John Donne
"Death be not proud, though some have called thee"
DEATH be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,
And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,
And better then thy stroake; why swell'st thou then;
One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Albatross around one's neck Origins
Albatross round one's neck - encumbering, inescapable liability
In Coleridge's the Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798) the mariner tells of an occasion when his ship became ice-bound and was visited by an albatross, greeted as a bird of good omen. The ship was freed from the ice but for some unknown reason the mariner shot the albatross. A curse fell on the ship, the dead albatross was hung round his neck as punishment and the rest of the crew died. While watching beautiful water-snakes around the ship the mariner found himself blessing them; the albatross fell from his neck, the ship was no longer becalmed and his life was saved. He must wander the earth telling his tale and teaching reverence for God's creation, 'All things both great and small'.
...In the metaphorical expression to which this story has given rise the albatross is, strictly speaking, a symbol of personal guilt from which freedom has to be earned. In practice, it is used of any oppressive influence that is difficult to escape from.
In Coleridge's the Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798) the mariner tells of an occasion when his ship became ice-bound and was visited by an albatross, greeted as a bird of good omen. The ship was freed from the ice but for some unknown reason the mariner shot the albatross. A curse fell on the ship, the dead albatross was hung round his neck as punishment and the rest of the crew died. While watching beautiful water-snakes around the ship the mariner found himself blessing them; the albatross fell from his neck, the ship was no longer becalmed and his life was saved. He must wander the earth telling his tale and teaching reverence for God's creation, 'All things both great and small'.
...In the metaphorical expression to which this story has given rise the albatross is, strictly speaking, a symbol of personal guilt from which freedom has to be earned. In practice, it is used of any oppressive influence that is difficult to escape from.
Ellie Greenwich Songwriter Dies
Ellie Greenwich, a songwriter who collaborated with Phil Spector, Jeff Barry and others to create a greatest-hits list of 1960s teenage pop songs like “Da Doo Ron Ron,” “Then He Kissed Me,” “Hanky Panky” and “Leader of the Pack,” died on Wednesday in Manhattan. She was 68.
The cause was a heart attack following a case of pneumonia, her niece, Jessica Weiner, said.
Ms. Greenwich was among the songwriters, music publishers and producers working at the Brill Building, at 1619 Broadway in Manhattan, which (along with 1650 Broadway, across the street) became a center of pop music in the early 1960s.
The buildings were home to the songwriting teams of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Burt Bacharach and Hal David, and Carole King and Gerry Goffin, among many others, and from their offices and studios came a flood of teenage anthems, story songs and achy love songs fraught with the hormonal angst of the young.
For a time Ms. Greenwich and Mr. Barry, who was then her husband, were the most successful of the teams, especially when they wrote for the girl groups the Crystals, the Dixie Cups, the Shangri-Las and others.
In 1964 alone, 17 singles by Ms. Greenwich and Mr. Barry landed on the pop charts, according to “Always Magic in the Air,” a 2005 book by Ken Emerson about the Brill Building days. They included “Chapel of Love,” a No. 1 for the Dixie Cups, and “Do Wah Diddy Diddy,” which became a No. 1 for Manfred Mann.
The cause was a heart attack following a case of pneumonia, her niece, Jessica Weiner, said.
Ms. Greenwich was among the songwriters, music publishers and producers working at the Brill Building, at 1619 Broadway in Manhattan, which (along with 1650 Broadway, across the street) became a center of pop music in the early 1960s.
The buildings were home to the songwriting teams of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Burt Bacharach and Hal David, and Carole King and Gerry Goffin, among many others, and from their offices and studios came a flood of teenage anthems, story songs and achy love songs fraught with the hormonal angst of the young.
For a time Ms. Greenwich and Mr. Barry, who was then her husband, were the most successful of the teams, especially when they wrote for the girl groups the Crystals, the Dixie Cups, the Shangri-Las and others.
