While walking down the street one day a Corrupt Senator was tragically hit by a car and died.
His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance.
"Welcome to heaven," says St. Peter. "Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not sure what to do with you."
"No problem, just let me in," says the Senator.
"Well, I'd like to, but I have orders from the higher ups. What we'll do is have you spend one day in hell and one in heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity."
"Really?, I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven," says the Senator.
"I'm sorry, but we have our rules." And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.
The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course.
In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him.
Everyone is very happy and in evening dress. They run to greet him, shake his hand, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people. They played a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster, caviar and the finest champagne.
Also present is the devil, who really is a very friendly guy who is having a good time dancing and telling jokes. They are all having such a good time that before the Senator realizes it, it is time to go. Everyone gives him a hearty farewell and waves while the elevator rises.
The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens in heaven where St. Peter is waiting for him, "Now it's time to visit heaven...”
So, 24 hours passed with the Senator joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.
"Well, then, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now choose your eternity."
The Senator reflects for a minute, then he answers: "Well, I would never have said it before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in hell."
So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell...
Now the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags as more trash falls to the ground.
The devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulders.
"I don't understand," stammers the Senator. "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and clubhouse, and we ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne, and danced and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable. What happened?"
The devil smiles at him and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning, Today, you voted.."
Vote wisely on November 2, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
Saturday, July 31, 2010
A Few words On Immigration And Term Limits From A Crusty Old Vet
My name is d'Lynn. I'm a disabled Vietnam vet. I don't look too bad for a beat-up old fart, do I? And that's my ride. She's looking pretty good also, especially when you consider that she'll turn twenty this summer. That's right, it's a 1990 with a 1990 sidecar. I can't ride a solo bike, ergo the sidecar rig. It's my sole means of transportation - rain or shine, snow or wind, and this summer also marks a milestone in both of our lives, as I will finally be able to pay her off. Twenty years old? What? Why did it take so long? You weren't paying attention, were you? It's right at the beginning of this paragraph.
I am a disabled vet, which means I receive a veterans administration disability pension, which also means " I'm broke ! " Just one step ahead of being homeless every month, and that's not an idle statement or an " Oh, woe is me " dire complaint. There’s a point to this, so hang in there a minute or two and read on.
There's a 25-year-old illegal immigrant woman living in Florida , with eight kids. Yes, eight " anchor babies " and she receives just shy of $1,500 per month per kid, plus medical, plus food stamps. Almost $12,000 per month......!!!!
Oh, wait. I've been informed that I shouldn't call them Food Stamps anymore. That's not PC. It's all called “ Social Assistance ” now. You do the math on that yourself. I'd say that she was schooled early in how to make it in the system. Twenty-five years old, eight kids . . . . . yep, she started early.........
You can whip out the calculator if you want, but this woman, who never has paid a dime in taxes of any kind, (and still doesn't – she's ' illegal, ' (remember ?) is here in this country illegally. She hasn’t paid out one cent in medical for all the
“ anchor babies, ” makes more in one month, legally, than I receive in over a year and a half in disability payments and I can't even get food stamps ! Oops, I mean “Social Assistance.”
Technically I am eligible for “ Social Assistance.” I was told it would be a walk through – a gimme – being disabled. No problem, and in the very next breath I was also informed that under the law the amount I received in “Social Assistance” would be deducted from my disability pension.
Let's say I take a great photograph. It was just luck, a one of a kind accident, in the right place at the right time shot. My local newspaper offers me fifty bucks to use the photo in a featured story. (I live in a small town and fifty bucks is all they could afford.) I have to report that fifty dollars to the VA as earned income, which will immediately be deducted from my next month’s disability check. If I don't report it I’m in violation of federal law and technically they can stop my disability pension and prosecute me under a federal felony. Pretty cool, eh ? For fifty bucks.
I see no point in dealing with two federal bureaucracies, so I don't bother. What's the point ?
She's here illegally and with just one kid would make over twice what I receive per month. She has eight and she’s not a stand-out case. She’s not alone. That's the way the system works. Millions of illegal immigrants know this, know how the system works and know how to use it. (Haven't you seen the pamphlet ? It's handed out all along our borders, "The Illegal Immigrants' Guide to Keeping America Just The Way It Is.") and that's just the way it works.............................
Did you know that the federal government provides a “refugee” in this country with a monthly “ stipend ” of $1,890, plus $580 a month in “ Social Assistance ? ” That’s $2,470 a month, tax-free. That's two and a half times what I’m allowed to receive as a disabled vet. And just what did they do to earn this ? All you have to do is show up on our collective doorstep, raise your right hand and swear that you're a refugee and, bingo, receive $30,000 a year, tax-free. That's more than someone making $15 an hour, and they have to pay taxes to boot !
Now, in defense of the Veterans Administration, they are doing what they can with what they've got. This is precious little compared to what they should have to get the job done. At least this country has a VA.
