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Let Them Eat Cake…said (more or less) Virginia Foxx

Virginia Foxx: Congress Doesn’t Need To Make College Affordable virginia-foxx

Talk about an elitist attitude…if it were not for Pell Grants (from the federal government) and a supportive wife I would never have made it through college. I would have spent my life working in warehouses and factories for not very much money.

And do not get me started on these for profit colleges like Phoenix. There have been multiple studies showing that they fail to prepare students for jobs and are exceeding expensive. If we are to spend tax dollars at these for profit schools, there should be some accountability.

And why I am at it, why have they privatized the student loan program?

Are For-Profit Colleges a Rip-off?

For-Profit Colleges Hemorrhaging Students

For-profit College Graduates Barely Earn More Than High School Graduates

In a different vein
Education Pays

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BR-549

tumblr_kw4eqwmOEY1qzfipuo1_400Tonight I had to explain to my urban, Jewish girlfriend the significance of BR-549.  I mistakenly told her to give me a call at that number.

Of course, that is the phone number of Junior Samples Car Sales from Hee Haw.  I then had to remind her what Hee Haw was.   I went on to expound that there is also a country music group called BR549.  The origin, however, is deeper than either Hee Haw or country music. It originated with the International Harvester BR–549 engine which was used in larger farm trucks. It was a Broad-Ringed (BR) 549 Cubic Inch monster of an engine.

I am still wondering how to get the glazed look off of her face.

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Ted Nugent is some scary sh**!

ted-nugent2Ted Nugent’s response to the Zimmerman case: http://rare.us/story/nugent-zimmerman-verdict-vindicates-citizen-patrols-self-defense/

This is some scary sh**! Ted Nugent is some scary sh**! Anyway you look at the Zimmerman/Martin encounter, it was a huge tragedy.

I really do not know anything about Travan Martin, but looking at his face he appears to be a really nice young man. I think of myself as pretty much non-violent and I do not recall ever starting a fight. A few times when I have been backed into a corner I have fought, and I was pretty much nuts and was determined to do great damage. That is probably where Travan was at, backed into a corner. It is a real shame there was a gun in the mix, otherwise it would have probably ended with two guys with a lot of bruises and scraps.  I really wonder if George Zimmerman would have had the “courage” to stalk this young man if he had not been carrying a concealed weapon.  I am guessing, no.

The thought of so many folks running around with concealed weapons chills my bones. I don’t own a gun, and I really cannot think of a reason why I should unless I suddenly get the need to hunt for food.

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Gambler Jack and Guns

I used to know a fine fellow named Jack.  Jack was very smart, very rough and a gambler. He spent a lot of time in places I would not have the courage to go.

I asked him one time if he was not a little scared and did he carry a gun.

His answer has stuck with me to this day. He said,” If you carried a gun and pulled it out and used it you were in trouble. If you carried a gun and pulled it out and did not use it you were in another sort of trouble. So why carry a gun, it was just trouble either way.”

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Jeremiah

We went to dinner tonight with another couple. The hostess sat us and informed us that Jeremiah would be our server.

I asked, “Is he a bullfrog?”

There was a blank look on the hostess’ face.

I added, “A 3 Dog Night song.”

Even blanker look on her face.

Sigh.

Jeremiah however was well versed in Jeremiah lore.

I asked, ‘Do you know who Jeremiah is?”

He responded, “Jeremiah Johnson, Jeremiah the Bullfrog or Jeremiah the prophet?”

There may be some hope for the younger set.

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War and Peace

warpeaceI knew very little about War and Peace before I read the book except it written b a Russian Leo Tolstoy and it was very long.  It is long, about 1300 pages in paperback.   By comparison the Harry Potter box set is 4167 pages with the print admittedly larger. I think the majority of us have read all the Harry Potter books.

This is not an attempt to review such a classic, but perhaps some impetus for someone to read this worthy book.

It is an historical novel.  It uses the fortunes of several folks to move the narrative forward.   It is a love story, but certainly not in the vein of Jane Austen.  Tolstoy brings the characters alive to point that you do care what happens to them.  Will Natasha marry the Prince?  Will Princess Mary ever find happiness?  How long will Count Bezukhov put up with his wayward wife?  Will the Rostovas go bust before the novel ends?  I had to remind myself it was normal for those times.  I found it a little creepy that  30 and 40 year old men were chasing the main love interest of the story,  16 year old Natasha.  Apparently if you were not married by the time you were 17 or 18 your were an old maid.  People were not so worried about marrying for love, but in making a match that increased the family’s finances.

It is a history of Russia from about 1800 to 1813 or so.  The epilogue goes past those dates.  It is the story of Bonaparte’s invasion into Russia and the Russian response.  Continue reading “War and Peace”

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My Girlfriend Attempts to Poison Me


poisonousA few years back Robin and I signed up to take field class on identifying edible mushrooms in Missouri.  I ended up with a  conflict and could not make the class, but Robin went.  She came back that Saturday evening with a bag full of edible wild mushrooms and a chest full of excitement.

About a week later she decides to go mushroom hunting on her own in a local park, Faust Park, which has several heavily wooded acres.  She comes home again with a chest full of excitement and bags full of wild mushrooms.  However, this time she did not have an expert teacher with her, and she did not really know what she had.  She spread her bounty upon newspapers on the bar between the kitchen and the eating area.  I had loaned her my mushroom identification book so she was hoping to identify what she had gathered. Continue reading “My Girlfriend Attempts to Poison Me”

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Dissed by a Little Rascal

In the early 70’s my father’s job took him overseas again.  My mother and my three youngest siblings went with him.  ShirleyJeanRickert2This left me living alone in Rhode Island.  A fourth brother was living in Oklahoma.  My cousin’s husband had recently graduated college with an art degree.   He found work in a regional theatre company in Springfield, MA.  Being Okies (less in my case, more in her case) and relatives living in the East we would visited occasionally.

Her husband Steve worked as a set designer for the theatre.  Also at the theatre was a former member of the comedic series Our Gang (also known as The Little Rascals), Shirley Jean Rickert.  She worked as the theatre’s secretary, and she would occasionally act.

One of my visits was just after successfully opening of a new play.  Someone was putting on a party for the production crew.  My cousins dragged me along to this party.  I say drag as I am still not much on parties, and at that point in my life I was painfully shy.  Ms. Rickert was there. Continue reading “Dissed by a Little Rascal”

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Insurance Companies: Not Price Fixing, But Just As Bad

Name a product you must have if you own a home. If you said homeowner’s insurance give yourself a pat on the back. Even as a renter it is a wise idea to have renter’s insurance to protect losses from burglary, fire, etc.

greedNow name the one thing you should not do with these policies. If you said make a claim give yourself another pat on the back.

I live with my girlfriend who owns her house outright. She has been with the same insurance company for many, many years. I will not name names as I have come to learn these companies are vindictive. Just as an aside my girlfriend is financially stable, has been employed steadily for the last 25 years as a teacher, and has a good credit rating.

Several years ago due reasons beyond her control there a sewage backup that ruined practically everything on the first floor and the basement of her house. The company graciously took care of everything. Continue reading “Insurance Companies: Not Price Fixing, But Just As Bad”

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The War on Drugs Has Unacceptable Costs

massincarceration_20110617_0
Click to see in larger size

This outrages me. If I was a person of color I would be beyond outrage. Then you add onto the statistics the fact that we are spending more on incarceration than we are spending on higher education while we are importing skilled labor because supposedly we do not have the skill sets in the U.S.A.

We have our priorities wrong on so many fronts.

The graphic is from the ACLU website