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the state of climate change…

by ratman on Dec.06, 2009, under politics, soap box, things

personally, i believe that we are slowly killing the planet. however. even if we aren’t why are we fighting to keep oil companies in place? oil has it’s problems, and there can’t be a everlasting supply of it, because there just can’t. what’s wrong with trying to move forward on different alternatives? why can’t we create transportation around cheaper better fuel sources? what is the cost if we do? nothing. we simply have another choice. another option.

if there weren’t a problem with oil and the burning of it, would the skies of California be clearer? would ozone action days become a thing of the past? whatever you believe, you can because you live in america and are able to have a choice. but come up with the reasons not to have a choice of offerings that doesn’t include shareholders, profits and bonuses.

i dare you.

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fun… fun… fun…

by ratman on Nov.26, 2009, under things

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bye bye… lou dobbs…

by ratman on Nov.12, 2009, under last time i mention this, politics, soap box, things

bye bye lou. wonder how long it will be before you are on the faux network.

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i was reading some blogs tonight….

by ratman on Nov.06, 2009, under last time i mention this, politics, quote of the day, soap box, things

and one that i read really ticked me off. not knowing that there was a limitation as to the number of characters that were allowed, i had at it. well. it wouldn’t save. so. for you folks that started and couldn’t finish, or really just want to flame, here it is in it’s entirety… ( and you regular readers of my spaces enjoyment as well………)

We are not less safe. If you think we are, where’s your proof.

The health care system is more or less, a large monopoly that takes your money, and changes your terms, at will. And you are worried about what the government takes?

The free market that we once backed as Americans, is now solely on our backs, and frankly it hurts.

The cost to produce in the United States has gone up because corporations realized just how much money they could make. Then, when we got tired of being paid little for all the work, the corporations said, ‘Yep, you’re right. We’ll just let you go and find somewhere cheaper to make the same goods that you will buy for a higher price to support our shareholders and executives.’

Sure taxes are high. We like freshly paved roads. Bridges that support the weight of more than a donkey cart. A military that is second to none anywhere in the world. Medicare. Medicaid. Social Security. Educational Funding. Various other programs designed to enhance and make better, our daily lives.

President Bush is a good man. But he allowed us to be lied to, often. It was during his administration that the employment and economic meltdowns began. His administration was given a surplus of cash and they screamed through it like a 12 year old in a Toys-R-Us.

Would you rather that President Obama let the car companies go down the tubes (the last of what manufacturing we still have, that we can call our own.)? Would the loss of many more financial institutions have made you happy (as you watched everything that you had saved or put into stocks and bonds loose all value right before you’re eyes disappear)?

Had these things, and more, been allowed to happen, you would be screaming about how he doesn’t do enough. How he let our country go into financial ruin and the worst depression ever. How he is destroying the country.

All of the things you are saying today.

It is so very easy to find fault in others when you are certain that you are right. And, you might even be right about somethings. But fortunately, you are in America, where you can say, without worry, whatever it is you want to say, whether it is based on fact, or, fiction. And certainly, you will be able to find an audience in either case.

This country is the greatest on earth. We have simply gotten greedy. We used to create, and now we purchase and use. We can go back to creating and being a leader in the world by simply working together and getting back to what we did best. Lead with compassion and brilliance. And frankly, under the leadership of President Obama we have a very good chance of doing that if, and only if, people, like all of us, allow him the chance to work at it a bit. He’s only been in office for a little over 10 months. Do you think that you could have fixed all of this by now? If so, why didn’t you run for a seat in the government?

Two last things to say.

If you were on a deserted road, and got into an accident, with your family, and as you opened your eyes and saw them hurting and bleeding, I would think, even hope, that you would be wishing for someone… anyone… to come by and find you. What if that someone did come by, looked into your car, smiled and walk away. That is what you are suggesting by not at least attempting to look at Health Care Reform with an open mind.

