Bush Changes In Welfare Work Requirements

The Bush Administration has now provided guidelines for what qualifies as work for those now or in the future who might currently receive money or other aid from participation in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program-commonly known as “welfare”.

From now on, you can no longer qualify for this program simply by reading the “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” to fulfill the necessary work requirements. Nor does bed rest count as qualification, which apparently is used in some states as a medical excuse, one which is apparently abused. Nor will you be able to meet the work requirements simply by running errands for friends.

In other words, the Bush Administration is saying that a good many states are abusing their privileges in setting guidelines as to what qualifies as work, and there is evidently a wide range across the states. In many, caring for an invalid family member qualifies as work. In many it does not. The Bush Administration guidelines is supposed to provide a comprehensive synchronized set of requirements for all the states, which is probably a good thing.

There can be little doubt that welfare, though well intentioned when first conceived, quickly became a boondoggle as well as, possibly, a vote buying scheme. It got worse throughout the years, and became for a long time one of the Repulican Partys favorite whipping tools against the Democrats, along with “crime on the streets”.

Thanks to Bill Clinton and The Republican Congress, who fought tooth and nail with each other over the scope of the welfare reforms which both promised to enact (Clintons version for the most part won out, though this conflict temproarily was at least partially responsible for the infamous government shut down of 1995), the welfare rolls have now shrunk from the then 4.4 million families receiving government assistance to now less than 2 million families.

As part of the new guidelines, ten different categories of work will now be defined. This will include on-the-job training and unsubsidized employment, in addition to community service. As it stands now, the difference in work requirements that exist state to state make if difficult to determine which states do a better job of phasing recipients back into full time employment.

Any state that fails to meet these new guidelines risk lossing up to five per cent of their funding. It needs to be higher, but at least this is a good start. The threat of funding cuts is probably the best incentive to insure that workers will work their asses off to help people phase off welfare-as oppossed to keeping them on it forever.

The DeSegregation Of Jesse Jackson

Jesse Jackson is trying to organize a rally in Louisville over the still divisive issue of school desegregation, calling for a ten thousand person rally to “urge” the US Supreme Court to allow the local school district to use race in student assignment. He is afraid that otherwise black students would be concentrated in low income schools that often have fewer resources.

He is also worried that an adverse ruling of the court could affect years of civil rights progress. He feels that failing to consider race as a factor it would “set back a whole century of work”.

The challenge due before the Supreme Court is based on a Louisville mothers challenge to the districts racial assignment guidelines. Though the guidelines allow for some choice among schools, it seeks through these guidelines to keep black enrollment between fifteen and fifty percent at most schools. However, in the lawsuit, the mother copmplains that her son was denied entrance into his own neighborhood school based solely on the fact that he was white. If true, this is atrocous.

There are two ways to solve this problem. One, make sure all schools have the funds they need to ensure quality education, regardless of their location. The second one is obvious, and that is, in order to assure a minimum percentage of black students at all schools in such a way as not to limit the rights of white residents to attend their own neighborhood schools, there should be some method to expand these schools whenever possible to allow for the increase in the student body, when or where that becomes a factor.

And this can be all be paid for in part by the process of ending the atrocious policy of bussing students across the city. This is a drain on economic resources, to say nothing of energy resources. They and all schools should also look into the possibility of closing schools up during the coldest parts of the year, in adition to the hottest periods, as a further way to cut energy costs.

Black students could still attend white schools, and both they and white sutdents could be given extra credit for voluntarily attending schools in diverse neighborhoods. For the student bodies at large, this would probably improve school performance, and discipline. How many kids actually feel like putting a lot of effort into school when in a lot of cases they spend anywhere from two hours or more just waitng for and riding busses?

The Miami Seven

In the middle of onslaughts by the Left against various aspects of the “War on Terror”, such as revelations about the tracking of Americans overseas banking transactions as reported by The New York Times, and the just ultimately successful challenges to the legitimacy of Guantanamo Bay and, more to the point, the Bush Administrations prosecutions of terror suspects (The Supreme Court just announced by a vote of 5-3 that the Bush Administration has overstepped it’s legal bounds and advised it to follow Geneva Conventions guidelines) comes yet another assault on the legitimacy of a recent terror arrest involving seven suspects in the Miami area.

These suspects are accussed of seeking to initiate an affiliation with Al-Queda for the purpose of carrying through a plan to blow up the Sears Tower in Chicago, as well as FBI headquarters in Miami. The left is screaming “entrapment”. They might have a small point, though on the other hand, this has been an ongoing tactic of Federal prosecutors in it’s on-going war against organzed crime. Carlos Marcello, the former head of the oldest Mafia family in the United States, from New Orleans, was brought down in this fashion as long ago as the late seventies or early nineteen eighties, to the objections of no one outside his own legal defense paramaters.