It's the Senate that keeps passing laws, rules and guidelines, cutting their budget, denying requests for more staff and computer systems to handle the massive work flow. Their hands are tied by the very government that's supposed to give them what they need to get the job done, by the government you voted into office. Don't scream at the VA. I have. It's misguided anger...........................
The point to this “ story ? ” Just why are you paying such high taxes to support this incredibly screwed-up government ? Why ? And I’m not proposing you stop paying your taxes. That's wrong. There are good programs and reasons to pay your taxes and support our government.
What am I proposing ? It's quite simple. Vote.
The government, our government, is broken and we as the voters serve as the maintenance crew. We fix it . . . . . by voting. If your state Senator has been in office more than two terms, vote 'em out at the next election. If your state representative has been in office more than two terms, vote 'em out of office. We put term limits on just about every publicly-elected official in the country except the House and Senate.
Why ? Believe me, they know this and love it ! Ahhh - the power !
I don't care how much you believe your Senator or Representative is doing a good job. They're not !!! Look at the government you have....that we have. How can you state they are doing what you want as the voter that put them there ? How ?
Vote them out of office.... Do it.......
Change the course of this country's history by what you are granted and guaranteed under the law. Vote! And if you have the guts, the anger, the outrage, start a petition in your state for a state-wide initiative to be placed on your next state ballot. Limiting the terms of office for your state senators and state representatives to your federal government to two terms.
The federal government will never pass such a law, but you can. You can get it done. You can force it. You can make it a law......................
This is the first step in “getting it right.” Just vote. It's simple. It's easy, dammit !
This first step will send a very clear message. It’ll work. It’ll put “us” back in control of “ them. ” As it should be. As it was intended in the first place......!!!
Are you an American? Born and raised? Then vote !!!
Here's some other staggering facts on immigration:
Cross the North Korean border illegally you get 12 years hard labor.
If you cross the Iranian border illegally you are detained indefinitely.
If you cross the Afghan border illegally, you get shot.
If you cross the Saudi Arabian border illegally you will be jailed.
If you cross the Chinese border illegally you may never be heard from again.
If you cross the Venezuelan border illegally you will be branded a spy and your fate will be sealed.
If you cross the Mexican border illegally you will be jailed for two years.
If you cross the Cuban border illegally you will be thrown into political prison to rot.
If you cross the United States border illegally you get: (ALMOST ALL TRUE)
1 - A job
2 - A driver's license
3 - A Social Security card
4 - Welfare
5 - Food stamps
6 - Credit cards
7 - Subsidized rent or a loan to buy a house
8 - Free education
9 - Free health care
10 - A lobbyist in Washington
11 - Billions of dollars in public documents printed in your language
12 - Millions of servicemen and women who are willing to – and do – die for your right to the ways and means of our constitution
13 - And the right to carry the flag of your country - the one you walked out on – while you call America racist and protest that you don't get enough respect.
I am a disabled vet, which means I receive a veterans administration disability pension, which also means " I'm broke ! " Just one step ahead of being homeless every month, and that's not an idle statement or an " Oh, woe is me " dire complaint. There’s a point to this, so hang in there a minute or two and read on.
There's a 25-year-old illegal immigrant woman living in Florida , with eight kids. Yes, eight " anchor babies " and she receives just shy of $1,500 per month per kid, plus medical, plus food stamps. Almost $12,000 per month......!!!!
Oh, wait. I've been informed that I shouldn't call them Food Stamps anymore. That's not PC. It's all called “ Social Assistance ” now. You do the math on that yourself. I'd say that she was schooled early in how to make it in the system. Twenty-five years old, eight kids . . . . . yep, she started early.........
You can whip out the calculator if you want, but this woman, who never has paid a dime in taxes of any kind, (and still doesn't – she's ' illegal, ' (remember ?) is here in this country illegally. She hasn’t paid out one cent in medical for all the
“ anchor babies, ” makes more in one month, legally, than I receive in over a year and a half in disability payments and I can't even get food stamps ! Oops, I mean “Social Assistance.”
Technically I am eligible for “ Social Assistance.” I was told it would be a walk through – a gimme – being disabled. No problem, and in the very next breath I was also informed that under the law the amount I received in “Social Assistance” would be deducted from my disability pension.
Let's say I take a great photograph. It was just luck, a one of a kind accident, in the right place at the right time shot. My local newspaper offers me fifty bucks to use the photo in a featured story. (I live in a small town and fifty bucks is all they could afford.) I have to report that fifty dollars to the VA as earned income, which will immediately be deducted from my next month’s disability check. If I don't report it I’m in violation of federal law and technically they can stop my disability pension and prosecute me under a federal felony. Pretty cool, eh ? For fifty bucks.
I see no point in dealing with two federal bureaucracies, so I don't bother. What's the point ?
She's here illegally and with just one kid would make over twice what I receive per month. She has eight and she’s not a stand-out case. She’s not alone. That's the way the system works. Millions of illegal immigrants know this, know how the system works and know how to use it. (Haven't you seen the pamphlet ? It's handed out all along our borders, "The Illegal Immigrants' Guide to Keeping America Just The Way It Is.") and that's just the way it works.............................