In 1964 alone, 17 singles by Ms. Greenwich and Mr. Barry landed on the pop charts, according to “Always Magic in the Air,” a 2005 book by Ken Emerson about the Brill Building days. They included “Chapel of Love,” a No. 1 for the Dixie Cups, and “Do Wah Diddy Diddy,” which became a No. 1 for Manfred Mann.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Downtown Las Vegas Casinos
List of Downtown Las Vegas Casinos, including years of operation:
* 21 Club, 1930s open
* 49'er Club, 1951--1952 Gone
* Binion's, 2004-- Open
* Bird Cage, 1958--1959 Gone
* Boulder Club, 1931--1960 Gone
* California Club, 1946--1970 Open
* California Hotel, 1975--
* Carousel, 1967--1974 Gone
* Castaways, 2000--2004
* Cinnabar, 1951--1959 Gone
* Club Bingo, 1962--1983 Gone
* Club Savoy, 1945--1957 Gone
* Coin Castle, 1970--2000 Gone
* El Cortez, 1941-- OPEN
* El Dorado Club, 1947--1951 Gone
* Fitzgeralds, 1988-- OPEN
* Fortune Club, 1952--1955 Gone
* Four Queens, 1964-- OPEN
* Fremont, 1956-- OPEN
* Friendly Club, 1978--1983 GONE
* Frontier Club, 1935--1953 GONE
* Gambler's, 1974--1976 GONE
* Gold Spike, 1981-- OPEN
* Golden Gate, 1956-- OPEN
* Golden Nugget, 1946-- OPEN
* Horseshoe, 1951--2004 GONE
* Hotel Elwell, 1951--1965 GONE
* Jolly Trolly, 1977--1978,1981 GONE
* Lady Luck, 1964--2006 GONE but may reopen
* Las Vegas Club, 1931--1949,1949-- OPEN
* Little Casino, 1953--1965 GONE
* Lucky Casino, 1963--1967 GONE
* Main Street Station, 1991-1992,1996-- OPEN
* Mint, 1961--1988 GONE
* Monte Carlo Club, 1945--1955 GONE
* Moulin Rouge, 1955--1959,1993--1996 GONE
* Nevada Club, 1932--1953,1953--1969 GONE
* Nevada Hotel, 1974--1988,1992--2004 GONE
* Orbit Inn, 1964--1976,1976--1987 GONE
* Park, 1987--1990 GONE
* Pioneer, 1947--1956,1983--1995 GONE
* Plaza, 1992-- OPEN
* Red Garter, 1972--1975 Gone
* Rendezvous, 1977--1978
* Showboat, 1954--2000
* Silver Club, 1934--1956
* Silver Palace, 1956,1958--1964
* Sinabar, 1972,1974--1975
* SS Rex, 1945--1946
* Sundance, 1980--1988
* Sundance West, 1976--1980
* Union Plaza, 1971--1992
* The Valut, 1974--1976
* Western, 1965-- OPEN but Hotel closed
* Westerner, 1950--1960
* 21 Club, 1930s open
* 49'er Club, 1951--1952 Gone
* Binion's, 2004-- Open
* Bird Cage, 1958--1959 Gone
* Boulder Club, 1931--1960 Gone
* California Club, 1946--1970 Open
* California Hotel, 1975--
* Carousel, 1967--1974 Gone
* Castaways, 2000--2004
* Cinnabar, 1951--1959 Gone
* Club Bingo, 1962--1983 Gone
* Club Savoy, 1945--1957 Gone
* Coin Castle, 1970--2000 Gone
* El Cortez, 1941-- OPEN
* El Dorado Club, 1947--1951 Gone
* Fitzgeralds, 1988-- OPEN
* Fortune Club, 1952--1955 Gone
* Four Queens, 1964-- OPEN
* Fremont, 1956-- OPEN
* Friendly Club, 1978--1983 GONE
* Frontier Club, 1935--1953 GONE
* Gambler's, 1974--1976 GONE
* Gold Spike, 1981-- OPEN
* Golden Gate, 1956-- OPEN
* Golden Nugget, 1946-- OPEN
* Horseshoe, 1951--2004 GONE
* Hotel Elwell, 1951--1965 GONE
* Jolly Trolly, 1977--1978,1981 GONE
* Lady Luck, 1964--2006 GONE but may reopen
* Las Vegas Club, 1931--1949,1949-- OPEN
* Little Casino, 1953--1965 GONE
* Lucky Casino, 1963--1967 GONE
* Main Street Station, 1991-1992,1996-- OPEN
* Mint, 1961--1988 GONE
* Monte Carlo Club, 1945--1955 GONE
* Moulin Rouge, 1955--1959,1993--1996 GONE
* Nevada Club, 1932--1953,1953--1969 GONE
