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The Coconut Telegraph
An Historical Diary of what Keyheads were talking about
Since 2002

Friday  April 30, 2010

Bagel Island would like to thank you, the customer, for your loyal support. We are now in our 5th year serving Big Pine. It’s hard to believe 4 years have gone by. We are adding new bagels -- Bacon Cheddar, Key Lime. And we’ll add Sourdough Bagels next week. 

Again thank you all for your support. We are looking forward to another year of service to you.

[More bar wisdom] Marriage is like having cable with one channel.

[Oil Spill] Now the term "greatest oil spill in history" is being bandied about.  Is it really worth it, oil at any cost?

I am a Vietnam vet and when I got home I could not wait to get out of my uniform because of the way I was treated. Our country let us down; just take a look at the homeless. A lot of them are our Vietnam vets.

[Sex in the City] I have done the "Glass Bottom Boat" and the "Crazy Carl", but have yet to try a "Dirty Sanchez".  Anyone down here done that?

The Battle in the Bay Dragon Boat Festival is coming up on May 8th in Marathon  at Sombrero Beach. If you know any students from last years great team that represented Marathon High School, please let them know we want them back and to get in touch with Mandy Bowers at 743-3586. She will get them on a team. Key West High School should get a team in now also. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4haJnfzCORY

I am sure that you have the "NIMBY' (not in my backyard) line that people bring up to stop all sorts of projects, including anything that generates power. Well now the environmentalists have a new slogan:  "BANANA" (build absolutely nothing anywhere near anybody).  Before too long we will run out of power and be "SOL" and you all know what that means!

[Ignorant Voters] On Tuesday of this week, that same DCA supporter/poster wrote, quote, “Using voters as the basis for Comp Plan and growth decisions is inherently unreliable and dangerous thanks to "vote buying", and "voter ignorance and bias".  

You said it, your words equate to: Monroe County voters are ignorant. 

Yes, I attended the Comp Plan Update Meetings, and I’ve read the Comp Plan many times.  The Comp Plan Update Meeting turnout in Key West was larger than expected; an additional row of chairs had to be set up.  The Comp Plan update is also online; I'm sure that many who had work or family obligations have and will voice their opinions and concerns on that online forum.

Yes, I absolutely believe that the voters of Monroe County should have a say in the direction their Keys takes.  And yes, I absolutely am saying and do believe that the voters of this County have the ability and the intelligence to read and understand the issues, to voice their opinions, and to vote according to their own conscious. 

Perhaps by your take of our intelligence levels (or according to you, our "ignorant" lack thereof) Monroe County Citizens shouldn’t even be allowed to vote for a President – much too complicated and important a decision for us the stupid, “ignorant” voters of Monroe County.

Why is this DCA supporter/poster so afraid of Monroe County Citizens voting on the Plan which effects the direction of our own County, and the policies which affect our own homes, lives, Keys?  Why does this DCA supporter/poster want the Comp Plan, and this County controlled by the few (outsiders) instead of it being a vision and product of the many (locals)?  Is it that this poster is afraid that the Comp Plan (a plan supposedly of the people and for the people of this County) does not accurately reflect the will, wishes, needs and direction of the citizens of this County? 

If Amendment 4 passes, this scenario of voter control will be the case regardless of this DCA supporter/posters fear.  The DCA will no longer control our lives, our homes and our Keys; we, the citizens of Monroe County will make those decisions ourselves.

 BigPineKey.com would like to welcome Jay  Marzella to the Coconut Telegraph all-stars. Jay knows where the people go for there dose of this and that. Thanks Jay.

I finally found out what “Third world” really means. The First world is the developed countries like us. The Second world countries are those atrophied by Communism and the Third world countries are the undeveloped messes around the world.

[Giant Turtle Eats Keys] Friends who were scuba diving Sunday off Looe Key say they saw the biggest turtle they had ever seen.