Did you know that the federal government provides a “refugee” in this country with a monthly “ stipend ” of $1,890, plus $580 a month in “ Social Assistance ? ” That’s $2,470 a month, tax-free. That's two and a half times what I’m allowed to receive as a disabled vet. And just what did they do to earn this ? All you have to do is show up on our collective doorstep, raise your right hand and swear that you're a refugee and, bingo, receive $30,000 a year, tax-free. That's more than someone making $15 an hour, and they have to pay taxes to boot !
Now, in defense of the Veterans Administration, they are doing what they can with what they've got. This is precious little compared to what they should have to get the job done. At least this country has a VA.
It's the Senate that keeps passing laws, rules and guidelines, cutting their budget, denying requests for more staff and computer systems to handle the massive work flow. Their hands are tied by the very government that's supposed to give them what they need to get the job done, by the government you voted into office. Don't scream at the VA. I have. It's misguided anger...........................
The point to this “ story ? ” Just why are you paying such high taxes to support this incredibly screwed-up government ? Why ? And I’m not proposing you stop paying your taxes. That's wrong. There are good programs and reasons to pay your taxes and support our government.
What am I proposing ? It's quite simple. Vote.
The government, our government, is broken and we as the voters serve as the maintenance crew. We fix it . . . . . by voting. If your state Senator has been in office more than two terms, vote 'em out at the next election. If your state representative has been in office more than two terms, vote 'em out of office. We put term limits on just about every publicly-elected official in the country except the House and Senate.
Why ? Believe me, they know this and love it ! Ahhh - the power !
I don't care how much you believe your Senator or Representative is doing a good job. They're not !!! Look at the government you have....that we have. How can you state they are doing what you want as the voter that put them there ? How ?
Vote them out of office.... Do it.......
Change the course of this country's history by what you are granted and guaranteed under the law. Vote! And if you have the guts, the anger, the outrage, start a petition in your state for a state-wide initiative to be placed on your next state ballot. Limiting the terms of office for your state senators and state representatives to your federal government to two terms.
The federal government will never pass such a law, but you can. You can get it done. You can force it. You can make it a law......................
This is the first step in “getting it right.” Just vote. It's simple. It's easy, dammit !
This first step will send a very clear message. It’ll work. It’ll put “us” back in control of “ them. ” As it should be. As it was intended in the first place......!!!
Are you an American? Born and raised? Then vote !!!
Here's some other staggering facts on immigration:
Cross the North Korean border illegally you get 12 years hard labor.
If you cross the Iranian border illegally you are detained indefinitely.
If you cross the Afghan border illegally, you get shot.
If you cross the Saudi Arabian border illegally you will be jailed.
If you cross the Chinese border illegally you may never be heard from again.
If you cross the Venezuelan border illegally you will be branded a spy and your fate will be sealed.
If you cross the Mexican border illegally you will be jailed for two years.
If you cross the Cuban border illegally you will be thrown into political prison to rot.
If you cross the United States border illegally you get: (ALMOST ALL TRUE)
1 - A job
2 - A driver's license
3 - A Social Security card
4 - Welfare
5 - Food stamps
6 - Credit cards
7 - Subsidized rent or a loan to buy a house
8 - Free education
9 - Free health care
10 - A lobbyist in Washington
11 - Billions of dollars in public documents printed in your language
12 - Millions of servicemen and women who are willing to – and do – die for your right to the ways and means of our constitution
13 - And the right to carry the flag of your country - the one you walked out on – while you call America racist and protest that you don't get enough respect.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Happy 4th of July
This is written by a Chaplain in Iraq:
I recently attended a showing of 'Superman 3' here at LSA Anaconda. We have a large auditorium we use for movies, as well as memorial services and other large gatherings. As is the custom at all military bases, we stood to attention when the National Anthem began before the main feature. All was going well until three-quarters of the way through The National Anthem, the music stopped.
Now, what would happen if this occurred with 1,000 18-22 year-olds back in the States? I imagine there would be hoots, catcalls, laughter, a few rude comments, and everyone would sit down and yell for the movie to begin. Of course, that is, if they had stood for the National Anthem in the first place.
Here in Iraq, 1,000 Soldiers continued to stand at attention, eyes fixed forward. The music started again and the Soldiers continued to quietly stand at attention. But again, at the same point, the music stopped. What would you expect 1000 Soldiers standing at attention to do?? Frankly, I expected some laughter, and everyone would eventually sit down and wait for the movie to start.
But No!!... You could have heard a pin drop, while every Soldier continued to stand at attention.
Suddenly, there was a lone voice from the front of the auditorium, then a dozen voices, and soon the room was filled with the voices of a thousand soldiers, finishing where the recording left off: "And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that Star Spangled Banner yet wave, o'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave."
It was the most inspiring moment I have had in Iraq and I wanted you to know what kind of Soldiers are serving you. Remember them as they fight for us! Pass this along as a reminder to others to be ever in prayer for all our soldiers serving us here at home and abroad. Many have already paid the ultimate price.