* Nevada Hotel, 1974--1988,1992--2004 GONE
* Orbit Inn, 1964--1976,1976--1987 GONE
* Park, 1987--1990 GONE
* Pioneer, 1947--1956,1983--1995 GONE
* Plaza, 1992-- OPEN
* Red Garter, 1972--1975 Gone
* Rendezvous, 1977--1978
* Showboat, 1954--2000
* Silver Club, 1934--1956
* Silver Palace, 1956,1958--1964
* Sinabar, 1972,1974--1975
* SS Rex, 1945--1946
* Sundance, 1980--1988
* Sundance West, 1976--1980
* Union Plaza, 1971--1992
* The Valut, 1974--1976
* Western, 1965-- OPEN but Hotel closed
* Westerner, 1950--1960
The Cliff House NE Clam Chowder
The Cliff House Clam Chowder has been on the menu since 1872. From The Cliff House in Ogunquit, Maine. Reprinted with permission.
Serves six.
Ingredients:
* 1 slice hickory-smoked bacon, minced
* 1/2 teaspoon butter
* 1 cup onion, minced
* 1 medium garlic clove, minced
* 1 teaspoon The Cliff House Spice Blend (see below)
* 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
* 1 can clams (6-1/2 ounces)
* 1 cup bottled clam juice
* 1-1/2 cups Half and Half
* 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
* 2 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled and diced
Preparation:
To Create The Cliff House Spice Blend, blend 4 tsps oregano, 4 tsps dried parsley, 2 tsps marjoram, 2 tsps dill, 4 tsps thyme, 4 tsps basil, 1 tsp sage, 4 tsps rosemary, 2 tsps tarragon, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, crushing in a mortar if possible. Store in a resealable plastic bag to refrigerate.
In a heavy-bottomed, 4-pint soup kettle, sauté bacon, butter, onion, garlic and The Cliff House Spice Blend over low heat. Do not allow to brown. Drain clams and set aside, reserving the juice. Slowly stir the flour and clam juices in the sauté mixture. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Add Half and Half and simmer 20 minutes. Add white pepper, potatoes and clams. Heat to serving temperature. Do not allow to boil, as this toughens the clams. Serve at once with crackers and warm cornbread.
Serves six.
Ingredients:
* 1 slice hickory-smoked bacon, minced
* 1/2 teaspoon butter
* 1 cup onion, minced
* 1 medium garlic clove, minced
* 1 teaspoon The Cliff House Spice Blend (see below)
* 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
* 1 can clams (6-1/2 ounces)
* 1 cup bottled clam juice
* 1-1/2 cups Half and Half
* 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
* 2 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled and diced
Preparation:
To Create The Cliff House Spice Blend, blend 4 tsps oregano, 4 tsps dried parsley, 2 tsps marjoram, 2 tsps dill, 4 tsps thyme, 4 tsps basil, 1 tsp sage, 4 tsps rosemary, 2 tsps tarragon, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, crushing in a mortar if possible. Store in a resealable plastic bag to refrigerate.
In a heavy-bottomed, 4-pint soup kettle, sauté bacon, butter, onion, garlic and The Cliff House Spice Blend over low heat. Do not allow to brown. Drain clams and set aside, reserving the juice. Slowly stir the flour and clam juices in the sauté mixture. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Add Half and Half and simmer 20 minutes. Add white pepper, potatoes and clams. Heat to serving temperature. Do not allow to boil, as this toughens the clams. Serve at once with crackers and warm cornbread.
