?  First of all, most people can’t reach all the notes when singing the song.  Secondly, the melody is depressing.  And thirdly, it is uninspiring and unexciting and it doesn’t evoke patriotism or the love of one’s nation.  Here are some other choices. Just look at the excitement and joy in the crowd.

My personal favorite is Stars and Stripes Forever.  Here’s a link to the lyrics.  And a link to information about John Phillip Sousa.  I have a little personal connection to the “March King”.

This is our Open Thread.  Do you have a favorite patriotic song or other ideas?  Here is a chance to Speak Up!  And if you have the time, be sure to scroll down the page or the side bar and look for other new and exciting posts.  One more thing… the teabaggers and the Republicans do NOT own the flag.  It is our flag, too.  So they can go…

Sunday Roast: Foodie post!

Mmmmm...

It’s been a LONG time since our last foodie post, so I thought it high time we get on the subject.

Roasted chicken is one of my all-time favorites, and you can’t hardly mess it up, unless you cook it too long.

What are your favorites?

This is our daily open thread — mind the drooling.

President Obama’s Weekly Address: Cutting the Deficit and Creating Jobs

 

The Watering Hole: July 2 – La Amistad

On July 2, 1839, Sengbe Pieh led captives being transported aboard La Amistad from Havana in a revolt against the ship’s crew. The captives had found an old file and freed themselves. They climbed to the main deck and armed with knives, fashioned from cane, gained control of the ship and then demanded to be returned to Africa. They sailed north along the United States coast to the tip of Long Island where the United States Revenue Cutter Service intercepted the ship and took it and its occupants to New Haven for trial.

The case ultimately reached the US Supreme Court, which ruled in 1841 that the Africans had been illegally taken as slaves for trade in the American South and ordered them freed. The captive ‘slaves’ returned to their native Africa in 1842.

Spain and Cuba frowned on the way the incident was handled but this represents a high point in United States law. Twenty-two more years passed before slavery was made illegal in the United States. It took about 100 more years for the descendants of the trade to realize a semblance of true freedom. That process is still in motion.

This is our Open Thread. Please feel free to present your thoughts on any topic that comes to mind.

Time to rock und roll, Music Night July 1, 2011

The Donnas–not a novelty act, but a very hard rocking band that happens to be all women. One of them is a killer guitar player.

What? I can’t share The Donnas? So much for punk.

That’s OK. I also love The Cliks.

How many believe the GOP is interested in jobs for Americans? *crickets*

Created for TheZoo by Paul Jamiol
All cartoons are posted with the artists’ express permission to TPZoo.
Paul Jamiol, Jamiol’s World

New York is fabulous!!!

All cartoons are posted with the artists’ express permission to TPZoo.
Paul Jamiol, Jamiol’s World

Giddyup gramps, I’ve got a fundraiser to attend.

All cartoons are posted with the artists’ express permission to TPZoo.
Paul Jamiol, Jamiol’s World

Remember us? Hello?

All cartoons are posted with the artists’ express permission to TPZoo.
Paul Jamiol, Jamiol’s World

The Watering Hole: July 1 — Friday

Frigga Spinning the Clouds

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s Friday!  The end of a very long week…

The name Friday comes from the Old English Frīġedæġ, meaning the “day of Frige“. The same holds for Frīatag in Old High German, Freitag in Modern German and Vrijdag in Dutch.

The word “Friday” has various origins, but since my background (on my Mother’s side) is Dutch, The above is my favorite.  Plus, it comes with a pretty cool picture.

We’re programmed to think of Friday as the end of the week, but it isn’t so for many cultures:

In most countries with a five-day work week, Friday is the last workday before the weekend and is, therefore, viewed as a cause for celebration or relief (leading to the phrase “TGIF”, for “Thank God It’s Friday”). In recent years, in some offices, employees are allowed to wear less formal attire on Fridays, known as Casual Friday or Dress-Down Friday.

In Saudi Arabia and Iran, however, Friday is the last day of the weekend and Saturday is the first workday. In Iran, it is the only weekend day. Moreover, in some countries, Friday is the first day of the weekend, and Sunday is the first workday. In Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) and Kuwait, Friday was formerly the last day of the weekend while Saturday was the first workday. However, this was changed in Bahrain and the U.A.E. on 1 September 2006^[1] to Friday as the first day of the weekend and Sunday as the beginning of the workday, with Kuwait following on 1 September 2007.

It must be nice to be the King of Bahrain: Bummed by Friday being the last day of your royal weekends?  Dammit, change it so Friday is the first day of your weekend — you’re a King, for cripes sake.  I’m sure it’s made all the difference in the world…

The good thing about today, is that it’s the kick-off day for a long holiday weekend for you lucky working stiffs.  Me?  I thought yesterday was Friday, so I’m having seconds.  :)

This is our daily open thread — Relax and have a beer…for breakfast.