[Lousy Tech support] TV makers are betting the works on their new 3D televisions. I think they’ll flop. I wear glasses and fiddle with them all the time while watching TV. If I have to wear 3D glasses over mine, I’ll be very uncomfortable. The 3D glasses have been the bane of past 3D efforts and I don’t see any difference now. The unpopular need to wear those glasses doomed 3D in the 1950s. Some initial estimates for the cost of additional 3D glasses are seventy to a hundred dollars each.

3D television will be a giant hit when they can do away with the special glasses--and they will.

A burst washing machine hose is the top homeowner-insurance claim. Replace your rubber hoses with stainless steel hoses and never worry.

I never read FTR guy because of length, not his ideology.  I was glad today to see he was short, so I devoted some time and attention.  It must be that he's an acquired taste.  Again, I don’t read him, not based on his ideology, but his rambling and sarcasm.

If women ruled the world there would be no wars. Just a bunch of jealous countries not talking to each other.

[Oil Spill] U.S. military joins Gulf of Mexico oil spill effort. US Military Joins Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Effort | CommonDreams.org

Cape Wind, not offshore drilling, is the clean energy future America deserves. Cape Wind, Not Offshore Drilling, Is the Clean Energy Future America Deserves | CommonDreams.org

[Keeping off the grass and their property] Thanks to one of our good neighbors here in Big Pine for defending us regarding the Boondocks St Patty’s Day parking conundrum. If you are going to have Howard Livingston and the MM 24 Band at your establishment your management should be smart enough to know you will need to take into account that when the parking is gone people will look elsewhere to park their vehicles. I guess your bar isn’t used to all that business. Nonetheless, if your grass is more important and you feel compelled to try to embarrass your customers for cheap laughs, well that’s just poor judgment on your part and it didn’t work on us anyway.

The decent thing to do would have just simply asked if the black North Carolina truck would please move off the grass, but no it was funny-man happy hour apparently.   It will end up costing your bar money and a bad name. Don’t worry we know people will still patronage your place and we don’t care about that but don’t forget Mr. Boondock, locals talk.  The folks here in Big Pine Channel will be more than happy to continue to go where the establishment is very local friendly and the prices are right.  We will stop going to Boondocks for your food and your overpriced bloomin onion wannabe for 10 bucks and we will stop bringing our out-of-town company to play golf and we’ll just take them elsewhere.   We all made the mistake in going to your bar to see the band, but what do we care H.L. and MM24 plays all over the place.  You just saved us from wasting more of our time and our money at Boondocks.  As locals since 1984 we should have known better. So Mr. Boondock as Howard asked for the ratio of out-of-towners to locals we could all see that the tourist out weighed the locals. Let’s see, hmmm, that can’t be good considering the season is coming to an end and you and your staff will be left at the mercy of these grass driving, inconsiderate locals.  Sing it Howard …  ~Tracy.Blom@hma.com

[Water] Comments on the January 26, 2010 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed numeric nutrient water quality criteria for the State of Florida’s Lakes and Flowing Waters.  The Department will be loading our full comments on the DEP website. www.dep.state.fl.us/water/wqssp/nutrients/

The final end and therefore starting point of the chain is us - the consumers. We are the poor or cheap. Either, forces us to pay the least.  By now, most of everything is made someplace outside of the US.  Back in the 50's when we didn't buy American, we set ourselves up.  This “anything for a buck” -- cheap labor was inevitable.  Microeconomics and Macroeconomics intertwined.

[Two-faced] It’s long been known that Governor Crist can’t get elected as a Republican because of his support for Obama and Marco Rubio nipping at his heels; so Thursday he switched to run as an Independent. Even though, just a few weeks ago, he said he was a Republican through and through and would run as a Republican.

On the Today show Friday he was asked about that statement and he stumbled. He then tried to say he switched parties so all voters could vote for him because they can’t in a primary. Primaries are only for each party not the entire electorate.