Sultan of Brunei 's Haircut
The wealthy royal paid the massive fee to fly his favourite barber, Ken Modestu, from London to Brunei earlier this month.
But the Sultan was so worried about catching swine flu that he paid £11,000 for a private luxury cabin for the hairdresser - so that he didn't mix with other passengers on the plane.
Modestou runs a barber's at the Dorchester hotel in Mayfair, central London, and usually charges £30 for a trim, reports The Sun.
But the 63-year-old Sultan - one of the richest men in the world - pays the barber thousands every time he makes the 7,000 mile round trip to Brunei.
George Kadi, who works with Modestou at the Dorchester, told a client yesterday: "Ken has been cutting the hair of the sultan for 16 years.
"He goes regularly, sometimes every three or four weeks. The sultan flies him first-class at a cost of about £9,000. Everything is paid for, hotel, luxury food. It's a case of 'just keep signing, that's all'.
"Kadi said that the Sultan - whose fortune is estimated at £12billion pays Modestou with a "thick envelope" full of cash.
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But the Sultan was so worried about catching swine flu that he paid £11,000 for a private luxury cabin for the hairdresser - so that he didn't mix with other passengers on the plane.
Modestou runs a barber's at the Dorchester hotel in Mayfair, central London, and usually charges £30 for a trim, reports The Sun.
But the 63-year-old Sultan - one of the richest men in the world - pays the barber thousands every time he makes the 7,000 mile round trip to Brunei.
George Kadi, who works with Modestou at the Dorchester, told a client yesterday: "Ken has been cutting the hair of the sultan for 16 years.
"He goes regularly, sometimes every three or four weeks. The sultan flies him first-class at a cost of about £9,000. Everything is paid for, hotel, luxury food. It's a case of 'just keep signing, that's all'.
"Kadi said that the Sultan - whose fortune is estimated at £12billion pays Modestou with a "thick envelope" full of cash.
Click here to find out more!
Home - News - Entertainment - Sport - Business
Copyright © 2009 Orange Personal Communications Services Limited
American Airline Announcement
This was overheard on an American Airlines flight into Amarillo, Texas, on a particularly windy and bumpy day. During the final approach, the captain was really having to fight it. After an extremely hard landing, the flight attendant came on the PA and announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Amarillo. Please remain in your seats with your seatbelts fastened while the captain taxis what's left of our airplane to the gate!"
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Funny Golf Joke
After a particularly poor game of golf, a popular club member skipped the clubhouse and started to go home. As he was walking to the parking lot to get his car, a policeman stopped him and asked, "Did you tee off on the sixteenth hole about twenty minutes ago?"
"Yes," the golfer responded.
"Did you happen to hook your ball so that it went over the trees and off the course?"
"Yes, I did. How did you know?" he asked.
"Well," said the policeman very seriously, "Your ball flew out onto the highway and crashed through a driver's windshield. The car went out of control, crashing into five other cars and a fire truck. The fire truck couldn't make it to the fire, and the building burned down. So, what are you going to do about it?"
The golfer thought it over carefully and responded...
"I think I'll close my stance a little bit, tighten my grip and lower my right thumb."
"Yes," the golfer responded.
"Did you happen to hook your ball so that it went over the trees and off the course?"
"Yes, I did. How did you know?" he asked.
"Well," said the policeman very seriously, "Your ball flew out onto the highway and crashed through a driver's windshield. The car went out of control, crashing into five other cars and a fire truck. The fire truck couldn't make it to the fire, and the building burned down. So, what are you going to do about it?"
The golfer thought it over carefully and responded...
"I think I'll close my stance a little bit, tighten my grip and lower my right thumb."