Politicans as well have fallen prey to this brand of “entrapment”, such as the not so awful distant Boptrot scandals that nearly decimated the populaton of the Kentucky Legislature. This as well raised no serious eyebrows. Not even the near entrapment of Al Sharpton, videotaped attemtping to arrange for the purchase of cocaine, caused much of a stir when the information was released (he explained that he was conducting his own “undercover operation” into the drug trafficking in his area.).

Some of the Bush Administration opponents are crying foul and even characterizing the seven suspects as mentally challenged, and as mere “kids”. Actually, their ages range from 22 to 32, and their leader is a self-described self-employed father of four children of his own.

Some have pointed out that, as frequenters of a “Temple”, they are not Muslims, as Muslims frequent mosques, not temples. But actually, and incidentally, these seven practiced a Moorish form of Islam, called “Mohammedanism”, they do refer to their house of worship as a “Temple” (though the true Temple officials of their area have evidently disavowed their actions), and they claim as their holy scriptures and basis for their beliefs the Qu’ran.

Not that that matters. They haven’t been arrested on the grounds that they are Muslims-or Mohammedans. They were arrested on the grounds that they willingly plotted to blow up the Sears Tower, and sought the weapons and finances in order to accomplish this goal, a goal which their leader seems to have proposed to the undercover agent, who claimed to have been an Al-Queda operative.

As for the charge of “entrapment”, even that isn’t necessarilly factual. The investigation of this group of seven was initiated after some area residents complained that they were intimidated by the group, who maintained a private headquarters in a warehouse, where they conducted exercises of some sort. The investigators were really just following through on a complaint, and what seems to be neighborhood tips.

Even at this, it must be stated that these seven men are suspects, they have only been accussed, not yet convicted, and should be given, if only technically, a presumption of innocence. There is always the possibility that the investigators involved did step outside the parameters of their duties. But that will be, after all, for a court to decide.

Responsibility And Response

What started out as a ploy to gain the release of Palestinian women and children from Israeli jails has turned into an “Oh shit what the fuck have we done” moment. Now, the kidapped soldier has been offerred to be returned, evidently unharmed, to the Israeli governemnt, which refused to give in to the ill-advised Hamas extortion scheme, out of the obvious and understandable fear that this would only encourage more and ever greater scenarios.

As it stands now, the Hamas governemnt is about one third shy of Parliament members and cabinet officials, this great a number currently under arrest by the Israeli military, who are now once more occupying Gaza, and readying plans for more excursions into the West Bank if they feel the need. Or maybe if they don’t.

I found it insufferably hypcritical that a Hamas leader tonight demanded that Israel be held accountable by the world community for it’s illegal actions. In the meatime, two other Israeli citizens have been kidnapped and executed, in retaliation for the Israeli response.

Nor is even Syrian President Assad, a Hamas supporter, immune from the Israeli response, as Israeli fighter jets have flown over his palace. In typical Syrian braggadoccio fashion, the Syria state run television services have reported that the Israeli jets were “run off” from the area. Yeah, right.

My advice to the Palestinians, not that they asked, is as follows-return the Israeli soldier, alive and unharmed. The next time he is seen, it would be helpful to your cause if he had a great big smile on his face.

Otherwise, folks-this could be the big one.

Weapons Of Choice

Kofi Annan has recently attempted to reassure those who might feel they have reason to be suspicous of his motives, and that of the UN, that the organizations attempts to instigate an international ban on weapons sales is not aimed at limiting or ending the right of various countries citizens to bear arms according to their ownnational laws. No, he insists, it is merely an attempt to rein in illegal weapons trafficking, to keep them out of the hands of criminals, and is aimed primarily at intrnational trafficking. Well, if that was all it is, I could agree to that-maybe. But, as usual, I want to read the fine print.

For one thing, just what constitutes a criminal in the eyes of the UN. If the US were to become a signatory to this treaty, would I be obliged to hand in my firearms, no longer allowed to purchase one or the ammunition for them, if I were convicted of, say, sptting on the sidewalk. Or jaywalking. Or any kind of traffic violation of varying degrees of seriousness.

This is not an attempt at humor, I ask this in all seriousness. Remember, the main reason that marijuana will probably never be legal in this coutnry is due to the fact that, back in the 1930’s, or thereabouts, the US signed various treaties which, for all I know, are still in effect, and are legally binding, at least technically so. The brainchild behind this was the man who went on to become the founding director of the DEA, which went on to become what is arguably the most corrupt government agency in United States history.

In other words, international treaties are legally binding, for a variety of reasons, having mainly to do with trade and other aspects of international relations, and have long term ramifications that are not easily reversed. That is why US citizens should be very concerned at the prospect of this coutnry entering into any kind of international agreement that contains too many words to fit onto both sides of one postcard. After all, the main body of a treaty can often lead to other incidental, additional details, being overlooked. But these incidental details, though supposedly minor in nature, are every bit as legally binding as any other part.

