Welcome to the first of my series, "What Is This World Coming To?" It will occur when I've heard or read something that causes me to scream "WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?" There may be more than one post on a given day or a couple of posts a month. Of course with the insanity in this world it's likely to be more of the former rather than the latter.
Today's absurdity concerns England. I heard a news story that a school "district" in northern England is now sending home notes to the parents in their kids lunchboxes. What's the big deal about that, you may ask. I'll tell you the big deal; these notes deal solely with the nutrition of the child's lunch. If a parent sends a nutitious lunch of nuts and fruits and veggies, they will receive a note of praise. ("Good boy! Sit.") If, on the other hand, they send their child to school with a roast beef sandwich, an apple and a cookie, they will get a note of rebuke. Schools have a list of acceptable food. Are you kidding me? Are you KIDDING me? So now they're shaming the parents into conforming to their norm. And how far behind will school districts in Massachusetts and San Francisco be?
Let's wake up, people! Soon we won't have any rights.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Curse of the Black Thumb
Because admitting it is the first step, I admit I have a black thumb. I have for years convinced myself that it is something I could overcome. I could become a green thumb if I just read garden books and let the death of my plants teach me what I did wrong so I could avoid the same with the next batch of plants . . . and the next . . . and the next and so on. Nothing I've done in my adult life has transformed me into a green thumb. This is even more shameful because my mother and my grandmother could grow ANYTHING. My grandmother could practically grow flowers from recycled tires. I'm glad she's gone on to the Lord and can't see the death and destruction I've wreaked in the backyard. (Please don't take that the wrong way. I'm not 'glad' she's dead - I'm just making a point about the difference between our thumbs.)
Two years ago we moved to a brand new house and the yard was a blank canvas. Knowing that I needed someone who was a professional thumb, we hired a landscaper. I asked him to plant things that required very little care and to instruct me on their care. We went to a majority Xeriscape because that's supposed to be ideal for someone like me. But Nooo. A year and a half ago we lost 7 trees and this Spring we replaced them. As I was looking at replacement trees I asked the nursery expert about ease of care. So I picked the easiest trees. Since then I've had to replace 4 of those and they aren't looking too good. Thank goodness the nursery has a 1-year warranty. I've faithfully followed the care directions, yet I'm still losing them. Oh, and by the way, I had to buy over 30 new plants several of which I need to replace already. Now I have to hire a tree professional to save my trees.
So now you know my sad plight. If only there was a 12-step program for me. We should have poured concrete over the whole yard.
Two years ago we moved to a brand new house and the yard was a blank canvas. Knowing that I needed someone who was a professional thumb, we hired a landscaper. I asked him to plant things that required very little care and to instruct me on their care. We went to a majority Xeriscape because that's supposed to be ideal for someone like me. But Nooo. A year and a half ago we lost 7 trees and this Spring we replaced them. As I was looking at replacement trees I asked the nursery expert about ease of care. So I picked the easiest trees. Since then I've had to replace 4 of those and they aren't looking too good. Thank goodness the nursery has a 1-year warranty. I've faithfully followed the care directions, yet I'm still losing them. Oh, and by the way, I had to buy over 30 new plants several of which I need to replace already. Now I have to hire a tree professional to save my trees.
So now you know my sad plight. If only there was a 12-step program for me. We should have poured concrete over the whole yard.
Do As I Say, Not As I Do
For years Democrat hypocrisy has bothered me, to put it mildly. Liberals are especially guilty of this audacious hypocrisy. To my consternation the MSM seems to not recognize any hypocrisy on the Democrat side, only on the Republican and even inaccurately defining actions as hypocritical. Barbra Streisand, one of the great political thinkers of our generation (NOT!), suggested that everyone should use a clothesline rather than a dryer to save energy. Of course her staff doesn't have to do what she says - she lives in Malibu. (Sidenote: Can you imagine Barbra Streisand actually hanging her own laundry?) Fair and balanced (NOT!) Walter Cronkite has championed the cause of energy conservation, but when windmills were proposed on Nantucket, Cronkite vigorously protested because he would see them from his property. I bet the rest of us wouldn't be able to get away with that. I know Republican lawmakers couldn't get away with it. The press would be all over them. Hollywood stars are chauffered around in limosines and drive big SUVs, but the rules don't really apply to them - they're special. Our lawmakers who make laws limiting our energy us are also driven around by chauffers in limosines or SUVs and fly on private jets. When Nancy Pelosi became Speaker of the House she demanded a much larger jet than what previous Speakers got because she needed to fly back and forth to her home in San Francisco so frequently and a 727 didn't have to stop and refuel halfway there. I guess what's good for the goose is not good for the gander.
Senators Chris Dodd of Conneticut and Kent Conrad of North Dakota are only the latest examples of hypocrisy. It turns out that they received interest rates that none of us, regardless of credit rating, would receive. And they received these rates from none other than the CEO of Countrywide, Angelo Mozilo. Dodd happens to be Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee and is championing a $300 million bailout of the lending industry. Why is this newsworthy? Countrywide has been lobbying Democrats for this bill because they are nearly bankrupt and would benefit enormously from it. Talk about special favors. Again Republicans could never get away with the same thing. In fact there have been Republicans who have had to resign over similar acts. Rich Lowry at National Review Online has an excellent article about Dodd and Conrad. You can find it here.
I am sure this will not be the last hypocrisy of our lawmakers. Thank goodness for conservative talk radio and online sites.
Senators Chris Dodd of Conneticut and Kent Conrad of North Dakota are only the latest examples of hypocrisy. It turns out that they received interest rates that none of us, regardless of credit rating, would receive. And they received these rates from none other than the CEO of Countrywide, Angelo Mozilo. Dodd happens to be Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee and is championing a $300 million bailout of the lending industry. Why is this newsworthy? Countrywide has been lobbying Democrats for this bill because they are nearly bankrupt and would benefit enormously from it. Talk about special favors. Again Republicans could never get away with the same thing. In fact there have been Republicans who have had to resign over similar acts. Rich Lowry at National Review Online has an excellent article about Dodd and Conrad. You can find it here.
I am sure this will not be the last hypocrisy of our lawmakers. Thank goodness for conservative talk radio and online sites.