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
Funny George Patton Quote
There is one great thing that you men will all be able to say after this war is over and you are home once again. You may be thankful that twenty years from now when you are sitting by the fireplace with your grandson on your knee and he asks you what you did in the great World War II, you won't have to cough, shift him to the other knee and say, "Well, your Granddaddy shoveled shit in Louisiana." No, Sir, you can look him straight in the eye and say, "Son, your Granddaddy rode with the Great Third Army and a Son-of-a-Goddamned-Bitch named Georgie Patton!
Best Ever Novel Opening Lines
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair. —Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (1859)
George W Bush Resume
George W. Bush (Dubya)
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Past Work Experience
* Ran for congress and lost.
* Produced a Hollywood slasher B movie.
* Bought an oil company, but couldn't find any oil in Texas; company went bankrupt shortly after I sold all my stock.
* Bought the Texas Rangers baseball team in a sweetheart deal that took land using taxpayer money. Biggest move: Traded Sammy Sosa to the Chicago White Sox.
* With father's help (and his name) was elected Governor of Texas.
Accomplishments in Previous Positions
*
Changed pollution laws for power and oil companies and made Texas the most polluted state in the Union.
*
Replaced Los Angeles with Houston as the most smog-ridden city in America. Cut taxes and bankrupted the Texas government to the tune of billions in borrowed money.
*
Set record for most executions by any governor in American history.
*
Became president after losing the popular vote by over 500,000 votes, with the help of my father's appointments to the Supreme Court.
Accomplishments As President
* Attacked and took over two countries.
* Spent the surplus and bankrupted the treasury.
* Shattered record for biggest annual deficit in history.
* Set economic record for most private bankruptcies filed in any 12-month period.
* Set all-time record for biggest drop in the history of the stock market.
* First president in decades to execute a federal prisoner.
* First president in U.S. history to enter office with a criminal record.
* First year in office set the all-time record for most days on vacation by any president in U.S. history.
* After taking the entire month of August off for vacation, presided over the worst security failure in U.S. history.
* Set the record for most campaign fundraising trips than any other president in U.S. history.
* In my first two years in office over 2 million Americans lost their job.
* Cut unemployment benefits for more out of work Americans than any president in U.S. history.
* Set the all-time record for most foreclosures in a 12-month period.
* Appointed more convicted criminals to administration positions than any president in U.S. history.
* Set the record for the least amount of press conferences than any president since the advent of television.
* Signed more laws and executive orders amending the Constitution than any president in U.S. history.
* Presided over the biggest energy crises in U.S. history and refused to intervene when corruption was revealed.
* Presided over the highest gasoline prices in U.S. history and refused to use the national reserves as past presidents have.
* Cut healthcare benefits for war veterans.
* Set the all-time record for most people worldwide to simultaneously take to the streets to protest me (15 million people), shattering the record for protest against any person in the history of mankind.
* Dissolved more international treaties than any president in U.S. history.
* My presidency is the most secretive and unaccountable of any in U.S. history.
* Members of my cabinet are the richest of any administration in U.S. history (the 'poorest' multimillionaire, Condoleezza Rice, has an Exxon oil tanker named after her).
* First president in U.S. history to have all 50 states of the Union simultaneously go bankrupt.
* Presided over the biggest corporate stock market fraud of any market in any country in the history of the world.
* First president in U.S. history to order a U.S. attack and military occupation of a sovereign nation.
* Created the largest government department bureaucracy in the history of the United States.
* Set the all-time record for biggest annual budget spending increases, more than any president in U.S. history.
* First president in U.S. history to have the United Nations remove the U.S. from the human rights commission.
* First president in U.S. history to have the United Nations remove the U.S. from the elections monitoring board.
* Removed more checks and balances, and have the least amount of congressional oversight than any presidential administration in U.S. history.
* Rendered the entire United Nations irrelevant.
* Withdrew from the World Court of Law.
* Refused to allow inspectors access to U.S. prisoners of war and by default no longer abide by the Geneva Conventions.
* First president in U.S. history to refuse United Nations election inspectors (during the 2002 U.S. elections).
* All-time U.S. (and world) record holder for most corporate campaign donations.