I don’t mind that he switched, but to lie about his reasons turns me off.

[AA Basher] The outright lies of AA exist in abundance at every level, in the promotional literature, the basic texts, and the discourse among the members. AA claims it acquires members by "attraction rather than promotion," but the court system mandates attendance to their meetings, and the 12th step instructs the members to "carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers." AA members visit jails spreading the word while trying to recruit fresh blood that will fall for this con. It is not uncommon to hear members claim that it is a scientifically proven fact that AA is the only possible way to recover from alcoholism. AA members and rehabs will tell you alternative programs to AA do not exist. AA's promotional literature claims that no alcoholic ever returns to social drinking; the truth is that many have. They claim that there is no leadership in AA; actually there is a clear hierarchy that develops in the groups. The groups are as far from democratic as you can get; the old-timers in control demand strict adherence to the dogma. The Big Book makes outrageous statements. "Since this book was first published, AA has released thousands of alcoholics from asylums and hospitals of every kind. The majority have never returned." Not only is this untrue, but it was written word for word in the original manuscript, before the book was ever published. The newcomer is told that they have a disease, the disease is deadly and incurable, there is only one possible way to keep from dying of this disease and that is to go to meetings, read the Big Book, get a sponsor and work the steps. This too is a blatant lie. The members of the program are taught to accept these and other lies as absolute, indisputable truth. If one dares to expose these lies for what they are they will not be part of the inner circle of AA. Believing and repeating lies is one of the major expectations of the group.

Have you noticed that the word sobriety is not in the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous? Why is that?

NATIONAL POLITICS

[Immigration] Has Congress gone nuts? This is from CNN, not FOX  
http://d.yimg.com/kq/groups/17260182/1610997888/name/ftc-vi26.wmv

[Operation Wetback] Three times in the history of the United States US Presidents took what would today be considered a politically unpopular position by rounding up and deporting illegal aliens to create jobs for US Citizens. The first attempt occurred shortly after the banker-induced Stock Market Crash of 1929 when President Herbert Hoover ordered the round-up and deportation of illegals by the US Immigration and Naturalization Service. The program, dubbed "Operation Wetback," was carried out without any protests from US government-funded Hispanic advocacy groups—since there were none. The Clintonesque-liberal media political correctness dictionary was still 63 years in the future and the communist-left FDR (America's white Barack Obama) federal bureaucracy was still some 4-years in the making.

During the prosperity of the war years (1943-54), illegal alien immigration increased by 6,000%, triggering Operation Wetback II and III. In 1954, the INS estimated that illegals—not legal migrant workers—were crossing the US border at the rate of one million per year and that they were penetrating much deeper into the nation that in preceding decades because the INS concentrated their efforts only in the border States. The INS, on orders from the White House, went through the motions of rounding up both illegal aliens and migrant workers who overstayed their visas. Truman deported about 30 thousand Mexicans during his seven years in office.

Eisenhower was stuck will cleaning up the mess created by the open door polices 73rd and 82nd Congresses. As Eisenhower took office, illegal immigrants were now crossing at the rate of about 3 million per year.  As Eisenhower met with current and retired border patrol agents he learned that the big ranchers and farmers who relied on the cheap migrant labor had friends "in high places" in government. Agents were subtlety warned not to arrest the workers employed by what turned out to be powerful campaign donors. When that didn't work, they were very bluntly told to back off, or they were simply transferred where they would become someone else's problem. The two most influential Senators who blocked the efforts of the INS to do their job were then Sen. Lyndon B. Johnson [D-TX] and Sen. Pat McCarran [D-NV].

