We've Heard This Before

Palin in 2008 sounds just like Bush in 2000.

Brined Pork Chops with Spicy Chutney Barbecue Sauce

Brining the pork chops gives taste and tenderness that you can't get otherwise. The brine solution, minus the chili powder, would be great for grilling pork chops even without making the barbecue sauce.

The recipe for the pork chops is here.

The link on that page to the Spicy Chutney Barbecue Sauce doesn't work for me, but this link does. The sauce is killer.

Kinda Doesn't Matter??

When Katie Couric asked Sarah Palin whether global warming is manmade, Palin's response included “Kinda doesn’t matter at this point…what caused it,”

Generally, in crafting solutions to problems, the cause of the problem kinda does matter, doesn't it?

Count me in with the boys who don't mind the idea of a girl president. We want one of the smart girls, though, not one of the mean ones.

Everyone Spins

Spinmeisters are everywhere.

Consider this story about an effigy of Barack Obama found hanging from a tree at George Fox University, with writing referring to minority scholarship students at the university:

Late Tuesday night, a university spokesman confirmed to Newschannel 8 that someone discovered the life-sized effigy of Barack Obama around 7 a.m. Tuesday.

It was hanging from the neck with fishing line at the campus communications building, a campus spokesman confirmed.

I noticed in the radio interviews as well as the print stories that the college's spokesmen are very careful and consistent to refer to it as a "cutout attached to a tree," rather than using the words "effigy," "hanging," or "from the neck."

Rob Felton, a spokesperson for the university, described the item as a “cardboard cut out” of Obama which had the words "act six reject" written on it.

School officials immediately took it down.

Using weasel words to stay relentlessly "on message" has become SOP.

Question du jour

"If you were President right now, what policy would you propose for dealing with the impending insolvency of the investment banks of this country?"

It seems kind of like asking, "What's the best way to saw off your own arm, to save your life?"

The Bush Strategy

Privatize the profits.

Socialize the losses.

Careful Preparation For Fannie/Freddie Takeover

Why was the government so well prepared to bail out Fannie & Freddie, having sought the legislative authority to do so months in advance while proclaiming they had no plans to use those powers?

The Chinese, that’s why. With our trade deficit for so many years, the Chinese own a massive amount of U.S. Government debt instruments. The bonds for Fannie and Freddie were backed by the faith and credit of the U.S. Government. If the U.S. Government lets the values of those bonds go to zero, the Chinese call the rest of their debts and it is game over. The Fannie/Freddie takeover lets the value of Fannie/Freddie stock go to zero
if it wants to, but keeps the value of the bonds under the protection of the U.S. Government.

When Bill Clinton and his team entered the White House, they were shocked to find out how much their priorities and options were limited by the needs of the financial markets. James Carville was heard to say that when he died, he wanted to be reincarnated as the bond market, because he had learned that it was the most powerful force on Earth.

Could George Bush's Presidency Be Any Worse For The Country?

We're about to find out.

George Bush was warned about bin Laden wanting to fly airliners into buildings in August, 2001. He was on vacation at the time, and there is no evidence that he took any action whatsoever. The World Trade Center towers came down in September, 2001.

He launched a war and occupation of Iraq, taking resources away from the hunt for and fight against bin Laden in Afghanistan.

He took a government surplus and turned it into the biggest deficit in history.

He stayed on vacation while a major American city drowned in Hurricane Katrina.

He has placed American troops in perpetual jeopardy by making it clear to the world that we do not honor the Geneva Conventions.

One of the most damaging things he has done to this country was to make Karl Rove's brand of politics successful, tempting Bush's would be successors with the notions that lying, polarization, and abuse of government power to solidify political gains can succeed.

But all this may soon pale next to the impending financial meltdown that seems about to follow the laissez-faire approach of not restricting or regulating the financial industry, an industry that seems to have turned the banks in this country into internet casinos.

Had enough?

Palin Loves Spending Taxpayer $$$

Let's look at her record.

As mayor of Wasilla:

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a “fiscal conservative”. During her 6
years as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over
33%. During those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the
City increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation
(1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a
regressive sales tax which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she
promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they
benefited residents.

The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration
weren’t enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowed
money was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it
with indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage
the voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said
she supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or a
new library? No. $1m for a park. $15m-plus for construction of a
multi-use sports complex which she rushed through to build on a piece
of property that the City didn’t even have clear title to, that was
still in litigation 7 yrs later--to the delight of the lawyers
involved! The sports complex itself is a nice addition to the
community but a huge money pit, not the profit-generator she claimed it
would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5m for road projects that
could have been done in 5-7 yrs without any borrowing.

While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her office
redecorated more than once.

As governor of Alaska:

She pursued and got more federal taxpayer earmark money per person for Alaska than was received by any other state. Remember the oft-repeated line that "I told Congress thanks, but no thanks, for the bridge to nowhere." The facts are that Congress told her that she could not build a bridge with that money, but that Alaska could have the money anyway. She took the money. So much for "no thanks." So much for saving money through resolute action. She took no action to prevent that money from coming to her state, despite the growing numbers of times she asserts that she did.