Written by Chaplain Jim Higgins LSA Anaconda is at the Ballad Airport in Iraq, north of Baghdad.
Please share only if you are so inclined. God Bless America and all of our troops serving throughout the world.
I recently attended a showing of 'Superman 3' here at LSA Anaconda. We have a large auditorium we use for movies, as well as memorial services and other large gatherings. As is the custom at all military bases, we stood to attention when the National Anthem began before the main feature. All was going well until three-quarters of the way through The National Anthem, the music stopped.
Now, what would happen if this occurred with 1,000 18-22 year-olds back in the States? I imagine there would be hoots, catcalls, laughter, a few rude comments, and everyone would sit down and yell for the movie to begin. Of course, that is, if they had stood for the National Anthem in the first place.
Here in Iraq, 1,000 Soldiers continued to stand at attention, eyes fixed forward. The music started again and the Soldiers continued to quietly stand at attention. But again, at the same point, the music stopped. What would you expect 1000 Soldiers standing at attention to do?? Frankly, I expected some laughter, and everyone would eventually sit down and wait for the movie to start.
But No!!... You could have heard a pin drop, while every Soldier continued to stand at attention.
Suddenly, there was a lone voice from the front of the auditorium, then a dozen voices, and soon the room was filled with the voices of a thousand soldiers, finishing where the recording left off: "And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that Star Spangled Banner yet wave, o'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave."
It was the most inspiring moment I have had in Iraq and I wanted you to know what kind of Soldiers are serving you. Remember them as they fight for us! Pass this along as a reminder to others to be ever in prayer for all our soldiers serving us here at home and abroad. Many have already paid the ultimate price.
Written by Chaplain Jim Higgins LSA Anaconda is at the Ballad Airport in Iraq, north of Baghdad.
Please share only if you are so inclined. God Bless America and all of our troops serving throughout the world.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Hamas and Apple Pie ($20 mil to come have pie here)
** HB 1388 PASSED **
Whether you are an Obama fan, or not, EVERYONE IN THE U.S. needs
to know....
Something happened... H.R. 1388 was passed, **behind our backs**.
You may want to read about it... It wasn’t mentioned on the
news... just went by on the ticker tape at the bottom of the CNN
screen.
Obama funds $20M in tax payer dollars to immigrate Hamas Refugees to
the USA . This is the news that didn't make the headlines...
By executive order, President Barack Obama has ordered the
expenditure of $20.3 million in "migration assistance" to the
Palestinian refugees and "conflict victims" in Gaza
The "presidential determination," which allows hundreds of thousands
of Palestinians with ties to Hamas to resettle in the United States
, was signed and appears in the Federal Register.
Few on Capitol Hill, or in the media, took note that the order
provides a free ticket replete with housing and food allowances to
individuals who have displayed their overwhelming support to the
Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the parliamentary election of
January 2006.
Now we learn that he is allowing thousands of Palestinian refugees to
move to, and live in, the US at American taxpayer expense.
These important, and insightful, issues are being "lost" in the
blinding bail-outs and "stimulation" packages.
Doubtful? To verify this for yourself: **www.thefederalregister.com/d.p/2009-02-04-E9-2488*
[http://www.thefederalregister.com/d.p/2009-02-04-E9-2488]
Whether you are an Obama fan, or not, EVERYONE IN THE U.S. needs
to know....
Something happened... H.R. 1388 was passed, **behind our backs**.
You may want to read about it... It wasn’t mentioned on the
news... just went by on the ticker tape at the bottom of the CNN
screen.
Obama funds $20M in tax payer dollars to immigrate Hamas Refugees to
the USA . This is the news that didn't make the headlines...
By executive order, President Barack Obama has ordered the
expenditure of $20.3 million in "migration assistance" to the
Palestinian refugees and "conflict victims" in Gaza
The "presidential determination," which allows hundreds of thousands
of Palestinians with ties to Hamas to resettle in the United States
, was signed and appears in the Federal Register.
Few on Capitol Hill, or in the media, took note that the order
provides a free ticket replete with housing and food allowances to
individuals who have displayed their overwhelming support to the
Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the parliamentary election of
January 2006.
Now we learn that he is allowing thousands of Palestinian refugees to
move to, and live in, the US at American taxpayer expense.
These important, and insightful, issues are being "lost" in the
blinding bail-outs and "stimulation" packages.
Doubtful? To verify this for yourself: **www.thefederalregister.com/d.p/2009-02-04-E9-2488*
[http://www.thefederalregister.com/d.p/2009-02-04-E9-2488]
Saturday, June 12, 2010
The Consequence of Inaction
Turtles...
It’s getting so I almost feel like crying as I watch the news coverage of the oil spill. OK, I did cry. This morning as they discussed how the oil affects the sea turtle’s entire digestive track (ulcers, kidney problems, liver), they cut away to a picture of a little logger head being hand fed in a kiddy pool by volunteers. At the end of the rehabilitation process there’s a problem though: They don’t know where to release the turtles because the shifting mass of petroleum in the ocean could end up anywhere.
