Category: Rev. Joe Dirt’s Ramblings

The unsolicited, unreasoned, uninformed, unapologetic opinions of Rev. Joe Dirt

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Tin Foil Hat Conspiracy

I have a correspondent, a fellow reprobate like myself, from the northern hinterlands of Chicago. He sent me the following musings that struck a note with me.

While watching the riot news last night I had a moment of conspiratorial déjà vu. I’ve seen this stuff before. I immediately put my Tin Foil Hat on and began to think back in history. I remember the Civil Rights riots in the 60’s in Watts, Detroit, Newark, Chicago, Philadelphia, and a whole lot of other cities. Those riots and demonstrations, including the Anti-War protests, the Women’s Rights and Gay Rights protests, usually had an element of police crackdown and brutality. They also resulted in a strong push back by whites. In 1968 Richard Nixon used that push back to help him win the White House. Continue reading “Tin Foil Hat Conspiracy”

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #5,855

yeah I know you did not ask!

Last Christmas I was given a gift card to Half Price Books.  Works for me as normally folks do not read the print off the page, and why pay full price. This is especially true as much of my reading is not necessarily of the latest books hot off the press.

So, with gift card in hand, I made the sojourn to the nearest Half Price Book store about 3 miles from the house.  After wandering around for a while, I had a few books in hand, but I still had a bit of money left on the card.  I passed the rack of calendars, and realized I did not have a 2020 calendar for my man cave.  After discarding calendars of cute cats or puppies, impressive landscapes, inspiring quotes, I was torn between one of a science fiction theme and one of Kama Sutra illustrations.  One of the folks I work with on my Spanish is from Guatemala.  He sometimes refers to me as Viejo Verde. Living up to my reputation I bought the calendar with drawings based on the ancient Indian Sanskrit text on sexuality, eroticism and emotional fulfillment in life.

So far I have not attempted any of the postures depicted.  Just looking at them daily has forced me to visit the chiropractor and get a script for muscle relaxers.  I am assuming the ancients had bones of rubber.

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Experts Rate The Risks Of 14 Summer Activities

Here is a link to an article that is on the St Louis Public Radio site. Enjoy!

Link to article about risks

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Word of the Day – Canard

  • Noun: Canard
    1.  false or unfounded report or story especially a fabricated report: The report about a conspiracy proved to be a canard.
    2. a groundless rumor or belief:  The widespread canard that every lawyer is dishonest
    3. an airplane with horizontal stabilizing and control surfaces in front of supporting surfaces also : a small airfoil in front of the wing of an aircraft that can increase the aircraft’s performance
  • Synonyms:
    1.   hoax
    2. exaggeration
    3. fabrication
    4. fib
    5. rumor
    6. spoof
    7. swindle
  • Usage:
    1. “In London that night poor Henderson’s telegram describing the gradual unscrewing of the shot was judged to be a canard, and his evening paper, after wiring for authentication from him and receiving no reply—the man was killed—decided not to print a special edition. .”
  • Encountered:
    1. While rereading H. G. Wells, The War of the Worlds

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Just as an aside:  I read most of the more popular H. G. Wells stories as a teenager. At that time they were essentially science fiction for me.  I’ve spent the last few days rereading 6 of his novels.  This time around, yes – they are science fiction, but they can be read as social commentary also.  For instances, in this novel, a large portion of it was allotted to how quickly society broke under extraordinary pressure, and how badly many people behaved. Add in there a willingness of many people to play ostrich and ignore what is in front of their eyes.

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Republican Platform

I just read (maybe reread) H. G. Wells, The First Men in the Moon. I sometimes think that in a previous life I must have lived either either Great Britain or Russia during the 1800s.  For some reason that literature talks to me.  Anyhoo…

The narrator, the companion of the scientist protagonist of Well’s novel, finding themselves in a pickle on the moon, delivers the following commentary:

“It’s this accursed science,” I cried. “It’s the very Devil. The mediæval priests and persecutors were right and the Moderns are all wrong. You tamper with it—and it offers you gifts. And directly you take them it knocks you to pieces in some unexpected way. Old passions and new weapons—now it upsets your religion, now it upsets your social ideas, now it whirls you off to desolation and misery!”

As I read that it dawned on me that the Republican Party must have lifted that line verbatim to put into their party’s platform.

Just in case inquiring minds wanted to know.

Keep well.

 

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Towel Day – May 25th

Even a casual fan of science fiction is well aware of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and its sequels by Douglas Adams. As literature they are no great shake, but as entertainment they work very well.  They have made a movie and tried a TV series.  I generally like the book better than the movie and it holds in this case.

The basic premise is that just before earth is destroyed Continue reading “Towel Day – May 25th”

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I can be a little ornery at times…

6 years ago I sneaked onto my bride’s Facebook page and posted this as if she had written it.  Fortunately, she did not beam me with a frying pan.

David has been crying the BLUES about missing the South. One of the things he misses is crepe myrtle. Do you know how hard it is find any that will grow in zone 6 aka St. Louis? Well, I found some. 3 of the suckers for $150. I planted those puppies along our property line. 2 red crepe myrtles and one pink. The son-of-a-sea-biscuit better stop the alligator tears about a blue bayou now.

Tee hee hee…

Did I hear someone say, “A little ornery? At times?”

After 6 years the crepe myrtle is still going strong, but they have never gotten tall like they do down south.  They basically die back to ground level every winter, and start fresh shoots at ground level in the spring.  They are very pretty in the middle of the summer.

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Keep Well, Go Well

I just finished listening to the audio book of Alan Paton’s  Cry, The Beloved Country. This is a wonderful book in whatever format it is experienced.  However, the reader of the audio book was absolutely perfect, pegging the South African accents of various peoples.

The book was published in 1948 and set in 1946.  It is a book of many flavors including that of a cautionary tale.  Knowing a little of the history of South Africa after  Continue reading “Keep Well, Go Well”

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #1,282

yeah I know you did not ask!

I have no idea if there is a god or not.   I am reasonable sure there is not a personal god like they speak of in various religious texts.  Given that, I really do not believe there is a devil.  However for some reason the lyrics to the Blood, Sweat & Tears song And When I Die comes to mind just about now.

One of my favorite quotes is from the singer/composer/actor Tom Waits which goes a little something like this… “Don’t you know there ain’t no devil, it’s just god when he’s drunk.”

That quote came to me in the middle of the night as I was staring at the ceiling reflecting on current events.  I decided if there is any truth to that quote then god must be a binge drinker and he is on a hell of a bender long about now.