Eisenhower hired Gen. Joseph May Swing to head the INS and with units of the US National Guard, began what history now views as a quasi-military operation to find and seize illegal immigrants As hard as Johnson tried to get rid of Swing, Eisenhower protected his man in Immigration. On July 15, 1953, the first day of Operation Wetback III, Swing's men arrested 4,800 illegals. After the first day, the INS averaged the seizure of 1,100 illegals per day. The INS devoted 700 men to the project, hoping to scare enough more illegals to flee back across the border. The INS claims that under Eisenhower's Operation Wetback, they deported 1,300,000 illegals. The open-border social progressives insist that all three phases of Operation Wetback were dismal flops, and that only a few thousand people—all of whom, they claim, were legal residents—were deported.

[Our Soldiers] Recently, I have seen a lot of people on here and spoken to a lot of people in real-life who seem to think we are doing the right thing in the war-on-terror. I would ask that as a requirement, if you want to speak out about your opinion, please, at least inform yourself first of what the human cost of this war is. What our boys and girls in uniform, and the Iraqi people themselves have to go through and the price they have paid.

I made a post about the monetary cost of the wars, but money doesn’t have a life. Money doesn’t have a family, a wife, children, tangible experiences, love, hate, anger, sadness, misery. People do, and its people who are killing, and people who are being killed in this war, physically and metaphorically speaking. http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/apr2010/emcc-a28.shtml

Puerto Rico is a self-governing commonwealth, but is subject to U.S. jurisdiction and sovereignty. It's been a U.S. territory since after the Spanish-American War of 1898. They're not an independent country. It's similar to Guam, the Virgin Islands and American Samoa. Some people like it, others don't. They get to enjoy many of the benefits of America — like protection — and they don't have to pay any taxes. That's a pretty sweet deal.

Congressmen, voting for HR 2499 are like sheep being led to slaughter. They'll say the people of Puerto Rico have a right to vote for themselves. They'll vote yes. The progressives will then present a false choice to the people. Instead of saying "do you want to be a state?" it's "do you want the status quo?" If voters vote no, the next vote removes the status quo from the ballot, leaving statehood against two far less popular options. They'll vote yes for statehood. Then they'll elect their congressman and senators, they'll demand to be seated and a 51st star will be attached to the flag.

Was William Ayers with his anti-American ways considered a hippie back in the day? Was he protesting Americas governmental growth and oversight like the teabaggers or were his views some how different? I stand by my claim that there’s no difference between the hippies of the 60s and the teabaggers today. Both are anti anything the President does.

I knew that not one single Conservative would give kudos to our President when he said the oil drilling off the coast would still be best for America. The Republicans wanted drilling for years and now that the President is giving the okay they wont stick up for him. They are still the Party of No even when they agree with something and get what they want.

Rush applies Dem logic to AZ immigration law. What's good for the goose ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fheg7VpTIuw&feature=player_embedded

[Aliens] The current administration is well aware that those illegals in Arizona are potential Democrat voters and will do everything possible to keep them here. Everything else they throw up is a smokescreen.

[Aliens] It’s clear for all to see what the Republican agenda is. Under the bright sun of Arizona, "How do you do?" has been replaced with "Let me see your papers."  Is this the vision you have of America? Is this what less government and less intrusion into our lives is? You bet. I can hear the goose steps now.

[Tim McVeigh] Wm. Ayers was indeed a horrible example, but you must admit he was nothing compared to that other anti-government and hate everything our President did, Timothy McVeigh. In fact in the near future we may see more Tim McVeighs being stirred up from the hate American progress mongers such as Glenn Beck and FOX news. Tim McVeigh would have been at the Washington Tea Party with bells on. Tim McVeigh and Jane Fonda could hold wienie roasts for the tea partiers and tell us how horrible it is for Americans to get healthcare and how terrible it was for the President to talk to our school kids about staying in school and working hard. Jane Fonda would have been crushed if she knew our President wasn’t an American. Sparkly-eyed Jane would have been a birther without any doubt. I can see it now. Tim McVeigh and Jane Fonda walking hand in hand with Sarah Palin and Glenn beck with teabags hanging from their hats. "Lipton anyone?”

