Friday, September 24, 2010

Some Things Friday for September 24, 2010

Well, the city utility workers are still working every single day. They are no longer in my yard, but out behind the back fence, their machines whirring loudly from 7:30am to about 6:00pm. I hate to think what it would be like if the Kroger store expansion was approved. Ugh.

  • Speaking of the Kroger expansion (from 50,000 sq ft to 123,000 sq ft, plus a 12-bay gas station and expanded parking lot to accommodate the 12,000 daily cars), Tom attended the planning commission meeting this past Monday evening to present our letter of opposition accompanied by over 4 dozen signatures he had gathered. The planning commission denied the expansion and Kroger has appealed to the city council, which will meet this coming Monday night. This is Kroger's third request in the last 10 years. Hint to Kroger: NO!! We have not changed our minds!

  • The movie "Waiting for Superman" premiered this week. Not here, of course, but in 'selected theaters.' It is a documentary about the failure of our public education. Since the American Federation of Teachers is up in arms over the conclusions drawn in the movie, I think it is safe to say, without seeing the film, that Davis Guggenheim lays the blame squarely with the education community...specifically teachers and teachers unions. I've heard Randi Weingarten (President of the AFT) speak in defense of educators' unions, claiming every contract provision the union fights for is for the benefit of the children. Bull. If that were the case, the library at my granddaughters' school would be open, manned by volunteer parents who actually CARE about their children's education. The school, like most across the country, are struggling financially and many teachers were laid off at the close of the school year last June. When students returned to school this fall, there weren't employees to work in the school library, so the school administration decided to close it. Immediately, parents came forward eager to volunteer to work in the library to keep it open. The teachers union stepped in and said no, because it was against their contract....which, of course, is always written to benefit the students. The library has remained closed. And, by the way, some of the most effective teachers were laid off because of their seniority instead of effectiveness. Nice work....


  • Well, the GOP has been working hard (I NEED a sarcasm font!!!) and has come up with what they call "A Pledge to America: A New Governing Agenda Built on the Priorities of Our Nation, the Principles We Stand For & America's Founding Values." You can download it HERE if you'd like to read it yourself. It's a 48-page PDF document, 26-pages of which are pretty pictures and titles. What's the meat? What are the specifics? There are none. Just generalities. I can tell you what ISN'T in it, thanks to David Corn @ Mother Jones, who so thoughtfully compiled this list:
    "Wall Street: 0
    Bank: 0
    Finance: 0
    Mortgage crisis: 0
    Derivative: 0
    Subprime: 0
    Lobbying: 0
    Lobbyist: 0
    K Street: 0
    Campaign finance: 0
    Campaign contribution: 0
    Campaign donation: 0
    Disclosure: 0
    Climate change: 0
    Environment: 1 ("political environment")
    Alternative energy: 0
    Renewable: 0
    Green: 0
    Transportation: 0
    Infrastructure: 0
    Poverty: 0
    Food: 0
    Food safety: 0
    Housing: 0
    Internet: 0
    Education: 0
    College: 0
    Reading: 0
    Science: 0
    Research: 0
    Technology: 0
    Bush administration: 0"
    In the immortal words of Gomer Pyle, Surprise, Surprise, Surprise.

    In addition, it looks as though our GOP members had some help with authoring the "Pledge." According to Sam Stein's investigative work, the document was authored by Brian Wild, who, up till April 2010, served as a lobbyist for some of the nation's most powerful oil, pharmaceutical, and insurance companies. Cue Gomer.

    So, I have a suggestion for the GOP members of Congress, including the Tan Man...why don't y'all start really working for a change instead of yakking about nothing in front of tv cameras all day long, signing off on 'Pledges' you don't write, making meaningless videos about the "Young Guns" in your party and golfing and/or frequenting tanning salons.

    You could, for example, start with passing the health care bill for 9/11 first responders that was defeated last month because 12 out of 15 of your members who actually CO-SPONSORED the bill, didn't even vote for it. Shameful!!

    Then you could begin working on the confirmation of the remaining 17 court judges President Obama has nominated. For a party that professes to be tough on crime, it's unconscionable to me to allow the courts to continue to be overburdened because they are merely understaffed simply because you want to make a "NO" statement. Very mature.

    And while you're at it, you could pass that bill for a tax credit for small businesses. Can you say "jobs"? I know you can.

    There is also the National Defense Appropriations Bill, aka "Don't Ask Don't Tell." It's not just about DADT. It's also about revamping military and foreign policy, provides more stringent requirements for private security contractors, approves the use of environmentally friendly and fuel-saving technologies in military motor vehicles and provides policies for improved care for our service members. Besides, a federal court has ruled that "Don't Ask Don't Tell" is unconstitutional (cue Gomer one more time)...so you lost in court, get over it, comply with the law and pass the damn bill!

    When you are done with that, I am sure we can find something else productive for you to do. While you are working on that other stuff, I'll start making a list. In the meantime, get off your fat, well-paid, well-fed, well-dressed, well-coiffed, well-insured asses and get to work, because, after all, THAT'S YOUR JOB!!


  • Okay, I got that off my chest. So what else is new? Nothing. Tom's work is still slow. We are squeaking by, but obviously luckier than many.

    It seems everyone...I mean EVERYONE...except me, is talking about football. Yawn.

    My ass is still as big as it was 2 weeks ago. That could be because I've only walked four times. Total slacker here.

    I'm not sure my food blog for the local newspaper is worth the time it takes to copy and paste it from my original food blog. I don't fry chicken, catfish or hush puppies. I don't make tacos with hamburger. My most popular post was about how to make bacon mayonnaise...and I did it as a joke. My readers took it seriously, tried it and loved it! Oh my. I am definitely barking up the wrong culinary tree.

    The county fair is in progress. We were going to go this afternoon until I read that the midway doesn't open until 6:00pm on Friday and Saturday. WTF??? It made me miss the San Diego County Fair (the 6th largest fair in the U.S.). HUGE. And everything is open...all at the same time...what a concept! We'll be staying home.


  • I'll finish with BREAKING NEWS!!: Lindsay Lohan goes to jail. Do not pass Go. Lose a turn. No lecture from the judge. Just jail time until October 22nd. In an interview, her dad expressed shock at the turn of events and blamed Lindsay's "mistake" on the company she keeps. Sorry, Daddy Lohan, but it's not the company, but rather one or all of the Big 3: what she snorts, inhales or swallows. So, poor Lindsay was led away from the hearing directly to jail...in the same clothes she wore to court! I think we can rest assured that the friendly jail intake person will find something more appropriate for her to wear...


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