Kentucky Needs FutureGen

There are twelve sites in seven states that are in the running for the site of the FutureGen plant, which, when completed, promises to utilize clean technology to produce clean electrical energy from coal. Kentucky is in the running for one of these sites, and has a lot to offer. Easy access to the Kentucky coal mines, in addition to access to transportation by way of the Ohio and Mississipp Rivers.

Despite this, Kentucly may be a long shot, as the tax incentives that it offers to lure the compay only amount to about 2.4 million dollars in tax incentives in addition to 215 acres of free land. Considerable- until you consider, that is, that Ohios incentive package could total as high as 160 million dollars.

It would be a shame for Kentucky to lose out on this deal, which amounts to a one billion dollar project. This is not some sweat shop factory that might employee fifty people for a few years while it wrecks the environment, pays no taxes, and reserves the best jobs for a few people whose families have “pull”.

This is a job whose incentives would pay for themselves in a few years, would add long term high paying quality jobs and provide economic revitalization to the state, in addition to cheap sources of clean energy. Kentucky may not be able to match the tax incentives packages of Ohio and some other states, but it might not need to, given it’s other benefits, which are sorely lacking in other areas.

It could also help Kentucky reestablish that proud tradition that it lost during the Civil War, and has never regained-it’s place of honor as a state of advancement of civilization, one of whose cities, Lexington, was once known as the “Athens of The West”. A chance to be the homeplace of a needed advancement in science and technology in the area of overall national energy independence deserves more than just a little over two million dollars and some free land.

Criminal Insanity

A number of things have become all too clear over the last few years concerning The Communities of Oakwood. a Pulaski County Kentucky based facilitie for the housing and care of the mentally handicapped. To reside there you have to be, of course, mentally retarded or similarly disabled.

To work there, you have to be a fucking sadist.

Just over the last few months, the following events have transpired:

• For his birthday, a resident was taken to a strip club in Lexington, after which he was encouraged to engage in sexual intercourse.
• On a scheduled and approved fishing trip, one resident was beaten when he resisted leaving at the appointed time.
• Just recently, one resident was beaten, at least twice, by at least three employees of the facility-with a broomstick.

And overall there have been numerous other similar allegations of abuse, both physical and mental, of such a serious nature that the facility has been sanctioned and fined, and placed on extended periods of probation. As a state accredited institution, it has been forced through a change of ownership, yet all evidently to no avail.

You have to wonder just what all else goes on there that hasn’t yet been made known, or if it ever will. How many deaths there can be possibly attibuted at least in part if not wholly to some for of abuse and/or neglect. I would imagine it would be substantial, and all this points to an obvious lack of supervision. The state of Kentucky should hold these people accountable with more than just words and empty threats. Failing that, the state of Kentucky itself should be held accountable. But if fines, probation, and change of ownership won’t change the situation, then what will? Should the federal governemnt step in? Would that be any better,or even as good? Or shoud lthe place just be shut down?

The obvious solution would be to pay to hire a better qualified, more extensively trained staff, and direct state supervision. To those who would point out this would increase the expense of running the palce, I would point out that the reusltant decrease in insurance fees, in addition to other austere cuts in unnecessary bureaucratic spending by way of streamlining, would go a long way towards making up the difference.

By the same token, the mentally handicapped don’t deserve to have to put up with this kind of treatment.

What Do You Want On Your Tombstone

I have an idea that may be controversial, and it may even seem unpatriotic, but if so, so be it. It is based on recent events involving the widow of one Patrick D. Steward, formerly of Nebraska, who was killed last year, on September 25, in Afghanistan, by a rocket propelled grenade. Stewart, a Sergeant, was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and the Pruple Heart.

Yet, his widow, Roberta, has run into a problem with the Pentagon. They have refused to honor his and his widows wishes to put on his grave at Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetary, a pentacle, a symbol of his Wiccan faith. As of now, the widow has refused to allow the erection of even a temporary marker.

She has objected to the Pentagons politices to no avail though she has received support, both from the Americans United For The Seperation of Church And State, and from Christianity Today magazine. It has been turned into a politcal issue at the behest of Bush, who has gone on record as oppossing the recognition of Wicca as a legitimate religion, and by the typical hordes of right wing conservative religious fanatics who for now make up arguably the most influential base of the Republican Party (at least they are influential to Bush, and the Neo-Cons that surround him, when it is convenient for the latter-usually and especially around election time).

My response is simple, straightforward, and to the point. Any Wiccan or Pagan or military age should henceforth refuse to volunteer for military service. If they are already in the military, they should leave when their time of enlistment expires. In the meantime, it would be helpful if a substantial number of them could get together and issue a press release to the effect that all Wiccans and Pagans will be discouraged from joining any branch of the armed services until this issue is addressed, and decided completley in our favor. No compromises.