I started thinking about that and reminisced about how quickly the ocean flows and moves. Ironically, this was because of something that happened while spear fishing outside a jetty near Gulf Shores, AL with my buddy Turtle. No kidding. We played hockey together growing up, and we all called him Turtle. I never did actually figure out why because he’d been on skates since he was two years old and he was fast as lightning. Anyway, Turtle and I had worked our way along some bottom structure, eventually moving with the current 200 yards or so away from the boat. It was early September and there were jellyfish around, but we were focused on finding something to shoot at, so we weren’t really paying attention to the gelatinous invertebrates that were suddenly everywhere. Everywhere! We were enveloped in 10’s of thousands of jellyfish.
We decided that heading back to the boat was still the best option. The beach by the jetty was at least 400 yards further away. We were snorkeling and our lungs were good so we were able hold our breath as we twisted and gyrated our way through the 3-D maze of dangling stingers. At first it was like an immersive video game as we tried to “get skinny” and use only our flippers with dolphin like kicks to propel our forward motion. However, by the time we got half way back to the anchored boat it became apparent that more than a video game was at stake. Turtle and I had both been lambasted with the stinging tentacles a dozen or so times, and the dolphin kick proved not to be the most effective form of achieving forward motion as we were swimming into the teeth of the shifting current. Accordingly, we changed our strategy. It seemed the less time we spent in the water, the better. We swam freestyle on the surface as fast as we could. I remember thinking, “How many times can we get stung before getting to toxic load and having our throats swell shut?”
After getting safely back to the boat we both clambered up onto the transom deck and jumped inside. Turtle looked like someone had beaten him mercilessly over his entire body with a piece of wet string soaked in Drano. After assessing my outcome it was clear the neither of us could count the number of stings to declare a decisive winner in that contest, so we just hauled it up the Inter-coastal to a dock side bar, scored a couple drafts and some meat tenderizer and vinegar from the kitchen and slathered it all over ourselves (the vinegar counteracts the toxins). Another frosty ale or two helped ease the sting, and we returned back to the rented beach house in time for dinner with nothing but a story. The red streaks left by the stings had faded and we had no cell phone camera to document that we both looked like hell when we got out of that water.
The Gulf is an amazing place. I have prowled the back waters of Apalachicola, caught huge red fish in the pass at St. George’s island and nailed bluefish while watching the sun rise outside the inlet at Perdido Pass. I watched the spectacle of the tarpon run at Boca Grande, and chased sharks and barracuda across the Keys’ flats.
But, as I watched the news this morning, while running images of the wonderful times I’ve had there through the back head, I was just so sad. Admittedly, I well up pretty easily for an old hockey player with a tattoo. In fact, I was once watching ET at the theater with a tight end form University of Kentucky and a running back from Grand Valley state. ET died, and I was flat out sniffling and worried those guys would give my crap about it forever until I looked up to see both of them wiping their own eyes. So, maybe I am overly sensitive, but I guess it just really hit me for the first time that we are totally screwing this up. Those same shifting ocean currents that wrapped Turtle and I in jellyfish one afternoon are now carrying a toxic cloud underneath the petroleum cesspool at the surface and no one knows what the outcome will be. No one knows what will happen when the tar laden amoeba moves over those flats in the Keys. If you run your boat aground on those same flats the Florida Fish and Game folks write you fairly hefty ticket for screwing up the fragile ecosystem that exists on the shallow bottom. How much is the ticket for running a cloud of toxic oil particulates over the entire flats and potentially killing everything?
I am deeply saddened by what I am watching unfold as we deal with more bad data regarding the true scope of this challenge. I work with some great process people and defense sector engineers, and not being able tell the difference between flow rates of 8-12,000 barrels a day 40,000 is, well, in a word implausible. Hello: We’ve all been lied to! So as it’s becoming crystal clear that either the “experts” in charge were about 400% off calculating flow rates for that ruptured pipe, it also becomes obvious that we as a nation are in cloudy and uncharted waters.
In an effort to make this diatribe an impassioned plea for action, I will attempt to temper my frustration with things like the fact that BP’s CEO is spending as much, almost dollar for dollar, on PR as he has given back to the people of the Gulf whose lives have been put and hold and likely changed forever. Yeah, I know. Amazing isn’t it? That fact makes it nearly impossible to not think about what I would do given the chance to apply some of the things I learned studying the martial arts if locked in an elevator alone with that worm…Sorry, again I digress. But here’s what truly enrages me as a citizen: I have seen more of BP CEO Tony Hayward’s mug doing suck up media campaigns than I’ve seen of our president. It’s almost as if his “handlers” have said, “Stay low, don’t get out in front of this thing…it’s a sticky issue.” Well pardon the easy metaphor here too, but it’s turning into a bit of a sticky issue for millions of people, birds, fish, reefs, estuaries, rivers, regional economies, etc.
