A Snake

My dog and I saw a snake today when we went for a walk at the park. This is the first time I've ever seen a snake there. It's a "freak out" moment when you look down and see one.

It happened like this. The dog was a little ways ahead of me and I saw her jump funny, and I immediately thought that might indicate a snake. But when I got there there wasn't a snake. So I thought she must have been freaked out by something that she wasn't expecting, like if she hit a stick with her back leg or something.

And then we walked on another 10 feet and 15 seconds later, the dog jumped again real funny and I looked down and jumped too! There was a snake. It was wriggling, but then came to a stop and was just looking up. I was able to snap the picture.

I'm thinking that the first time she jumped that there must have been a snake that time, too, going into a hole, which would explain why I didn't see it.

That is such a weird thing to see, freaking out both man and dog. Something very primal going on there.

Carter: McCain "Milking" POW Story

Jimmy Carter is a wise, wise man. He declares that McCain has been "milking every possible drop of advantage" from his time as a POW.

This has been obvious, but it's great to hear someone as wise as Carter saying it.

On the other hand, think of McCain. He had 5½ years when he wasn't able to milk things, so maybe he does have a right to milk it now.

But as for the benefits McCain's getting from the story, let him milk it because that old teat's going dry!

Overheard Retail Grousing

Walking out of a hardware store, overheard comments, someone grousing like this, "Have a nice day." The other wondering why she said that. Because, she says, I was in retailing myself, and a checkout person is supposed to say, "Have a nice day." Apparently the checkout person didn't say it, and this was a cause for some mild anger.

Not Rich Till $5 Million Income

Here's our first kick rating. We could pick no better (worse) a recipient than the always deserving John McCain.

We're going to be merciful on this one because there was an element of joking in his answer. But he probably deserves an extra kick simply because of all the joking, since these are serious issues and serious issues ought to be addressed once in a while in a serious way. We're quite sick of McCain joking about everything. When does the guy get serious? Oh yeah, when Georgia's in trouble. But if America's in trouble, he's nothing but laughs.

Yet mercy shall prevail on this, our first kick rating. McCain, in a question on who's rich, expressed his opinion that you need an income of $5 million to be considered rich in America. So $4 million wouldn't qualify.

OK, how can the average guy relate to McCain, since we all know average incomes are well below $2 million a year? With an answer like this, McCain shows himself to be an out of touch elitist. For that reason, we approach McCain's wrinkly butt and swiftly apply three well deserved kicks. Count them as the foot makes contact with his bottom: 1 - 2 - 3. Not one over, not one under. Justice deserved, justice served.

The Leg's Still Kickin'

What I need is a blog gimmick. Such as with Boy Leg, obviously the gimmick could relate to kicking. Put up a story that's outrageous, such as McCain questioning Obama's patriotism. That gets five kicks. The big difference with stars is that the more stars you get the better it is, but the more kicks you get the worse it is.

Kicking, that's about all I can think of relating to legs. To "knee" someone is a little farfetched. You can't give someone five knees to the groin. One, it's very limiting, and even though five knees to the groin would hurt anyone, it's more gender specific as to who would receive the most damage.

The downside of a kicking gimmick is that what if it was a story that wasn't outrageous, something to criticize. To give them one kick is still a negative response. But what response could a leg give that would be positive? If you went with 'playing footsie' that's getting away from the overall theme.

It could be -- and would likely to have to be -- that the kicks are reserved only for outrageous things deserving a kick. But that puts me in one major rut, in that everything I judge would have to be negatively rated.

Mamma Mia Soundtrack

I got the Mamma Mia! soundtrack CD today. I don't usually buy soundtracks, maybe especially, not that there are so many cases of this, where the movie stars sing the songs.

But this time I really loved the film and thought the songs were great. Still, I'm thinking, it's almost 15 bucks. But I took the plunge anyway. I'm glad I did.

The songs not only recall the film, and that's happy, but they're really good, nice sounding. They sound better on the CD, maybe because there isn't all the other sound effects and things from the movie. The vocals are nice and punchy, very well done. And the instruments of course are crystal clear and lively, great.

My only complaint is that in "Honey, Honey" they have Amanda Seyfried laughing some of the lyrics, as in the film. I would have preferred to have a straight version without those laughs. One other note, which isn't really a complaint, is that they left off "Waterloo," but it was a kind of bonus in the film and wasn't part of the film proper.

Feingold Praises McCain

Come on, Russ Feingold! Get your head out of there! It's bad for your posture, and, anyway, toilet paper's not that expensive.

Hate Stopped at Border

The Westboro "church" protest of a Canadian funeral seems to be a no go.