In the meantime, all Pagans and Wiccans who are parents of military age sons and daughters should issue a similar statement to the effect that, again, until this issue is resoved satisfacotrily, to us, they will strongly discourage any of their sons or daughters from joining any branch of the US military.

It may do precpous little good, but it will still make a statement on behalf of the substantial number of Pagans who have served, who are currently serving, and who have, like Sergeant Stewart, given their lives in the service of their country. If we’re good enough to risk life and limb to serve, then the least we can get in return is to have our basic constitutional rights, including Freedom of Religion, respected. If we can’t get that much, you can all-well, go to hell.

The original story on BeliefNet.com can be found in the link at the post title.

A Brief But Concise View Of Franco-American Relations

I could have told Rufus a number of things about his trip to France that seem to have surprised him, but which I was quite aware of. For one thing, the food is excellent. I don’t think this really surprised him, to tell you the truth, I think he’s just wanting to rub it in. The other thing that surprised him was the general politeness and all around friendliness of the French.

It all begs the question, exactly where did the French derive this reputation for being such culturally elitist, smug and superior assholes? Before this question can be sufficently answered, it might help to look briefly at the history of FrancoAmerican relations.

Beginning shortly after the adoption of the US Constitution, things sort of got off to a bad foot, when President Washington sent the French ambassador packing, as he was rightly certain this gentleman aimed to draw us into the middleof their problems with Great Britian. The French were naturally antagonized at this, and considered us ingrates, as they had after all been instrumental in securing our victory agaisnt the British to begin with.

But Washington was adamant, he would pursue a policy of neutrality in world affairs to as much an extent as possible. In fact, this is one of the reasons he is rightly considered among our greatest Presidents. This was a policy which governed American foreign policy for more than a century, and truthfully, it would be one we would be well advised to return to, in my view. But the French were understandably, perhaps, perturbed, and this lead to, during the Adams Administration, the onset of the notorious spy scandal known as the X,Y, Z affair. It also was a factor in the formulation of the disastrous Alien And Sedition Act, and helped to bring about the end of Adams Presidency after one term.

By the way, it should be noted that in addition to appearring ungrateful, the French were actually doubly annoyed in that their involvement with the Revolutionary War was at the behest not of the people of the nation, but of it’s now deposed and summarrily executed monarchy. So as you can see, more and more the seeds are being sown for an ever bigger headache.

This was temporarily alleviated by Thomas Jeffersons purchase of the Lousiana Territory from Napoleon, but this temporary cure proved in the long run an even greater agitation. Not only did the French feel they had been given a raw deal, ultimately, in this agreement, but they did not benefit from it in the least. In fact, it added to their sufferrings, as Napoleon used the money from this deal with Jefferson primarily to fund his war of aggression which ended ultimately in the humiliating defeat at Waterloo.

The French, it seemed, could not win for loosing, and throughout the next century they must have felt that the US was some kind of a curse on their national pride and dignity. So hard was feelings of the French toward the US in the earliest days that one of their noted philosophers made the statemnent, one of my favorite sayings (just due to it’s cleverness) which I here paraphrase: “America is the only nation in the history of the world that has gone from barbarity straight into decadence, without the usual intervening period of civilization.”

But we got along, somewhat, the highlight of our relationship being the presentation by the French governemnt of the gift of the Statue of Liberty. But even here, I imagine that quite a few secretly wondered that the French were only too glad to give to us, their tired, their poor. If so, this as well backfired, as US immigration policy at the time, though controversial (yet please note, it was reasoned and controlled) proved to be a massive brain drain on Europe. The US was riding ever higher, from the vantage point of our European cousins.

By the time we saved the French’s asses, first in World War I, then again in World War II, they must have been secretly thinking, “it’s about time”.

Still, I have to think the French, the vast majority of them, were genuinely grateful for our aid (what ones of them weren’t actual Nazi collaborators, anyway), but relations quickly soured. The question remains, why?

I have to blame the phenomenon of the “Ugly American”, that tourist who travelled the continent fully expected that he would be lavished, and kowtowed to. Remember, in the early days of American tourism follwing World War II, it wasn’t your average American who got the chance to travel abroad, but rarely. The vast majority of them were high minded socialites and business people with a fucking attitude. They were the ones with the superiority complex,and this offended the obviously prideful French, which would only be natural.

Exceptions to this rule of the travelling class would be the American soldier stationed overseas, which may have aggravated an already delicate situation. Show me a family who likes to see their women folk looked at as the type that can be easily fucked for a chocolate bar and a pair of nylons, and I’ll show you a rare breed of individuals, whether they be French or any other nationality.

So yes, the French can be hostile to Ameircans, just as they can be gracous and respectful. It all depends really, in most cases, on the face you yourself present to them. That’s the same way it is actually with all people of the world you might meet in your daily travels. The French aren’t any different. We just have a longer, more troubled hisotry.