And now we find history does indeed have a flair for irony, at least as far a politics is concerned. Many of the leaders of the current administration, who will ultimately be held accountable for their inactions in the wake of this spill, were plastered on the news in the days following Katrina casting blame on the Bush administration for failing to act. Here’s another news flash: There were certainly lessons learned from some of the catastrophic failures that made Katrina a massive tragedy. But President Bush and the teams under his charge had decision windows that were open for only a few hours. Mr., President, as I pen this communication it’s now day 54. You’re teams’ decision window has been open quite a bit longer than the one FEMA had to work within as Katrina was rushing headlong into New Orleans.
Prepare Now Please…
I have had the pleasure of meeting retired General Colin Powell, and I try to read or listen to whatever he says. I think he’s just a darned genius. I walked through the living room a couple weeks ago and caught a few minutes of an interview with him. I think it was Meet the Press, and he was asked if we should involve the military in the cleanup effort. In typical Colin Powell fashion he answered the question by outlining the circumstances in which the military could apply things that they do extremely well. He then expounded about how proficient they are with logistics, and that “if” those types of skills were needed then deploying military assets to assist with the problem made sense. I guarantee he knew how many thousands feet of oil absorbent boom material were sitting in inventory in the gulf region at that very moment, and was purposely eluding to the fact that connecting that inventory with the 1,000’s of fisherman crying out to be engaged to do something to help might actually constitute a logistical issue. Again, “Hello?”
As a nation, we can move military personnel and equipment faster than any other. Our military has some of the best logisticians in the world. But, as the relief efforts to earthquake ravaged Haiti illustrated, it still takes days and even weeks to get the supply chains set up. I submit that when we look back upon Colin Powell’s remarks, we will see that there were many points along the way where the current administration, and again forgive the easy metaphor, ‘left 300 school buses parked to be flooded instead of using them to usher hurricane victims out of harm’s way’. I’m just an IT guy with a process background, but shouldn’t we have that absorbent boom at the docks in the hands of the fisherman who are not getting paid with a plan to deploy it?
And again, maybe it’s just me and I’m missing it completely. But, is it wrong that I see more sound bites of the idiot who’s company didn’t have a contingency plan in place for this than I do of our country’s president out in front, leading the charge? This, Mr. President will define your service to this country as Commander in Chief. Given that fact, I was appalled to hear you telling Matt Lauer the other morning on GMA that you were, “…waiting to see whose butt to kick.” If you wife was being assaulted by three men would you wait to see who ended up on top first to engage? News flash: The Gulf is being assaulted.
I am deeply saddened now, but I will be angry later. I told a friend last night that I can count on one hand the number of times I have filled my tank at an Exxon station in the two decades since the Valdez. And that was usually late at night when I was forced to because I ran low on the highway and the only other choice was Citgo. OK, I have my own petroleum political hierarchy, but BP is now on that list. I will never forget seeing that blithering worm of a CEO telling me he will “…make it right” while paying more for the airtime than he his company put forward to help the people of the Gulf region. Prior to the last few weeks I filled up at a BP station about 50 times per annum. I and my $2,500 a year in BP sales are now gone. There will be tens, if not hundreds of thousands more like me who will vote with their wallets in the months and years to come. In November it will likely happen again on another front, and the politicians who roared the loudest after Katrina will stand to see that anyone can be guilty of failing to take action.
The ocean currents that got Turtle and I torn up by those jelly fish are always moving. We don’t really know where, but we sit woefully unprepared and seemingly clueless (8,000 barrels a day or 40,000…Really?).
This is shaping up to be a catastrophe like one we have never known as a nation. Our Chernobyl if you will, except that we are in the process of ‘nuking’ one of the most beautiful areas in the world instead of a few small towns and some Russian prairies. The Gulf is a majestic and wonderful place, and yet we as sit on the edge of ruining it for what could be decades, the face I keep seeing on my TV is that of the nerd who’s company didn’t even it see it coming.
President Obama, at this moment I don’t really give crap about what goes on in the West Bank of the Gaza strip. In the spirit of cooperation, I’ll even stop short of researching the news clips where you and members of your current administration stood behind your respective podiums and lambasted the Bush administration for negligence in its handling of the Katrina tragedy to post on YouTube®. But, with all due respect, might I ask that you go ahead and engage more fully in the oil spill problem solving process. Figuring out “whose butt to kick” seems like non-value add at the moment. If there is not a heightened sense of urgency and steadfast resolve from the top of our “organization” forthcoming soon, this little petroleum problem may define more than your presidency. It may well define a generation.
How about it? Let’s get going on the whole “Do everything we possibly can right now strategy”, because I'm not seeing it. We can sell corner lots with BP stations to pay for it when the worst is behind us. But, a continued failure to act will be even more than unforgivable if the “worst case scenarios” end up being another contingency we didn’t plan for.
