This robot is just too much fun. Thanks for helping me prepare my arguements to the moonbats in the real world, Sean Gleeson - or just have a good laugh at their expense! :D
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Connor: Now you will receive us.
Murphy: We do not ask for your poor, or your hungry.
Connor: We do not want your tired and sick.
Murphy: It is your corrupt we claim.
Connor: It is your evil that will be sought by us.
Murphy: With every breath, we shall hunt them down.
Connor: Each day we will spill their blood, 'til it rains down from the skies.
Murphy: Do not kill. Do not rape. Do not steal. These are principles which every man of every faith can embrace.
Connor: These are not polite suggestions, these are codes of behavior, and those of you that ignore them will pay the dearest cost.
Murphy: There are varying degrees of evil. We urge you lesser forms of filth, not to push the bounds and cross over, in to true corruption, into our domain.
Connor: For if you do, one day you will look behind you and you will see we three, and on that day you will reap it.
Murphy: And we will send you to whatever god you wish.
- The Boondock Saints
Yes, I am slightly obsessive / compulsive. Why do you ask?
Been busy lately. Had a lot of work done on the house lately. Since March, we’ve done siding, windows, finished the bathroom, painted the kitchen, painted the trim outside, painted the porch (inside), cleaned out the bedroom that was used for storage of big cardboard boxes, moved the existing bed into newly cleaned bedroom, stained the faux wood windows inside, and replaced the carpet in the basement. We’ve also bought a new bed, coffee maker (mine died) and bean grinder (‘cuz it looked good with the matching coffee maker) HDWS TV, DVD player (actually, we went through three of them due to defectiveness), surround sound speakers and entertainment center to hold all the stuff. Just doing our part to stimulate the economy.
We bought one of those sleep number beds and at first I was worried that we wasted our money on something that was terribly uncomfortable. Hubster loved it immediately, but then again, the man can sleep through a nuclear holocaust. Besides, I think he was just happy that he was no longer being poked by the down feathers on the feather bed we bought to extend the life of our existing mattress. (Note: Never ever ever skimp on a bed. We bought one of those name brand knock offs and it only lasted a year.) I, on the other hand, am one of those “princess and pea” type sleepers. I wake up to the sound of the cat licking itself two floors down. So, the first night with the new bed, I realized the air tank part of the mattress seemed to be on a weird angle that made it feel as if I were being rolled out of bed all night. It was annoying. But I decided to give the damn thing a chance, after adjusting the numbers (air pressure) and now, I sleep like a rock. Of course that could be due to sheer exhaustion after sleeping on a crap mattress after 8 years. My only real complaint is the memory foam pillow top. It reflects body heat really well. That will help in the winter, but in the summer, it really kind of sucks waking up drenched in sweat - even with the air conditioner on. Was that too much personal information?
Guess what?!?!?!? It appears the president has to pee. Now let’s get on with some real news.
My mom forced me (by gun point – I thought liberals were anti-gun… ok, kidding, there were no guns, it just felt that way as she has the insane catholic school theacher / mother / vice principal glare down to a science. The woman still scares me) to go out with her and help her purchase a new computer. Sounds easy enough, right? Right… no, not in the least. The last computer she bought was a 486 with 4 MB ram. Naturally, after loading Windoze on it, the thing was virtually unusable. She has been looking for a new one ever since… yes, for 10 years there has been this never ending dialog about buying a new computer. My father has been arguing that they were never buying another one because of how soon the first one went all obsolete on their asses. I usually keep my mouth shut during these diatribes because I all ready know how it’s going to end. My mother is going to nag my father almost to death, and then he will give in. It’s worked that way for 45 years, I see no reason for them to change it now.
Anyway, I am relieved to say that the purchase was successful. She picks up her pre-loaded computer tomorrow night. It’s a HP. That’s all I am saying about that. Someone I know should be expecting many a support call because my mother never believes that I know what I am talking about. Also, I told her that I refuse to help her out in any way if she loads AOHell on the system. I know she will try to sneak it past me. I have a feeling that I will be required to set up the computer for her when she brings it home.
I have also been busy reading. I have just recently discovered The Inheritance Trilogy (even though only the first two books have been written.) I really enjoyed the first two books and recommend them to anyone who enjoyed Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. It’s not the great literary work of Tolkien, but considering the author’s age, it is still damn impressive.