The Great Snake Goddess Of Minoa

I am a little bit late on the draw, it seems, when it comes to authenticating the legitimacey of my new avatar, insofar as it being a valid representation of my path of what I like to call, Hellenic Wicca. The term for my path is probably as valid as the avatar, in other words, not very. Of course, I never utilized this term out of a desire to be deceptive about my beliefs. What would be the point? It just seemed easier, far less complicated, to refer to myself as a Hellenic Wiccan, than to explain that I follow a modern version of Hellenic Paganism that has a heavy Wiccan influence. Thus Hellenic Wicca, which isn’t perfectly accurrate, but it sounds good, and close enough. I also like to at times refer to my religion as Hellenism, which historicaly, and accurrately, is the culture of ancient Hellenic Greece, the ancient Greek religions of which are only one part, though an important an integral one.

In reality, culturally I am at best a diamond in the rough, and it seems to be getting rougher every day, these days. Yet, I do definitely try to keep abreast of cultural news, including discoveries in the field of archaeology. Alas, I am a lazy blogger, and an even lazier researcher, and so, even though I have the URL for a very good archaeology site on the sidebar of this blog, which I urge you to check out, I myself have been lax at keeping up on it, and so missed this little bit of information.

The “snake goddess” that I have chosen as my avatar, suppossedly an ancient artifact that was dug up on the island of Crete, was believed at one time to have been an ancient religious artifact( possibly a votary, depicting either a goddess or a priestess, a snake in each upward stretched arm), from the Minoan Period, and thus predating not only ancient Classical Greek, or Achaean, culture, but even Mychaenaean civilization as well.

Alas, come to find out, it, like a good many other artifacts, was a fraud. Not only were they circulated in response to a demand for Minoan artifacts at about the beginning of the last century, but it has been known for some time they were frauds. I felt a degree of sadness upon learning this, and not a little embarrassment.

On te other hand, the good news is, even though these artifacts were themselves frauds, they were in fact based on legitimate artifacts that were in fact discovered and authenticated. So yes, Virginia, there was, after all, a snake goddess.

And so, whether mine is the fake or the genuine article, I have elected to keep her. I have grown quite fond of her, after all, and moreover, when all is said and done, when it comes to the realms of religion, magic, and mythology, who is to say what is real, what is fake, what is symbolic, and what is just wishful thinking.

Ancient Dirt

Why do we put up with the UN anyway. Bolton is right, face it, they are an unwieldy, overly bureacratic, corrupt organization that has as it’s sole purpose the providing of a safe haven for would be US saboteurs and foreign racketeers. That is just my opinion, of course, but I think it is well grounded. They should get out of New York, or they should pay rent to the city. And, by the way, their traffic tickets and other violations.

But the reason for this post isn’t so much the presence of the UN in New York or America, or even it’s all around inefficiency and arrogance, and corruption. Let’s just take on for now the subject of the stupidity of it’s various arms, and let’s start off with UNESCO.

This arm of the UN has recently involved itself with an archaeological issue, involving the beleaguered nation of Bosnia, in which is to be seen the purported discovery of what has been said to be perhaps the oldest pyramid found to date.

Actually, so far as has been determined by legitimate researchers, it ain’t nothing but a fucking hill, and it’s oddly pyramid shape is completely natural. That’s not all. What do I mean by that? Exactly what I said, that’s not all, there are more hillsides of pretty much the same make-up and geometric shape, which, I repeat, is vaquely pyramid shaped.

The proponents of this theory have even gone so far as to say that the make-up of the hill-dirt, clay, and rocks-is consistent with the pyramids, in that the same kind of subsances in the clay was used as a binding cement in a lot of the older pyramids. This, by the way, is an outright lie. The binding that was used as filling between the blocks of the pyramids were a type of specifically manufactured material utilizing an exact mineral compound. What is in the Bosnian pyramids are, again, perectly naturally formed dirt, rocks, and clay.

To the surprise of no legitimate archaeologists or scholars, there have to date been no artifacts discovered at the site. Nor is there likely to be. Of course, there is always the possibility an old vase or drinking implement, or tool, or weapon fragment from a long ago fought and forgotten battle, could conceivably be found, and I have no doubt that, in the event this were to occur, it would be heralded by the proponents of this most ancient of pyramids theory as proof of what has been called an “advanced” civilization.

Yes, you heard it right. UNESCO, an arm of the UN, has poured it’s weight, finances, and resources into securing and researching this site where there may have supposedly existed an advanced civilization-before the dawn of known recorded history. In other words, it’s a boondoggle, an opportunity and excuse for more funding.

Of course, the original proponent of this theory is standing by his original assessment, just as he does his earlier pronouncement involving the Maya-that they are the descendants of an extraterrestrial civilization.