* My biggest lifetime campaign contributor presided over one of the largest corporate bankruptcy frauds in world history (Kenneth Lay, former CEO of Enron Corporation).
* Spent more money on polls and focus groups than any president in U.S. history.
* First president in U.S. history to unilaterally attack a sovereign nation against the will of the United Nations and the world community.
* First president to run and hide when the U.S. came under attack (and then lied saying the enemy had the code to Air Force 1)
* First U.S. president to establish a secret shadow government.
* Took the biggest world sympathy for the U.S. after 9/11, and in less than a year made the U.S. the most resented country in the world (possibly the biggest diplomatic failure in U.S. and world history).
* With a policy of 'disengagement' created the most hostile Israeli-Palestine relations in at least 30 years.
* Fist U.S. president in history to have a majority of the people of Europe (71%) view my presidency as the biggest threat to world peace and stability.
* First U.S. president in history to have the people of South Korea more threatened by the U.S. than their immediate neighbor, North Korea.
* Changed US policy to allow convicted criminals to be awarded government contracts.
* Set all-time record for number of administration appointees who violated U.S. law by not selling huge investments in corporations bidding for government contracts.
* Failed to fulfill my pledge to get Osama Bin Laden 'dead or alive.'
* Failed to capture the anthrax killer who tried to murder the leaders of our country at the United States Capital building. After 18 months I have no leads and zero suspects.
* In the 18 months following the 9/11 attacks I have successfully prevented any public investigation into the biggest security failure in the history of the United States.
* Removed more freedoms and civil liberties for Americans than any other president in U.S. history.
* In a little over two years created the most divided country in decades, possibly the most divided the U.S. has ever been since the Civil War.
* Entered office with the strongest economy in U.S. history and in less than two years turned every single economic category heading straight down.
Records and References
* At least one conviction for drunk driving in Maine (Texas driving record has been erased and is not available)
* AWOL from National Guard and deserted the military during a time of war.
* Refuse to take drug test or even answer any questions about drug use.
* All records of my tenure as governor of Texas have been spirited away to my father's library, sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view.
* All records of any SEC investigations into my insider trading or bankrupt companies are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view.
* All minutes of meetings for any public corporation I served on the board are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view.
* Any records or minutes from meetings I (or my VP) attended regarding public energy policy are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public review.
* For personal references please speak to my daddy or uncle James Baker (they can be reached at their offices of the Carlyle Group for war-profiteering.)
Source: Kelley Kramer
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Past Work Experience
* Ran for congress and lost.
* Produced a Hollywood slasher B movie.
* Bought an oil company, but couldn't find any oil in Texas; company went bankrupt shortly after I sold all my stock.
* Bought the Texas Rangers baseball team in a sweetheart deal that took land using taxpayer money. Biggest move: Traded Sammy Sosa to the Chicago White Sox.
* With father's help (and his name) was elected Governor of Texas.
Accomplishments in Previous Positions
*
Changed pollution laws for power and oil companies and made Texas the most polluted state in the Union.
*
Replaced Los Angeles with Houston as the most smog-ridden city in America. Cut taxes and bankrupted the Texas government to the tune of billions in borrowed money.
*
Set record for most executions by any governor in American history.
*
Became president after losing the popular vote by over 500,000 votes, with the help of my father's appointments to the Supreme Court.
Accomplishments As President
* Attacked and took over two countries.
* Spent the surplus and bankrupted the treasury.
* Shattered record for biggest annual deficit in history.
* Set economic record for most private bankruptcies filed in any 12-month period.
* Set all-time record for biggest drop in the history of the stock market.
* First president in decades to execute a federal prisoner.
* First president in U.S. history to enter office with a criminal record.
* First year in office set the all-time record for most days on vacation by any president in U.S. history.
* After taking the entire month of August off for vacation, presided over the worst security failure in U.S. history.
* Set the record for most campaign fundraising trips than any other president in U.S. history.
* In my first two years in office over 2 million Americans lost their job.