I also watched a couple movies this weekend. The Exorcism of Emily Rose, which, considering a lot of the crap that is found in the horror genre these days, this one was better than most. It’s been described as Law and Order meets the Exorcist, but really the horror aspects of the film were not gory, which in my humble opinion, is refreshing. It was slightly creepy and it made me think about the possibilities of possession and higher powers. Being raised Catholic, I always believed in the existence of demons, and even though I have fallen way from the church, I still believe that there are paranormal aspects to life that we don’t fully understand.
The Boondock Saints was a good story speaking to the immorality of the indifference of men. It was also very amusing. Besides, give me a hot guy with a good irish brogue, and I am all about paying attention. Seriously, as long as you don’t mind violence (it wasn’t overly gory either) directed towards real criminals – it’s a good flick.
Million Dollar Baby – it won awards for a reason. It’s a three to four Kleenex box movie. And it was very sad on many levels, not the least of which is seeing how very old Clint is. By the way Clint, if you are going to do the sign of the cross in a movie, at least know how it is supposed to be done. It’s a little thing, but it’s easy to remedy. Only rent this if you are looking for a good cry.
We received a call from our credit card company today, asking us if we had moved to Nepal and bought over $6000 dollars worth of jewelry. Hubster sort of suspect that I may have suddenly sprouted a “sparkly” addiction, but then he had to concede that I haven’t been to Nepal. I am just glad it’s one of those companies that covers that kind of thing. Which is the important message part of this entry. Protect your information, get credit cards that have limits on them and are protected from theft, and never order on a site that doesn’t have any security. Also, remember that even the secure sites get hacked. Protect yourselves.
Oh, and by the way... .AAAAARRRRRRRRRR!!! Avast! Ahoy! You scurvy dogs, get to scrubbing the mast, a 'fore I makes ya walk da plank!!!!! Aaaarrrrr!!!
Move along
Ben Stein says "Get off His Back!"
Excerpt:
Why is it that the snipers who shot at emergency rescuers trying to save people in hospitals and shelters are never mentioned except in passing, and Mr. Bush, who is turning over heaven and earth to rescue the victims of the storm, is endlessly vilified?
What church does Rev. Al Sharpton belong to that believes in passing blame and singling out people by race for opprobrium and hate?
What special abilities does the media have for deciding how much blame goes to the federal government as opposed to the city government of New Orleans for the aftereffects of Katrina?
If able-bodied people refuse to obey a mandatory evacuation order for a city, have they not assumed the risk that ill effects will happen to them?
When the city government simply ignores its own sick and hospitalized and elderly people in its evacuation order, is Mr. Bush to blame for that?
Is there any problem in the world that is not Mr. Bush's fault, or have we reverted to a belief in a sort of witchcraft where we credit a mortal man with the ability to create terrifying storms and every other kind of ill wind?
Where did the idea come from that salvation comes from hatred and criticism and mockery instead of love and co-operation?
Go read the whole thing.
TOTH to : Little Green Footballs
The thing that has bothered me the most about all the reports coming out of New Orleans was how widely divergent they were. I am still trying to make sense of it.
In the meantime, check out Dan Kauffman's post on neighbors and how well you know them.
Also, I meant to post this earlier this week - I pretty much agree with Foamy on this. It's not family or work friendly... matter of fact there is a good amount of F-Bomb dropage. I felt the same way though about the stupid assed people that I saw on TV the last week. Hat tip to Owlish Mutterings and thanks for providing me with some dark humor.
Update: Politickal has issued his Fatwa on NBC for the idiotic remarks by Kayne West. Being as I believe in Freedom of Speech and the ability for someone to make a total asshat out of themselves on network TV pushing some asinine political agenda while other people are trying to concentrate on actually helping others by raising money (and Celine Dion, you are another such moron) let ‘em talk. They are making it harder and harder to take them seriously. I saw the clip, and as I mentioned in Politikal’s comments, I laughed my butt off. Mr. West came across as almost mindless when he was making his speech. Like his brain was being taken over by Michael Moore and Kayne didn’t actually have any clue what was going on. It even seemed as if Mike Myers wasn’t paying any attention until the “George Bush doesn’t care about black people.” And even then it looked like it took a few seconds to sink in… It really looked like a Saturday Night Live sketch, thereby making it impossible to take seriously.
First things first – Does anyone know where I would go to donate clothes? I’m afraid that if I drop them off at the local Salvation Army, they will just be tagged and sold in the store. People need these clothes more than SA needs to sell them… or am I being foolish? These clothes are in fabulous condition (mostly because I grew too much girth wise after quitting smoking that I’ve probably only worn some of them once.)