It’s getting so I almost feel like crying as I watch the news coverage of the oil spill. OK, I did cry. This morning as they discussed how the oil affects the sea turtle’s entire digestive track (ulcers, kidney problems, liver), they cut away to a picture of a little logger head being hand fed in a kiddy pool by volunteers. At the end of the rehabilitation process there’s a problem though: They don’t know where to release the turtles because the shifting mass of petroleum in the ocean could end up anywhere.
I started thinking about that and reminisced about how quickly the ocean flows and moves. Ironically, this was because of something that happened while spear fishing outside a jetty near Gulf Shores, AL with my buddy Turtle. No kidding. We played hockey together growing up, and we all called him Turtle. I never did actually figure out why because he’d been on skates since he was two years old and he was fast as lightning. Anyway, Turtle and I had worked our way along some bottom structure, eventually moving with the current 200 yards or so away from the boat. It was early September and there were jellyfish around, but we were focused on finding something to shoot at, so we weren’t really paying attention to the gelatinous invertebrates that were suddenly everywhere. Everywhere! We were enveloped in 10’s of thousands of jellyfish.
We decided that heading back to the boat was still the best option. The beach by the jetty was at least 400 yards further away. We were snorkeling and our lungs were good so we were able hold our breath as we twisted and gyrated our way through the 3-D maze of dangling stingers. At first it was like an immersive video game as we tried to “get skinny” and use only our flippers with dolphin like kicks to propel our forward motion. However, by the time we got half way back to the anchored boat it became apparent that more than a video game was at stake. Turtle and I had both been lambasted with the stinging tentacles a dozen or so times, and the dolphin kick proved not to be the most effective form of achieving forward motion as we were swimming into the teeth of the shifting current. Accordingly, we changed our strategy. It seemed the less time we spent in the water, the better. We swam freestyle on the surface as fast as we could. I remember thinking, “How many times can we get stung before getting to toxic load and having our throats swell shut?”
After getting safely back to the boat we both clambered up onto the transom deck and jumped inside. Turtle looked like someone had beaten him mercilessly over his entire body with a piece of wet string soaked in Drano. After assessing my outcome it was clear the neither of us could count the number of stings to declare a decisive winner in that contest, so we just hauled it up the Inter-coastal to a dock side bar, scored a couple drafts and some meat tenderizer and vinegar from the kitchen and slathered it all over ourselves (the vinegar counteracts the toxins). Another frosty ale or two helped ease the sting, and we returned back to the rented beach house in time for dinner with nothing but a story. The red streaks left by the stings had faded and we had no cell phone camera to document that we both looked like hell when we got out of that water.
The Gulf is an amazing place. I have prowled the back waters of Apalachicola, caught huge red fish in the pass at St. George’s island and nailed bluefish while watching the sun rise outside the inlet at Perdido Pass. I watched the spectacle of the tarpon run at Boca Grande, and chased sharks and barracuda across the Keys’ flats.
But, as I watched the news this morning, while running images of the wonderful times I’ve had there through the back head, I was just so sad. Admittedly, I well up pretty easily for an old hockey player with a tattoo. In fact, I was once watching ET at the theater with a tight end form University of Kentucky and a running back from Grand Valley state. ET died, and I was flat out sniffling and worried those guys would give my crap about it forever until I looked up to see both of them wiping their own eyes. So, maybe I am overly sensitive, but I guess it just really hit me for the first time that we are totally screwing this up. Those same shifting ocean currents that wrapped Turtle and I in jellyfish one afternoon are now carrying a toxic cloud underneath the petroleum cesspool at the surface and no one knows what the outcome will be. No one knows what will happen when the tar laden amoeba moves over those flats in the Keys. If you run your boat aground on those same flats the Florida Fish and Game folks write you fairly hefty ticket for screwing up the fragile ecosystem that exists on the shallow bottom. How much is the ticket for running a cloud of toxic oil particulates over the entire flats and potentially killing everything?
I am deeply saddened by what I am watching unfold as we deal with more bad data regarding the true scope of this challenge. I work with some great process people and defense sector engineers, and not being able tell the difference between flow rates of 8-12,000 barrels a day 40,000 is, well, in a word implausible. Hello: We’ve all been lied to! So as it’s becoming crystal clear that either the “experts” in charge were about 400% off calculating flow rates for that ruptured pipe, it also becomes obvious that we as a nation are in cloudy and uncharted waters.
In an effort to make this diatribe an impassioned plea for action, I will attempt to temper my frustration with things like the fact that BP’s CEO is spending as much, almost dollar for dollar, on PR as he has given back to the people of the Gulf whose lives have been put and hold and likely changed forever. Yeah, I know. Amazing isn’t it? That fact makes it nearly impossible to not think about what I would do given the chance to apply some of the things I learned studying the martial arts if locked in an elevator alone with that worm…Sorry, again I digress. But here’s what truly enrages me as a citizen: I have seen more of BP CEO Tony Hayward’s mug doing suck up media campaigns than I’ve seen of our president. It’s almost as if his “handlers” have said, “Stay low, don’t get out in front of this thing…it’s a sticky issue.” Well pardon the easy metaphor here too, but it’s turning into a bit of a sticky issue for millions of people, birds, fish, reefs, estuaries, rivers, regional economies, etc.