Grist For The Mills

A new alliance between The Sierra Club and the United Steel Workers might hold some actual promise of potential mutual accomplishment, provided they can hold together. But this seems to be one example of an alliance that mght extend beyond the board rooms, and trickle down into the rank and file membership, with little dissent.

The Sierra Club, for it’s part, agrees to support increases in wages and benefits packages for workers, while the Steel Workers agrees to support the development and advancement of clean technologies, on the grounds that in the long run this will actually lead to inceased efficency and new and more jobs, and better jobs. Of course, this would undoubtedly be good for the environemnt.

The Sierra Club also agrees to support the Steel Workers in promoting Fair Trade, as oppossed ot the Free Trade fiasco that has been so harmful to the livelihoods of union workers across America.

Amazingly, one of the first good things George W. Bush did as president, on the domestic front, was to impose tariffs on foreign steel, which was being dumped here in America at prices American companies could not hope to compete with. The tariff evened out the playing field. True, some American businesses were hurt by the move, as they were in some cases paying a higher price for steel than had been the case under the old new system. This provided a pretext for him to end the tariffs, but of course the true reason, the only reason, was that the World Trade Organization declared Bush’s steel tariffs to be illegal. And frankly, he needed the WTO, in other areas, and so could not afford to alienate them any more than he already had.

Therefore, the United Steel Workers, though given an all too brief reprieve, ended up royally screwed. But at least they got a little kiss.

Now, with the Sierra Club, they have hopefully met their true soul mates. I will try to be hopeful, at least. We will see what they produce in the long term. Weddings and honeymoons, after all, are incidental pleasantries to the main fucntion of a marriage. In most cases, the children of a union are a more accurrate reflection of the two partners that produce them.

A link to Grist Magazine, where you can read the original article and other cool environemntal articles, can be found in the post title.

Weighty Matters

Mississippi governor Haley Barbour has recently initiated a program, or a study, aimed at encouraging physical fitness among his states residents, which has been named one of the worse states in the United States for records of obesity. With the attenant health problems obesity often leads to, this is a commendable goal on his part, though some people mght wonder if Mr. Barbour is the appropriate person to make the case. But I guess it’s a lot like one of those “only Richard Nixon could go to China” scenarios.

At any rate, it will be interesting to see what his approach might be. He has already been accussed of hypocrisy, of deviating from the Republican, conservative party stance that advocates non-interference in private choices, in personal repsonsibilty, in freedom from regualation of business.

Of course, I personally think his approach might be a somewhat different one than litigation through class action lawsuits aimed at raking in billions of dollars from the fast food industry, enforcing excessively oppressive regulations, enforced inclusions of health alternatives while penalizing what is deemed non-healthy with greater and greater taxes, etc., and all the other nonsense that has been perpetrated on the tobacco industry-and smokers- over the last decade.

I could come up wth a few ideas myself that might be as good or better than anything the Democrats or Republicans might envision. For example, why not put up a fucking weight scale right in front of the counter of every fast food joint? This would be accompanied by a height indicator, and a computer averaging tabulator. Any customer that went into the place would be obliged to stand on the scales. For every pound over what the computer suggests shoud be his or her average, an extra quarter per dollar, per extra pound, would be added to the price.

In the case of a real super fat ass, discounts could be offerred for healthy alternative choices.

The weight computer could be made to make noises. Razz beries, chortles, derisive laughter of various sorts, or simply the agonizing cry, “helllllllp, get this fat fuckhead off of me.”

Naturally, this would meet with objection by the fast food industry. After all, many will opt not to suffer this embarrassment, and thus will take their business elsewhere. But at least their beleaquered, overworked employees would get a few jollies out of it.

Bluegrass Report

Several Kentuckly Blogs, notably this one called BluegrassReports.org, have reportedly been blocked from access by Kentucky State computers, and it so happens that all of these blogs are critical of Governor Ernie Fletcher and his Administration. One notable blog that is on theFletcher blacklist is BluegrassReports.org, but it is by no means the only one.

Aside from the obvious censorship issues, the question should be raised, since when do Kentucky State employees have the time to sit around reading blogs? Don’t they have supposedly important work to do? Shouldn’t this be construed as, more or less, a waste of state taxpayers money? Or should it be considered that there are, simply, way too many Kentucky State employees, and thus this bloated payroll is, in addition to also being a waste of tax money, an obvious indication of political patronage in state hiring.

But the most important point to be made about this story, is that it points out the rampant paranoia that saturates the Fletcher Administration. Obviously, there aren’t that many state employees who spend that much time on state time reading blogs. Assumming there are an appreciable percentage that have the time to do so-which I don’t doubt- how many actually do, at least for that long a time. Most of them probably prefer to spend their free time, which is in a good many cases probably close to half the work day or more, chit chatting with co-workers, checking up on their spouses, children, or lovers, or,if on the computer, checking out the humor and sports sites. Not reading a significant number of blogs. I would put the percentage of state workers who engage in this activity, for any appreciable amount of time, at well under one per cent.