Canadian border guards are under orders to prevent members of a fundamentalist American church from crossing into Canada to protest at the funeral Saturday of a Winnipeg man brutally killed on a Greyhound bus last week."

Entering Canada by a U.S. citizen isn't an absolute right, and if you're coming here only to disrupt the social order and to promote what we consider to be bordering on hate crimes or hate language, they shouldn't come into Canada," [Winnipeg MP Pat] Martin said.

So, see, once in while there's good news to report!

Who's the Elitist?

Good quote from Ed Rollins on McCain's attempt to paint Obama as some kind of elitist:

"It's a nice try, but he's not an elitist. That's not a sustained campaign tactic. Here was someone who grew up with nothing versus the son of four-star admirals. It's a nice try and a good diversion in the first part of August, but painting him as an elitist is not a winning strategy going into the fall."

Someone who grew up with nothing ... versus ... the son of four-star admirals.

Republicans Claim Congress Stunt Lowered Gas Prices

Maybe you've heard that Republican members of Congress have stayed around after the recess, talking, apparently, maybe hooting and hollering for all I know, about gas prices and offshore drilling. The stunt of course coincides with an election year.

An apt question for these losers might be ... Why in all the years that the Republicans controlled the House and the Senate and the Presidency didn't you do anything about this problem that is now so all-important a few months before the 2008 election? But I'm afraid they'd give me an answer, a lot of hot air, talking points, in a spin doctor voice like Foghorn Leghorn.

One might sit back and ponder, Is this the best the United States of America can do, is this the best we can hope for? Government of special interests, by special interests, and for special interests? A lot of halfwits who don't have a clue what to do except they get their talking points and spin from somewhere on high in the party? A party that will simply lie to your face and act like that makes them patriots? I have a feeling criminals are running things, but, hey, that's just me.

As we all know, gas prices have gone down 10, maybe 20+ cents or so in the last few weeks. Well, guess who's taking credit for this? (In addition to the prayer group praying for lower gas prices at the pump in St. Louis.) That's right, these same Republican representatives in Congress! They have been there talking away and coincidentally the prices went down. It was not just a coincidence!

There's a great paragraph in that article: "The Republican members did not answer questions about whether they would take the blame if gas prices go up again." I can answer that question by posing another question: When's the last time they took the blame for anything? They never have, so the answer is no.

Anyway, we welcome their great help! Keep talking, Republicans, and if gas prices keep going down, we'll let you talk all day, all night, everyday till the election. Keep up the good work. Then those of you who are booted out will have to go home, or perhaps find a place near to the Capitol for rent and keep talking. Do your civic duty by helping me fill up my tank more cheaply.

Talk is cheap. Gas isn't. So keep right on talking!

Flat Tires: This Is Too Easy!

We've died and gone to Gaffe-Heaven today, thanks to John McCain.

The McCain campaign (seriously) has come out in favor of flat tires for greater fuel efficiency. All these years everyone's had it wrong, thinking that the manufacturer's recommended air pressure in tires was the right way to go. Barack Obama, along with others, pointed that that fuel efficiency is dependent on proper maintenance of your car, including tires.

John McCain begs to differ. He ridicules the idea that air in tires is necessary at all. And he should know, having been there when they invented the wheel. The wheel back in those far off days didn't have any air at all, being a stone. Like in the BC comic strip, perhaps it was a unicycle, or as in the Flintstones, perhaps it was a wide design. In each case it was unmistakeably stone. No air.

How did we get so far from "the old ways?" John McCain properly laments. And this is true.

What is called for now is obvious, that we should let the air out of our tires and drive on them. The principle has been stated. All McCain supporters should follow this advice immediately. If we see you driving around with air in your tires, we'll know you don't agree with him. Let's see your support!

Image by Phrenry

At least the caption is, by phrenry at Daily Kos.

Presumptuous Messiah!

If I'm McCain I'm not going there. Setting himself up as a new Messiah and belittling Obama as some kind of Messiah-wannabe.

McCain needs to cut out the attacks on religion, his mockery of religion. We know that McCain has called religious leaders the "agents of intolerance," that he is having a hard time getting the enthusiastic support of people of faith, and that he himself doesn't go to church. (Although, it seems, he, at the impressionable age of 71 or 72 was thinking about getting baptized! How convenient to wait till an election year to "get religion"!)

Who can look at this presumptuous picture and not see what he's suggesting? Perhaps something touching on the Rapture doctrine. Help from Heaven in him. John McCain as the second coming, the Prince of Peace!

The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:2,6)

John McCain is treading some dangerous ground, holy ground, when he starts ransacking the religious traditions to make his cheap political points. He is not the second coming, mark that well! He offers peace and suggests staying in Iraq a hundred years and more wars. That's "peace, peace" where there is no peace.