* Cut unemployment benefits for more out of work Americans than any president in U.S. history.
* Set the all-time record for most foreclosures in a 12-month period.
* Appointed more convicted criminals to administration positions than any president in U.S. history.
* Set the record for the least amount of press conferences than any president since the advent of television.
* Signed more laws and executive orders amending the Constitution than any president in U.S. history.
* Presided over the biggest energy crises in U.S. history and refused to intervene when corruption was revealed.
* Presided over the highest gasoline prices in U.S. history and refused to use the national reserves as past presidents have.
* Cut healthcare benefits for war veterans.
* Set the all-time record for most people worldwide to simultaneously take to the streets to protest me (15 million people), shattering the record for protest against any person in the history of mankind.
* Dissolved more international treaties than any president in U.S. history.
* My presidency is the most secretive and unaccountable of any in U.S. history.
* Members of my cabinet are the richest of any administration in U.S. history (the 'poorest' multimillionaire, Condoleezza Rice, has an Exxon oil tanker named after her).
* First president in U.S. history to have all 50 states of the Union simultaneously go bankrupt.
* Presided over the biggest corporate stock market fraud of any market in any country in the history of the world.
* First president in U.S. history to order a U.S. attack and military occupation of a sovereign nation.
* Created the largest government department bureaucracy in the history of the United States.
* Set the all-time record for biggest annual budget spending increases, more than any president in U.S. history.
* First president in U.S. history to have the United Nations remove the U.S. from the human rights commission.
* First president in U.S. history to have the United Nations remove the U.S. from the elections monitoring board.
* Removed more checks and balances, and have the least amount of congressional oversight than any presidential administration in U.S. history.
* Rendered the entire United Nations irrelevant.
* Withdrew from the World Court of Law.
* Refused to allow inspectors access to U.S. prisoners of war and by default no longer abide by the Geneva Conventions.
* First president in U.S. history to refuse United Nations election inspectors (during the 2002 U.S. elections).
* All-time U.S. (and world) record holder for most corporate campaign donations.
* My biggest lifetime campaign contributor presided over one of the largest corporate bankruptcy frauds in world history (Kenneth Lay, former CEO of Enron Corporation).
* Spent more money on polls and focus groups than any president in U.S. history.
* First president in U.S. history to unilaterally attack a sovereign nation against the will of the United Nations and the world community.
* First president to run and hide when the U.S. came under attack (and then lied saying the enemy had the code to Air Force 1)
* First U.S. president to establish a secret shadow government.
* Took the biggest world sympathy for the U.S. after 9/11, and in less than a year made the U.S. the most resented country in the world (possibly the biggest diplomatic failure in U.S. and world history).
* With a policy of 'disengagement' created the most hostile Israeli-Palestine relations in at least 30 years.
* Fist U.S. president in history to have a majority of the people of Europe (71%) view my presidency as the biggest threat to world peace and stability.
* First U.S. president in history to have the people of South Korea more threatened by the U.S. than their immediate neighbor, North Korea.
* Changed US policy to allow convicted criminals to be awarded government contracts.
* Set all-time record for number of administration appointees who violated U.S. law by not selling huge investments in corporations bidding for government contracts.
* Failed to fulfill my pledge to get Osama Bin Laden 'dead or alive.'
* Failed to capture the anthrax killer who tried to murder the leaders of our country at the United States Capital building. After 18 months I have no leads and zero suspects.
* In the 18 months following the 9/11 attacks I have successfully prevented any public investigation into the biggest security failure in the history of the United States.
* Removed more freedoms and civil liberties for Americans than any other president in U.S. history.
* In a little over two years created the most divided country in decades, possibly the most divided the U.S. has ever been since the Civil War.
* Entered office with the strongest economy in U.S. history and in less than two years turned every single economic category heading straight down.
Records and References
* At least one conviction for drunk driving in Maine (Texas driving record has been erased and is not available)
* AWOL from National Guard and deserted the military during a time of war.
* Refuse to take drug test or even answer any questions about drug use.