This may well not have anything to do with Fletcher personally, but is more than likely an activity initiated by an overzealous department supervisor. If Fletcher is involved in this, he has indeed gone off the deep end, and this would be substantial proof of that.

Sneaking Past Borders

Two women, sisters, were recently drugged at a London Kentucky area Mexican restaurant, the El Azul Grande 5, upon which they were taken to an apartment, by workers at the restaurant, who proceeded to rape them. The one woman sufficiently pulled herself together and got away while in the process of being assaulted by a third person.

When her and her sister made their escape, they understandably called the police. In the course of the investigation, there was a finding of cocaine at the premises of the apartment, and a further finding which lead to the arrest of eleven illegal immigrants, all of whom either worked at, or were associated in some way with, the Mexican restaurant in question.

The restaurant owner, who has temporarily closed his establishment for “repairs”, has stated he knew of nothing untoward that occurred on the premises of his business. He went on to say that, if any of his workers were guilty of this atrocous act, they would no longer be working for him.

Of course, this begs the qustion, since these suspects who were detained by police-all eleven of them-were illegal immigrants:

WHAT THE FUCK WERE THEY DOING WORKING FOR HIM TO BEGIN WITH?

E-Bays Landmark Sale

Tony Straub, the present owner of the historical landmark The Dayton Arcade, of the city of Dayton Ohio, has gone all out to find a buyer for the five building complex which is situated between Third, Fourth, Main, and Ludon Streets in downtown Dayton. He has offerred it for sale on E-Bay, at an asking price of four million dollars. He has suggested that the site would be perfect for a casino. And it probably would, with slight renovation, if it weren’t for the fact that, as of now, casino gambling is yet illegal in the state of Ohio.

Straub explained that he was considering the future possibilities. Actually, whoever buys this complex should be made aware of more than just the present illegality of Mr. Straubs proposal. The fact is, there is a reason he is anxious to divest himself of his holdings in this, what should be considered a prime piece of real estate.

And that is, there is little he can do with it. He can’t do any kind of renovation that would compromise the historical integrity of the landmark which goes vack to the beginning of the last century . He certainly can’t tear it down and put up, say, a parking lot, or a mall. Yet, as attractive as the place is, he can’t find investors willing to locate businesses into the area, due to the exorbitant crime rate for a city of this size.

Dayton is one of those cities that are cyclical i nature, and seems to move in extremes. For a time, it will be a boom town, with many business and job opportunities. Then, it will fall into a kind of depression, with people not being able to get out of the place fast enough. Now, it has moved back into this latter cycle. And, as a result, Dayton is loosing population-again.

The politicians who run the area have the final say as to what happens to what for now might as well be the Taj Mahal of Dayton Ohio-a very attractive tomb. A historic landmark, but of little value otherwise, presently. And they admirably insist on preserving it, but seemingly to no avail, as these are also the people that conceivably could, yet will not, address the ever growing and obtrusive crime rate with which the city is afflicted. Whether this is in large part due to political correctness and to fears of being labelled as racists, or whatever the reason, the result stands in dowtown Dayton Ohio.

An empty building, an historic landmark, which stands empty, and unused, and for the most part, unvisited.

The Brave New World Of Stephen Hawking

Stephen Hawking must have been left by his wife out in the sun for way too long, and due to her cosntant and persistent abuse, which seems to have been of the most sadistic level, he might have been pushed off the deep end. Among the many of his amazing utterrances is the notion that, if mankind is to survive, he must of necessity relocate, to the stars, and populate other worlds, other planets.

Now, it is one thing to suggest that mankind should conceivably one day spread out throughout our solar system, and beyond. But his urgings seem to contain an elitist streak. Just who will be saved? Who will be chosen to enter the several arcs required, which certainly will be unable to save us all?

Hawkings detractors, for the most part, don’t seem to be any less elitist. They insist the only viable option for maintaining the survival of the human race, is by establishing a refuge-under the Antartic.

Interesting. Of course, there will be a required presence of many kinds of skilled workers and professionals, if the new mankind has any chance of continuing the race with any semblance of continuity of advancement and culture. And of course there will have to be some unskilled laborers to not only build the place, but to do the hard everyday work of keeping it running.

And I’m sure it is a worthwhile idea, if worse comes to worse, as is Mr. Hawkings idea’. But to insist that this is the only way to save humanity, while it might eventually turn out to be true, also seems rather defeatist. For one thing, just who will be left behind. I don’t hold out much hopes of acquiring a ticket, personally. And so, while these plans are being discussed, debated, and formulated, it might be a worthwhile pastime to consider just what might be a viable, reasonable way to save all of us, that is to say the mass of humanity, by way of saving the planet itself. You know, before it just might get to be too late.