Here is an idea for helping to save someone from that situation. It’s not mine. I am certain that I heard it somewhere else. A dollar a month. Just one single solitary dollar donated by every man, woman and young adult put towards an open account that would help with the care of others would raise enough money to protect the 30 million or so people that are less fortunate than those of us that have the ability to afford health care. Lets say that there are 200 million of the 300 million populous that could contribute that amount per month (cause paper routes are a thing of the past, so kids should get a pass.) That would be 200 million a month, or 600 million a quarter, or 2,400,000,000 a year. That would be a step in the right direction. And all of us probably loose that in change in a month anyway.

That’s it. That’s all I have to say. Sure I’ll get some grief for it, but it pains me to believe that we live in a time where a person that is trying to make a difference, with a couple houses of old, tired and out of date people that do nothing but try to protect themselves from becoming obsolete, can convince us that these things are wrong. (last dig… term limits should apply to all the elected house of the federal government as well as the state government).

Take care all. I mean that. Really. I might be walking by your car one night.

God Bless the USA and the troops that are fighting for our security and freedom day in and day out to protect your right to disagree.

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i can’t change phones for a while…

by ratman on Oct.29, 2009, under things

but this is fun…

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fall and kids…

by ratman on Oct.25, 2009, under family, soap box, things

not that my kids are lazy…

this morning, a couple neighborhood kids came by and asked if they could rake the leaves in the yard for $5. for just a moment, i thought yes, but then realized that my kids were listening behind me as they were holding the dogs back. then i said no, as i have a couple kids that can do it, but thanked them for stopping by.

closing the door, i suggested to my kids that it was pretty cool that a couple neighborhood kids were out and about asking to rake leaves and that they were trying to make some money. i suggested that they might want to do the same thing.

my oldest one said ‘yeah, she’s a junior at east’, and started to head up the stairs. my youngest just looked at me in disbelief. then they headed up the stairs and went back to chatting with the girlfriend, and watching you-tube videos.

wasn’t that enough of a hint? guess not. well, the allowance drops down because of it. maybe then they will understand that there is more to the day than their own needs.

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imagine if this happened to you or someone you knew… another reason for reform…

by ratman on Oct.21, 2009, under politics, soap box, things

excerpt:
 

Christina Turner feared that she might have been sexually assaulted
after two men slipped her a knockout drug. She thought she was taking
proper precautions when her doctor prescribed a month’s worth of
anti-AIDS medicine.

Only later did she learn that she had made herself all but uninsurable.

Turner had let the men buy her drinks at a bar in Fort Lauderdale.
The next thing she knew, she said, she was lying on a roadside with
cuts and bruises that indicated she had been raped. She never developed
an HIV infection. But months later, when she lost her health insurance
and sought new coverage, she ran into a problem.

rape victim’s choice: risk AIDS or health insurance?

Blogged with the Flock Browser
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all the news… and some that wasn’t…

by ratman on Oct.18, 2009, under family, friends, last time i mention this, politics, soap box, things

what a week.

my wife and i hit our 16th year of marriage. we celebrated by taking in a show and then returning home for a meal that i cooked for the family. it’s a family affair, these anniversaries. there is nothing wrong with that. they all have been a part of the past years, so having the family celebrate is a good thing. i love my better half. she makes the ride most bearable!

my son jon spent most of the week enjoying his first homecoming week. bonfires, school color classes, a visit to the school from dan hampton with the week capped by the home coming dance.

for his birthday i got him a suit for the dance. i know. crappy present. but he liked it! here he is in all his glory…

homecoming 2009 oswego east high school

homecoming 2009 oswego east high school

he went stag to the dance, not unlike his dad all those years ago. at around 10p, i received a text asking if i could drive his date home after the dance. date? he didn’t have one.

turns out that his dates, date, had some change of heart during the dance, and the next thing you know, he’s got a date. nice girl. hanna is her name. apparently they are boyfriend/girlfriend. we’ll see how long that lasts. he had a good time and looked good to.

then, on sunday, jon spent his 15th birthday just hanging out. he graciously helped me around the house, and we enjoyed a cake at the end of the night. i’m starting to feel really old.

my wife finally got her student teaching paperwork. she’ll be working in a school in plainfield. though she wanted to work in oswego, that was not to be. but knowing that she is placed, has lightened her load a bit. congrats michele. i am so very – very proud of you and the work that you are doing.