* All records of my tenure as governor of Texas have been spirited away to my father's library, sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view.
* All records of any SEC investigations into my insider trading or bankrupt companies are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view.
* All minutes of meetings for any public corporation I served on the board are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view.
* Any records or minutes from meetings I (or my VP) attended regarding public energy policy are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public review.
* For personal references please speak to my daddy or uncle James Baker (they can be reached at their offices of the Carlyle Group for war-profiteering.)
Source: Kelley Kramer
Gils Portuguese Soup Recipe
Portuguese Soup
1 lb. chourico
1 shank bone {with meat}
1/2 pkg. split peas
1 head cabbage
1 bunch of kale
4 chicken bouillon cubes
4-5 potatoes
Put in pan split peas, shank bone, chourico & bullion cubes. Cook for about 1 hour. Make sure you put enough water to cover about 1/2 pan depending on the size you are using. When the peas are like a paste, take the meat out & put the cut up cabbage, and the kale also the potatoes cut up. Make sure you {rinse the cabbage & the kale before you put them in the pot} when the potatoes are done, add the meat back in the pot and cook for about 5 more minis is better the next day to eat, but you can eat it when it is done.
1 lb. chourico
1 shank bone {with meat}
1/2 pkg. split peas
1 head cabbage
1 bunch of kale
4 chicken bouillon cubes
4-5 potatoes
Put in pan split peas, shank bone, chourico & bullion cubes. Cook for about 1 hour. Make sure you put enough water to cover about 1/2 pan depending on the size you are using. When the peas are like a paste, take the meat out & put the cut up cabbage, and the kale also the potatoes cut up. Make sure you {rinse the cabbage & the kale before you put them in the pot} when the potatoes are done, add the meat back in the pot and cook for about 5 more minis is better the next day to eat, but you can eat it when it is done.
VA News Update
Secretary Shinseki Moves to Simplify PTSD Compensation Rules
August 24, 2009
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WASHINGTON – Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is taking steps to assist Veterans seeking compensation for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
“The hidden wounds of war are being addressed vigorously and comprehensively by this administration as we move VA forward in its transformation to the 21st century,” said Secretary Shinseki.
The VA is publishing a proposed regulation today in the Federal Register to make it easier for a Veteran to claim service connection for PTSD by reducing the evidence needed if the stressor claimed by a Veteran is related to fear of hostile military or terrorist activity. Comments on the proposed rule will be accepted over the next 60 days. A final regulation will be published after consideration of all comments received.
Under the new rule, VA would not require corroboration of a stressor related to fear of hostile military or terrorist activity if a VA psychiatrist or psychologist confirms that the stressful experience recalled by a Veteran adequately supports a diagnosis of PTSD and the Veteran's symptoms are related to the claimed stressor.
Previously, claims adjudicators were required to corroborate that a non-combat Veteran actually experienced a stressor related to hostile military activity. This rule would simplify the development that is required for these cases.
August 24, 2009
Printable Version
Need Viewer Software?
WASHINGTON – Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is taking steps to assist Veterans seeking compensation for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
“The hidden wounds of war are being addressed vigorously and comprehensively by this administration as we move VA forward in its transformation to the 21st century,” said Secretary Shinseki.
The VA is publishing a proposed regulation today in the Federal Register to make it easier for a Veteran to claim service connection for PTSD by reducing the evidence needed if the stressor claimed by a Veteran is related to fear of hostile military or terrorist activity. Comments on the proposed rule will be accepted over the next 60 days. A final regulation will be published after consideration of all comments received.
Under the new rule, VA would not require corroboration of a stressor related to fear of hostile military or terrorist activity if a VA psychiatrist or psychologist confirms that the stressful experience recalled by a Veteran adequately supports a diagnosis of PTSD and the Veteran's symptoms are related to the claimed stressor.
Previously, claims adjudicators were required to corroborate that a non-combat Veteran actually experienced a stressor related to hostile military activity. This rule would simplify the development that is required for these cases.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
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