And now we find history does indeed have a flair for irony, at least as far a politics is concerned. Many of the leaders of the current administration, who will ultimately be held accountable for their inactions in the wake of this spill, were plastered on the news in the days following Katrina casting blame on the Bush administration for failing to act. Here’s another news flash: There were certainly lessons learned from some of the catastrophic failures that made Katrina a massive tragedy. But President Bush and the teams under his charge had decision windows that were open for only a few hours. Mr., President, as I pen this communication it’s now day 54. You’re teams’ decision window has been open quite a bit longer than the one FEMA had to work within as Katrina was rushing headlong into New Orleans.
Prepare Now Please…
I have had the pleasure of meeting retired General Colin Powell, and I try to read or listen to whatever he says. I think he’s just a darned genius. I walked through the living room a couple weeks ago and caught a few minutes of an interview with him. I think it was Meet the Press, and he was asked if we should involve the military in the cleanup effort. In typical Colin Powell fashion he answered the question by outlining the circumstances in which the military could apply things that they do extremely well. He then expounded about how proficient they are with logistics, and that “if” those types of skills were needed then deploying military assets to assist with the problem made sense. I guarantee he knew how many thousands feet of oil absorbent boom material were sitting in inventory in the gulf region at that very moment, and was purposely eluding to the fact that connecting that inventory with the 1,000’s of fisherman crying out to be engaged to do something to help might actually constitute a logistical issue. Again, “Hello?”
As a nation, we can move military personnel and equipment faster than any other. Our military has some of the best logisticians in the world. But, as the relief efforts to earthquake ravaged Haiti illustrated, it still takes days and even weeks to get the supply chains set up. I submit that when we look back upon Colin Powell’s remarks, we will see that there were many points along the way where the current administration, and again forgive the easy metaphor, ‘left 300 school buses parked to be flooded instead of using them to usher hurricane victims out of harm’s way’. I’m just an IT guy with a process background, but shouldn’t we have that absorbent boom at the docks in the hands of the fisherman who are not getting paid with a plan to deploy it?
And again, maybe it’s just me and I’m missing it completely. But, is it wrong that I see more sound bites of the idiot who’s company didn’t have a contingency plan in place for this than I do of our country’s president out in front, leading the charge? This, Mr. President will define your service to this country as Commander in Chief. Given that fact, I was appalled to hear you telling Matt Lauer the other morning on GMA that you were, “…waiting to see whose butt to kick.” If you wife was being assaulted by three men would you wait to see who ended up on top first to engage? News flash: The Gulf is being assaulted.
I am deeply saddened now, but I will be angry later. I told a friend last night that I can count on one hand the number of times I have filled my tank at an Exxon station in the two decades since the Valdez. And that was usually late at night when I was forced to because I ran low on the highway and the only other choice was Citgo. OK, I have my own petroleum political hierarchy, but BP is now on that list. I will never forget seeing that blithering worm of a CEO telling me he will “…make it right” while paying more for the airtime than he his company put forward to help the people of the Gulf region. Prior to the last few weeks I filled up at a BP station about 50 times per annum. I and my $2,500 a year in BP sales are now gone. There will be tens, if not hundreds of thousands more like me who will vote with their wallets in the months and years to come. In November it will likely happen again on another front, and the politicians who roared the loudest after Katrina will stand to see that anyone can be guilty of failing to take action.
The ocean currents that got Turtle and I torn up by those jelly fish are always moving. We don’t really know where, but we sit woefully unprepared and seemingly clueless (8,000 barrels a day or 40,000…Really?).
This is shaping up to be a catastrophe like one we have never known as a nation. Our Chernobyl if you will, except that we are in the process of ‘nuking’ one of the most beautiful areas in the world instead of a few small towns and some Russian prairies. The Gulf is a majestic and wonderful place, and yet we as sit on the edge of ruining it for what could be decades, the face I keep seeing on my TV is that of the nerd who’s company didn’t even it see it coming.
President Obama, at this moment I don’t really give crap about what goes on in the West Bank of the Gaza strip. In the spirit of cooperation, I’ll even stop short of researching the news clips where you and members of your current administration stood behind your respective podiums and lambasted the Bush administration for negligence in its handling of the Katrina tragedy to post on YouTube®. But, with all due respect, might I ask that you go ahead and engage more fully in the oil spill problem solving process. Figuring out “whose butt to kick” seems like non-value add at the moment. If there is not a heightened sense of urgency and steadfast resolve from the top of our “organization” forthcoming soon, this little petroleum problem may define more than your presidency. It may well define a generation.
How about it? Let’s get going on the whole “Do everything we possibly can right now strategy”, because I'm not seeing it. We can sell corner lots with BP stations to pay for it when the worst is behind us. But, a continued failure to act will be even more than unforgivable if the “worst case scenarios” end up being another contingency we didn’t plan for.
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