FTR (Falsehoods Told Regularly). You really want that "liberally violent" label to catch on, don't you? Like "death panel", "death tax", or "Obamacare". Stop trying to be like spin-meister, Frank Luntz.  "Liberally violent" is as silly a catch-phrase as "Republican generosity".

[From the Right] Organ donation is a wonderful idea. It saves lives. We’re told that people die every day because there was no donor supplied organ available. What do you think about making organ donations mandatory? NO, no I don’t mean that you have to give up your spare kidney or eye while you’re still alive, but what if we had a law that would require that your organs be harvested after you die for use on living persons. Some European nations already have similar laws. That kind of a law sure would make it a lot easier on the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). That’s the new board  that will be set up by the President, and it’s members appointed by the President. The Board will be ultimately responsible for working out the efficacy's of treatment vs cost. That's just DC speak for cost/benefit ratio for each medical treatment. Just the other day, Peter Orszag explained how important this powerful new board was going to be in saving a lot of money on Medicare and Medicaid .  Pain pills cost a hell of a lot less than a hip replacement. Peter Orszag should know because he’s Mr. Obama’s Budget Director and he’s responsible for figuring out how to cut Medicare and Medicaid to help pay for Universal Health care.

(Part II) Mr. Obama and the U.S. Constitution (part 1) : Mr. Obama bemoans that the Constitution has stymied his furtherance of his goal of “Redistributive Change”: He said “the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties.” , “The Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society.“, (re: The Warren Court) “[it] didn’t break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution,”. Then he said: "[The Warren Court] doesn’t say what the federal government or state government must do on your behalf.” In April 2010: Mr. Obama’s Justice Department attempted to force Yahoo to disclose customers e-mail to the FBI without warrant. Mission not accomplished! In June 2008 Mr. Obama announced he will continue the Bush warrantless wire tap policy. In March 2010: Obama nominee to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, Goodman Lieu, revealed his conviction that: “[the] Constitution must adapt to changes in the world”. In Mr. Obama’s book he spoke of his views on the Constitution: The Audacity of Hope [pp 52-54]. “…the Constitution... is not a static but rather a living document, and must be read in the context of an ever-changing world.” Mr. Obama’s most current attack on the Constitution: It's called H.R. 4173 and it is already through the House. If it is signed into law, Obama will literally gain the kind of terrifying, un-checked power usually reserved for fascists and Third World dictators--the power to strong-arm, intimidate and crush any business that gets in his way. There will not even be judicial oversight.

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Friday  April 30, 2010

Thursday April 29, 2010

Watch this low-life-scum-bag in the ball cap in the lower right of the video as he steals the Cancer Foundation donation box in Key West. When he enters the store you can see him cut the chain and then put a bag over the box and walk out. Hopefully someone knows this thief and calls the Key West Police with his name. Ask for Officer Kouri. 305-809-1111 www.youtube.com/watch?v=37-7IByw4aU

The Deepwater Horizon leak is five times what they estimated. While I'm not surprised by their initial PR low-balling, I suspect that number will grow even larger over the next couple of weeks. By my calculations, based on the rate of spill at 210,000 gallons per day and and taking into account the amount already spilled over the last nine days, in roughly 6 weeks this mess will be as big, or bigger, than the Exxon Valdez. According to a BP spokesperson, it will take no less than 3.5 months to cap the well. That estimat is based on the pipe leaking in only one place and not the two additional leaks discovered yesterday--making it three leaks so far.

Let’s round that up to 4 months or 16 weeks, that's 120,000 gallons multiplied by 112 days which gives us a total of 23,520,000 gallons.

Add the 2 million gallons already spilled and, well, let’s just button it all up at 25 million gallons expected.

Okay? Okay, now 1 ton of crude oil is roughly equal to 7.33 barrels, or 308 gallons of oil which divided into 25,000,000 gives us 81,169 tons of oil.

That'll put her at number 14 of the top 20 spills of all time. More than twice the size of the Exxon Valdez; and look at the damage that did.