this week also included balloon boy. what a stunt. kid floats away in a helium filled balloon. uh. i don’t think so. but virtually every news organization on the planet followed this to it’s conclusion. this was such a non event. it was never even plausible to me as i have had a 6 year old. they are pretty heavy. the balloon wasn’t that well built to have carried him away. i just never believed it. today, it appears charges will be placed on the family and the costs of the search recouped. damn straight. what goofs.

health care seems to be moving along but not, as they say in poker, all in. it seems that the public option has been left somewhere, and not anyplace that seems useful. this troubles me. and, unlike any number of people, i blame the house and senate for this. the president did what he said he would do. let the folks that last time, during the clinton years, the house and senate wanted. to be involved. well. look where that put us. a watered down version of a public health reform bill. as to the media involvement, if you’re smart, you can simply go out and find the answers that you want on any of the governmental sites that are available. if you believe what you are told by the likes of beck, hannity, rush or the like, then you are simply not informed but rather entertained. but really folks. this isn’t a movie or a half hour entertainment show. this is our lives we are talking about here. there are very few things that are as important. so. go out and get your own answers. then make an informed decision. and stop listening to the entertainers.

afghanistan. lets take our time, and get it right. move the military that are in indefensible outposts in to more populous cities and regions. there has been a ton of talk about how many al qaeda are in the country. i keep asking myself how we, or anyone knows this. they don’t wear tags or name badges. so how do we know how many of any faction are in the country. i just don’t understand. and if we really do know how many there are, then this should be easier than it is. and since the election in country is so up in the air, we should probably wait until it is settled correctly, before we allow any more of our country men and women to serve in that country. so taking all the time required seems like the prudent thing to do. we can’t leave. pakistan is too close. anyone over running their country would be a blow to the entire middle east. so we must figure out a way to protect and server the region. but again, not until there is a government in place.

that’s about it. i’m done with the soap. i guess i just needed to vent.

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indoctrinate…

by ratman on Sep.26, 2009, under family, friends, last time i mention this, politics, soap box, things

sure. you can find the definition of indoctrinate in any dictionary. here is a link to m-w.com.

ok.

here is what it says:

1: to instruct in fundamentals or rudiments : teach
2: to imbue with a usually partisan or sectarian opinion, point of view, or principle

this definition can be placed with any number of people or groups, as it is expressed by the dictionary. my opinion on just a few of those, are listed below:

boy or girl scouts
church
the military
community groups
indian guides
anti-government groups
gangs

now. not all of these groups are bad. and, since we live in the united states, all of them have an equal right to exist.

however. to accuse the current administration of ‘indoctrinating’ our children to believe that they should help others and be involved in their community in a good way? nothing wrong with that.

the thought that the current administration is ‘indoctrinating’ any person within the united states to do anything other than what they might want to do, is ludicrous. in my mind, we have spent years, more than the 8 brought forth by the bush administration, spending time being self-centered and obsessed with our own personal world, that we have forgotten what made our country great all those years ago. the fact that we helped and supported each other.

the go west folks back in the day, helped others build lodging, fences, banding together in wagon trains across this great land. we did it together. we picked each other up and helped each other along.

for the administration to want to help us go forward and help each other is a bad thing, is just wrong. often, i will see stuff laying in the middle of the street. like a bag of someone trash. it only takes me a minute to stop and grab it. thus keeping it from further messing up my neighborhood. i have tried to teach my kids that same type of service. why? because it benefits us all.

so. indoctrinate me. make me think of all the things that i can do to help my neighbors. my fellow american citizens. i haven’t a problem with that at all.

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survivor…

by ratman on Sep.25, 2009, under things

maybe you’re watching it this season. maybe you’re not.

there are at least 3 people on here, that just need to go. one went tonight, but not on his own. he was medically removed, like a wart.

ben needs to go because even though he is right about some things, he is crass and inhuman in a lot of his dealings with other survivors. bye bye ben.

russell.

my goodness. what a putz. this guy is a piece of work. a total liar. maybe even a thief. though he is playing the game hard, he is playing it almost too dirty.

i think he needs to go…

and ben, being the first person ever thrown out of a challenge? well… again. he speaks for himself…

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