Alaska pays state workers traveling on state business a per day allowance for expenses. Since Gov. Palin took office in 2006, she has billed the state about $17,000 for over 300 days of travel per diem while staying at her home, rather than at the state capital in Juneau.

She pursued and got earmarked federal funds to study crab and seal genetics, although she and John McCain now ridicule genetic studies of bears in Montana as a ridiculous example of federal waste.

Her record is pretty short, but it is clear.

Sarah Palin - Heaven Help You If You Cross Her

One of the things that catches my attention about Sarah Palin's record in government is the pattern of trying to take away the job of anyone who crosses her.

As mayor of Wasilla, Palin wanted to ban certain books from the public library. When the librarian opposed this, Palin tried to fire the librarian. Anne Kilkenny wrote:

While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin’s attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the Librarian are on her enemies list to this day.

She fired Wasilla's police chief, saying that he "intimidated" her.

She wanted Alaska's top cop to fire her sister's ex, a State Trooper. When Walt Monegan, Commissioner of Public Safety wouldn't do so, she fired Monegan instead.

Soaring ambition and ruthlessness combined are a dangerous package.

Why now?

My father asks which roads led to Yeats. "The Gentleman of Galway," he calls Yeats.

It came about through reading The New Yorker and The Economist.

Every so often I get curious about how people beyond the west coast and people beyond the USA view the world.. I will pick up a copy of The Economist, which is predisposed favorably towards captains of industry, and a copy of The New Yorker, where they are not. Afterwards, enlightened depression usually makes me feel that I don't need to do that again for a while.

I read James Surowiecke in the New Yorker, who wrote:

"But for now we are stuck in a Yeatsian market: the best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity. Let's hope the center can hold."

I read that, and thought those words applicable to a lot more than economic markets just now. This led to a reacquaintance with the poem, which led to its posting.

The Patron Saint of Barbecue

From the Wikipedia entry about unusual deaths:

258: St Lawrence was executed by being burned or 'grilled' on a large metal gridiron at Rome. Images of him often show him holding the instrument of his execution. Legend says that he was so strong-willed that instead of giving in to the Romans and releasing information about the Church, at the point of death he exclaimed "Manduca, iam coctum est." ("Eat, for it is well done.")

William Butler Yeats

The Second Coming

TURNING and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

You Can't Get It Here

We live in the U.S., population over 300 million. Commerce has become our religion. Yet, there are products readily available in Europe, Africa, and Australia that I can't buy here (yet).

Schweppes Lemonade is a case in point. This is not that awful high corn syrup stuff they call lemonade on American soft drink shelves. This is grownup lemonade, with a taste that can stand alone or be be quite good mixed with a little something.

That something need not be alcoholic, not that there's anything wrong with that. So far, the best pairing we've found is mixed with a bit of Rose's Passionfruit Cordial Blend to make a Passionfruit Lemonade. You have no idea how good this is. A little gin can also be a good thing.



While poking around for links as part of this post, I found this U.S. outfit which sells the stuff. Apparently, they make their living by obtaining Australian goodies which otherwise, You Can't Get Here. I have not yet found a U.S. source for the Rose's yet.

Chinese Computer Spying

There is an official Beijing Olympics web site which offers screensavers of Olympic images.

It turns out that when you install the screensaver, you are also installing a program which logs your keystrokes and reports out.

What chutzpah.

Many Are Called, But Few Are Chosen

I submitted four photos to the Oregon Salon of Photography at the Oregon State Fair.

The letter arrived yesterday (for Patricia Fitzgerald, I might add) saying that one of the four received a score from the judges that qualified it to be exhibited at the 31st Oregon Salon of Photography. The letter noted that 447 of the 1010 prints entered were accepted for display.

This photo is the one that is part of the exhibit:

7th Anniversary

7 years ago today, George W. Bush received a President's Daily Brief entitled "Bin Laden Determined To Strike In US."

Mr. Bush was on vacation at the time. The next day, newspaper stories described Mr. Bush's mood:

"Bush seemed carefree as he spoke about the books he was reading, the work he was doing on his nearby ranch, his love of hot-weather jogging, his golf game and his 55th birthday."

Bin Laden is still free and still determined to strike in the US, isn't he? And as far as I can tell, Mr. Bush is still pretty much on vacation.

Photos of Animals From The Hunt

There is a web gallery of photos of the animals we took while on safari at this link.

It followed me home, Mom, can I keep it?

On returning from Africa, they asked at Customs if I had brought back any animals. I answered "no," believing that answer to be correct.

However, about a week before my return to the U.S., I punctured and scratched the skin on my right ankle in some of central Namibia's many thorn bushes. On the plane ride home, that area began to itch intensely. When I got home, this is what I saw:



Anyone who wants to use the comments section to identify what you are seeing in the photo may go right ahead.

Lawrence of Nambia? Or Sheikh Yerbouti?

I report. You decide.

I expect that if any photo attracts attention to the "comments" feature of this blog, it might be this one.