I guess it's a good thing that the spill will mostly effect Red states. Those Republicans love oil and now they will be swimming in it--a dream come true, while for the rest of us it will be a nightmare! Soon they will be taking romantic walks on the oil coated shoreline. The lets-drill-off-Florida Republicans can wash and scrap the goo off their feet with gasoline while explaining how safe offshore drilling is.

When the happy Republicans sit on the beach and watch the dead birds roll in they’ll lay plastic sheets over the oil-soaked sand. They won't have to take the plastic with them. They'll leave it to wrap and dispose of the dead wildlife that washes ashore every day (Republicans are very into recycling).

So who violated the local ordinance?
A. The previous owner
B. The local real estate broker
C. The local appraiser
D. Monroe County for failing to inspect the home before filing the sale
E. The local mortgage broker who financed the sale
E. The local Closing company
F. The current owner

How should this problem be fixed?
A. Change federal law to allow for the lower enclosure
B. County leave the National Flood Insurance Program making it no longer a problem.
C. County pays expense to have lower enclosure removed
D. Homeowner pays to remove it
E. Homeowner sues County government because statute of limitations have passed to sue broker
F. Everyone ignore the problem as it has been done the past 20 years and hope the federal government lacks the political will to kick Monroe County out of NFIP.

The boat ramp and dock at Bay Haven Subdivision in Key Largo has been at ramp solely for the Cubans that live there.  There is a lock on the gate 24/7.  Yesterday I was reviewing the permit they applied for in 1985 from the DEP in Marathon.  They use Florida waters to build that ramp. Look what I found in the Specific Condition section of the permit.

Look at # 11. These Cubans have been hiding that clause in the permit for 20 years. I called Lucy Blair at the DEP in Forth Myers and all see could say is, "We'll look into it". I would be mad as hell if for 20 years I was not allowed to enter a ramp that clearly was supposed to be dedicated to the public.  Call Lucy Blair and file another complaint (239-332-6975). Demand that they fine Gateway to the Sea Homeowners Association for not allowing the public in their ramp for 20 years!

[Drilling off Florida] The Louisiana oil leak is 5000 barrels a day according to the coast guard. Previously, oil officials said it was only 1000 a day. They new plan is to set fire to the spill in an attempt to burn it to death. It’s costing them about $6 million a day to try to cap the leak from the destroyed oil platform.

In Florida, Governor Christ is rethinking his support of drilling off the state’s pristine beaches. The Legislature will now wait until next year’s session, when things cool down, to introduce the bill to allow drilling off our shore.

[Wind Farm] Have you ever been to Cape Cod, Mass? The views are beautiful. If you haven’t, you’d better see it soon because the scenic views will be gone when they build the 130 windmills that Obama has just approved. The towers will be 440 feet tall creating a surreal seascape that’ll be hard to miss.

Adding irony to injury, the electricity generated from the “field” will not be owned by Massachusetts, but by a private consortium of energy companies who will make the residents of that state pay for it.

[Grab Your Bush] Landscape thieves in the Keys. Landscape thieves targeting local businesses | KeysNews.com

I took my family to Disney World and never again will we go to such a plastic tourist trap.  If the Keys turn into this, we hope climate warming takes care of it.

There are no assisted living facilities for150 miles and we need one.  There are many aged in the Keys and they deserve to be treated as the citizens they have been all their lives.  Someone asked who will pay to transport them in hurricane evacuation?  One day they too will grow old and possibly need these services.  Will they ask that question then?  We spend money like water here in the Keys for things far less important. Our old are preyed upon for their money and they are left behind and living in squallier for the lack of services in our county. Let us show the world we care for our aged citizens.  Let's keep them from the hands of the many that prey upon them.  Giving them access to these people is a crime in itself.

[Glass Bottom Rental Boat] That picture of the “100 pound grouper” was a Jewfish.