More to the point, and what is the ultimate insult to add to the injury, is that I have no doubt the first people on board the arc will be the very ones who, by their obstinance and greed, and in some cases plain evil, will have been the ones to have doomed the mass of us.

Special thanks goes to Zandperl at Modern Science.

The Lay Of Bore

Norway is now the proud originator and owner of a food storage vault that it feels might be the salvation of mankind in the event of a violent catastrophe of earth shatterring proportions. Having buildt what has been referred to as the “Doomsday Vault”, which it has dug into a frozen mountainside on the island of Svalbard, way up into the Arctic Circle, it then received the cooperation of the countries of Denamrk, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland, the Prime Ministers of which, along with Norways, participated in the ceremony of helping to lay the cornerstone.

As of now, more than two hundred nations have joined in the project. Only it’s not exactly food that is being kept in cold storage, but seeds, for the growth of food bearing plants. Although Norway technically owns the right to the vault, nations who contribute seeds remian the owners of their contributions, which are to be packaged in foil, and thus kept in sub-zero temperatures.

Norway has left nothing to chance. In the case of would be sabotage, or theft, the vault is guarded by an electronic security system which would make it virtually impenetrable, even if someone managed to make it past the hordes of polar bears which frequent the area.

And, should the artificially maintained temperature fail, the consistency of the normal temperature, due to the presence of the permafrost, would keep the site functioning for years. In fact, it is estimated that the stored seeds will be good for at least a couple of hundred years. Maybe even a couple of thousand.

Then, like the god Bore, ancestral founder of the Aesir, they can be taken out of the ice, if the need arises, and thus used to, hopefully, refoliate the earth, though as of this time non-food plants are not included in the inventory.

The only other thing that seems to be missing is Ymirs’ cow.

Over And Out

Sometime today, North Korea is scheduled to conduct a test of a new missile which, if succesful, will have the capabilities of reaching the interior of the continental United States. Although several nations of the world community have strenuosly objected to this brash move, notably Japan and the US, Kim Jung Il seems to be in a bind, as evidently he has been pushed into conducting these tests by high ranking membersof his military. This seems to suggest that his hold on power might not be as secure as most seem to think.

Assumming the test are carried out on schedule, what will be the result. Will it lead to the bilateral North Korea/United States negotiations North Korea has been pushing for? Or,will the world community, lead by the US, stand form in it’s threats of further diplomatic sanctions? Could it lead instead to a lessenning of existing sanctions?

Iran will certainly be watching. So will the rest of the world.

Update: As of now, so far as I know, or have last heard, the test has yet to be conducted. Maybe it's been delayed. Maybe it's been halted.

Maybe we'll never ever really know.

Happy Litha.

Finally, My Blogroll

I never thought I would ever get around to it, but I finally done it, added a Blogroll to this site. I know it seems like I’ve been talking about it forever, to the point where I would almost be willing to bet that some people here and there, when I talked about it, would probably start rolling their eyes.

Still, like I explained, I wanted to take some time, and made sure I put on nothing but quality sites, which means I required myself to traverse the Internet until I found what ended up being more than I actually thought I would find, to be honest. In fact, I didn’t put all the good sites up that I found, though I might add some more later.

To begin with, I wanted a balance of political ideology, and at the same time I wanted sites that went beyond mere political discourse. Being a pagan myself, naturaly I wanted to find some worthwhile pagan blogs, and here again, I found more than I thought I would.

In addition to quality, I wanted something that updated on a fairly regular basis, that allowed readers comments (though I did make a few exceptions, reluctantly) and that wasn’t too stringent on comment moderation.

Also, I didn’t want to end up putting way too many sites up. After all, I have been to a lot of blogs, and I have seen some blogrolls that I know had to have numbered in the hundreds. I just wanted to keep it small, or at least moderate, for the time being. I like the set-up of Blogrolling, incidentally. Once you get the hang of what they are al about, and what you are doing, it’s a whiz. Getting that hang is the problem. But, I got it, finally. I like the way a blog that has recently been updated will show you this with the word new beside it, though I might have to adjust the timing on that particular feature.

I also like the layout choices you get. You can arrange them in groups of whatever number you prefer, so I arranged mine in groups of four, in alphabetical order.

At any rate, that is why I went a whole week without updating my Blog, I wanted to finally take the time to invest in some research into exactly what kinds of blogs I wanted to include. Overall, I am well satisfied with the finished product. There are a few more, as I said, that I might add later on. The Huffington Post is one probabal addition I might add in the near future. Maybe a few more, as the mood strikes, but for the most part what new ones I add will be new discoveries, and I intend to keep them to one hundred or less.

But for now, I think I have just about the right number. If you made it here, consider yourself special. There are few things in the universe I have higher regard for than my own eye for literary or journalistic quality.