Now on to the blame game… which every thing seems to de-evolve to eventually (all though I was hoping perhaps instead of throwing blame around there would be more constructive uses of one’s time at least until every one was evacuated… I’m such an idealist sometimes) let me start out with the very first person to land in the blame chain.
1.The whiny weasels accountability deficient asshats – your favorite mayor and mine - Mayor Nagin. Two days ago he was decrying the Federal Governments response in the wake of the flooding on New Orleans and the vile conditions of the Superdome. Ok, asshats, pop quiz: Who was responsible for telling the people that couldn’t get out of the city to go to the Superdome? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller? Well, according to your very own Emergency Preparedness guide, it is your job to:
a. Inform citizens of the hazards they face.
b. Provide guidance in preparing their own individual emergency plan..
c. Advise them of the proper procedure needed to be followed in the event of an emergency.
So, there is a very good chance that you told the people of the city that you are the Mayor of to go to the Superdome, if they couldn’t find transportation out of the city on their own, or they couldn’t be moved for whatever reason. (Actually, I know this is true, I just cannot find the link to the article which describes what actual emergency planning you had done. Oh… wait, here it is - if no other alternative is available, to immediately move to one of the facilities within the City that will be designated as refuges of last resort.) Here’s the thing – it’s your city – it’s your responsibility to care for the people of the city that are in “one of the facilities within the City that will be designated as refuges of last resort.” I am assuming that you chose specific facilities for a reason, therefore it was your responsibility to make sure that those facilities had the adequate resources to care for these people for a short period of time, say 3-5 days. But the very sad and unfortunate fact of the matter was that you WERE NOT PREPARED. Suck it up buddy and take responsibility for your complete and utter lack of useful preparation.
Also, while you are doing your useless wailing, gnashing of teeth against the federal government – let’s just take another look at another section of Emergency planning, shall we?
“Under the direction of the Mayor, the Office of Emergency Preparedness will coordinate activities in accordance with the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan to assure the coordination of training programs for all planning, support, and response agencies. Departments, authorities, agencies, municipalities, and all private response organizations bear the responsibility of ensuring their personnel are sufficiently trained.”
That includes you, asshat. How many people are dead because of your piss poor planning? Why didn't you find some means for evacuating the poorer sections of New Orleans? Why wasn’t there sufficient food and water at the city designated facilities? Why were there no alternative means of disposing of human waste in case of flooding? I mean, the city is surrounded by water, and under sea level, so one would think that it would be taken into account? Right?
Now, perhaps I am being unfair to the poor harried Mayor. So, moving up the blame chain, let's go after the
2. Governor, just to be fair. Now, I have checked out some of "The Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness" website, and I really can't complain too much on her planning efforts, and I haven't heard her whine that the feds didn't move fast enough. My biggest contention with her is that when she saw the Mayor not handling the situation - she should have stepped in. Also, according to "Southeast Louisiana Hurricane Evacuation and Sheltering Plan " found here, it mentions:
a. Put EOC on 24-hour operations.
b. Mobilize parish/local transportation to assist persons who
lack transportation or who have mobility problems.
c. Announce the location of staging areas for people who need
transportation. Public transportation will concentrate on
moving people from the staging areas to safety in host
parishes with priority given to people with special needs.
I didn't see a heck of a lot of "Mobilization of parish/local transportation" to those risk parishes. I also didn't see any state police involvement when the situation spiraled down into chaos in New Orleans, which became worse when
the local police walked away from their jobs. They not longer felt New Orleans was worth dying for - and I really can't blame them, much. All the odds were stacked against them and survival was looking slim. But I was lead to understand that was what a cop's life was. But since I wasn't there, I will reserve judgement on them.
3. The looters. It doesn’t matter what your skin color is, if you were stealing TVs, Jewels, CDs, or any other non-life maintenance item, you are a thief. Lucky for you we no longer live in the days of our forefathers. After a hurricane ravaged Galveston, Texas in 1990; “Looters found despoiling the dead were stood against the nearest wall or pile of debris and shot without hindrance of a trial.” -Dallas News, September 14, 1900
Hat tip: readers over at LGF.
By the way, jackoffs, shooting at rescue vechicals trying to evacuate your neighbors – that make you attempted murderers. I hope that the snipers, rapists, thieves, pyros all catch some horrible disease while they are wading around in sewer waters. May it be painful, slow and horrible. You are the worst that humanity has to offer.