[Hippies] Most of you are confusing long hairs with hippies. They are two different groups.

Really? The last time you walked out of a meeting, who kidnapped you and brought you back in by force? Who threatened your family? Did you hand over your bank account information? If you did you’re a fool and a drunk.

We ask only that you stay open-minded to a power greater than yourself. That seems very hard for you. Holy rollers are everywhere and not the sole preserve of AA. The AA axiom “God as you understand him” gives you all the freedom to brush off a bible thumper. Personally, I never took a drink or a drug based on something someone else said or did. 

In AA, as in life, half measures will avail you nothing in the end. The surest way to get clean and sober and stay that way is to fearlessly share your experience with another person. Not just your successes, but your relapses and disappointments too; and to keep asking questions and debate respectfully when you don’t agree.

The surest way to stay mired in self-pity, anger and futility is to look around and blame AA and other people. It’s so much more familiar and comfortable to take another’s inventory. But you don’t need to be told that (that’s the part you have mastered all too well).

Alcoholism and addiction is revolting. There is more than one way to stop. For example, just don’t do it. But that doesn’t work for most people. So please enlighten us. Tell us how you did it so that we may carry your message to the alcoholic who still suffers. Through your own words you will be exposed

[Marathon sinking into the ocean] It might as well be.  Just look at the empty commercial space, unused airport, residents saddled with sewer bills (no help in sight for the old-timers), cost of the removal of the Boot Key Bridge (thanks, John Bartus) and the last straw that held it out of the ocean--closing the Brass Monkey! 

Maybe folks will come to Marathon to see our beautiful bus stop.

[Oil Spill] It looks like maybe we in the Keys are going to get a bit oily from that drilling tower that crashed. So much for real estate values and tourism. One stinking spill and it's all over but the crying. Stupid is, that greediness does.  Wait until they have a nuke spill. Poof … we're history!

[Hippy] All this hippie revisionism is playing just like a movie. Rashomon is the one I'm thinking of--a flashback within a flashback.

What was a hippie?  Who was a hippie?  It depends on who you ask.

[Oil Spill] Fears grow over oil spill off U.S. Coast. Fears Grow over Oil Spill off US Coast | CommonDreams.org

[Flower power] What this world needs is a new kind of Army. The Army of the Kind.

Miami hurricane looters.

[Oil Spill] Would somebody please tell me again just how safe offshore oil drilling is nowadays?

[Ball Fu] World's least popular martial art. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3EaPWLJdDI

[Accidents] There is no such thing as an accident. Climbing a mountain and falling, driving and texting, sky diving, forking yourself in the eye or tripping over something are but a few of the things we call accidents. In reality they are illogical misjudgments. Think before you act. Some insurance companies will not pay for out-right stupidity where it was obvious the victim made a stupid decision.

[Assisted Living] This is all well and good. I think we ought to have places in the United States that are set up like in the movie Soylent Green where you can go and move on to the next plane in a pleasant and dignified manner of your own choosing. You’d even get to select the sound track for your journey.

Do away with DCA and give the bully real estaters, business people, and their bully supporters in County government control of our neighborhoods big time!

Who would invest in Goldman Sachs mortgage investments? I played it safe and bought Greek bonds and magic beans.  ~Conan O'Brien 

[Assisted Living Facilities] Plantation Key Convalescent Center, the only nursing home in the Keys, will be closed by May 25, due to, primarily, faulty charting. I'm sure the elimination of that heinous form of bureaucratic evil will be of great comfort to those whose relatives will now be moved 3 hours drive from Key West. Let's hope less residents die during this displacement than when they closed the Key West Convalescent Center on Stock Island.

Dog Beach rocks! It’s next to Louie's Backyard and it’s real name is AT&T Beach. Photo Gallery

[Assisted Living] How about buying Sugarloaf Lodge and converting it into a senior citizens’ home, they are half way there already.