To those “looting” for food, water, diapers and other hygiene supplies, no one blames you. I cannot even imagine the horror you must have lived through.
4. The next round of heaping blame goes to those idiots that could have left town and decided to chance it. Now, I am not talking about the poor folk that couldn't get away... I am talking about those idiots that stayed because they wanted to, they couldn't be inconvenienced. Instead, now you have to inconvenience everyone else to shuttle your ass out of there, making the job of shuttle the survivors out more difficult.
5. Finally, the federal government. I am not just talking about the Commander in Chief here. I am talking about all those legislature that chose to remain on vacation until Thursday. Why didn't anyone of them see the need to cut their vacations short until that point? Did this catastrophe have to spiral so out of control before you got off your asses and did something? This wasn’t just New Orleans that was flooding, but entire towns that were destroyed. Where were you, duly elected representatives?
I’m running out of steam here, but there is blame to be laid at the feet of FEMA and the president as well, just not the bullshit that the Morons are shoveling. I do agree, they needed to move faster, with more resources. And I am afraid that this nation will continue to pay for these mistakes, in lives and dollars. Let’s not just rehash the mistakes, but learn from them.
Just keep one thing in mind, a fact that a lot of elected officials seem to neglect - while many of you are playing the blame game, there are a lot of American (and world) citizens that are actually helping. We have, as a country, never faced this kind of devastation before. I had some hope at some point we can stop playing politics, and actually come together to rebuild – because that is the country that I love. But I don’t really have much hope left.
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.
(The Hollow Men by T.S. Eliot, Part V.)
Update: Committees of Correspondence makes my point for me, as well as points out some of the more obvious means of transportation for those without means...
Now how do I get that trackback thingy to work again?
If anyone is still having a hard time wrapping their mind around what is going on in New Orleans- here's some before and after pictures. This brings it home.*
I cannot even begin to imagine what that must be like.
Instapundit has a fabulous list of charities.
Michell Malkin has more charities, and a dollar amount for money that has all ready been raised.
The Truth Laid Bear also lists many charities and is hosting a blog burst today.
Wonder who has been giving? Chuck Simmins is keeping an ongoing tally.
Want to know where a loved one is in the affected area? Katrina Finder may be able to help out.
Gas Gouging facts. Please don't beat up on the gas station attendents, the employees have little to do with it. If you suspect gouging, take the name of the station down, the prices that are in effect for all fuel grades and report them.
AAA has some handy dandy numbers to go by. Listings includes National, State and local averages. If you are uncertain if perhaps you may be over reacting, check this source out.
*Tip O' the Hat to fellow ISN'er: Joe Alias.
If you are afraid your town, city, village, parish, whatever is suffering from some greedy asshats looking to exploit the tragedies of Katrina, check these out:
Gas Gouging facts. Please don't beat up on the gas station attendents, the employees have little to do with it. If you suspect gouging, take the name of the station down, the prices that are in effect for all fuel grades and report them.
AAA has some handy dandy numbers to go by. Listings includes National, State and local averages. If you are uncertain if perhaps you may be over reacting, check this source out.
I know I said that I was tired of hearing people bitch about the high cost of fuel, and I still stand by that stance, but protecting others with solid information is not whinging... it's a public service announcement. There is good and bad all over the world, and I know that some would take advantage of this situation. Information is the best way to prepare.
And because I don't know how to sticky my entries, here is a repeat of charitable information:
Instapundit has a fabulous list of charities.
Michell Malkin has more charities, and a dollar amount for money that has all ready been raised.
The Truth Laid Bear also lists many charities and is hosting a blog burst today.
Wonder who has been giving? Chuck Simmins is keeping an ongoing tally.
Want to know where a loved one is in the affected area? Katrina Finder may be able to help out.
Remember to tell your loved ones what they mean to you tonight, and keep those poor souls still stuck in New Orleans in your prayers, as well as the other folk suffering from the fallout of Katrina in Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida and the rest of Louisiana - and count your blessings. I know that I have been for the last few days.
Instapundit has a fabulous list of charities.
Michell Malkin has more charities, and a dollar amount for money that has all ready been raised.
The Truth Laid Bear also lists many charities and is hosting a blog burst today.
Wonder who has been giving? Chuck Simmins is keeping an ongoing tally.
Update:Want to know where a loved one is in the affected area? Katrina Finder may be able to help out.
And those who were wondering where the global relief was? Relief is on it's way.
That's all I got for ya. My thoughts and prayers going out to all those families that have lost so very much.