[Pictures from the glass bottom boat we rented. Check out the 100 pound grouper] You ought to take a dive class and really enjoy Looe Key, but as I always advise my students, things underwater may appear larger than they really are--about 25% larger.  Let's just say that was a nice sized grouper.  Glad you enjoyed the reef!

[Look Both Ways] Yesterday at 9:10 pm, MM 94 (Snappers) at US 1: Woman crossing US1 did not make it to other side. Hit by a car. So sad. Prayers to her family.

[Landlords] Are there ways to report really, truly crappy landlords?  We have some serious offenders and wondered if there are web sites to report any of these slum lords.  Normally we live on our boats, but for a list of reasons had to move on land. We encountered some of the scum-of-the-planet landlords. It seems that even if you pay rent on time some slum lords just cannot be happy.

[Ignorant Voters] The majority of voters are not knowledgeable about the long term ramifications of Comp Plan and growth decisions, and do not have the expertise of DCA. 

Where out of those words do you get my saying voters are "ignorant"?   "Not knowledgeable" and "not have expertise" is light years away from "ignorant". 

As to numbers, directly from the Election Supervisor's website: As of 6/08 Population is 73,078.  As of 4/28/10 the number of registered voters is only 53,937. In the 11/4/08 general election only 40,336 voted for President, 37,949 voted for State Attorney, 35,868 voted for Sheriff, in the other races approx 35,000 voted. Of the 53,937 registered voters 13,601 who never bothered to vote at all.  

Successful and effective Comp Plan and growth decisions will only come from people trained in land and environment and growth issues.  Are you saying that 40,336 voters have the specific knowledge to meet that criterion? 

Yes, politicians come and go based on voters. The current opinion among many involved in local politics is that $300,000. will get you any spin campaign you want, including the outright buying of votes.

Based on your vehement objection to DCA, what did they ever do to you? Have you participated in any of the current Comp Plan meetings going on throughout the county?   I have. The meeting turnouts have been small compared to the 40,336 possible voters. 

[Nira Tocco's new visual tour] Look at this Visual Tour for a property on Big Pine Key. We just lowered the price and the sellers may hold a mortgage for qualified buyers. They are very motivated! http://www.visualtour.com/show.asp?T=2179793

[Sloan] I’m going to meet later today with Citizens Not Serfs founder Phil Shannon and his Law Fellow John November. I suppose we will talk some about illegal downstairs enclosures. I suppose at the level of soul, this meeting heralds for me yet another trip into the basement, the subconscious, the unknown.  A trip into something grubby and spiritually illegal that is worming its way up out of its downstairs enclosure into the light of day. Something I don’t want to deal with, but will have to deal with anyway. And, yeah, it also has to do with Citizens Not Serfs and illegal downstairs enclosures in the Keys, and maybe even more worldly creepy crawlers over which I don’t expect to have any lasting influence. The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

MacAfee anti-virus software to pay for PC repairs after bad update patch.  http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/security/357520/mcafee-to-pay-for-pc-repairs-after-patch-fiasco

Illegal downstairs enclosures are only illegal if you didn't pay off the inspector, you didn't register them to pay taxes on the income, permit fees, inspection fees, and any other freaking fees they can think of. Or is it just to keep nice neighborhoods nice?

Kitty is perhaps the most adventurous cat in the world. She is the beloved cat pet of a French couple/explorers, Guillaume and Laetitia who are on a mission to travel from Miami, US to Ushuaia, Argentina purely on foot. They are currently in Columbia, heading south.

Their cat, Kitty, is often seen resting in the backpack carried by Guillaume while they are hiking down the road. They even set up a little umbrella on the backpack to give the kitty some shade from the sun.

Kitty enjoys the trip as much as the couple. She often climbs on the shoulder of her daddy to get a good look at every new scenery. She does not seem to be shy or bashful about meeting new people and visiting new places. If we have an award for the most adventurous cat in the world, I’d said Kitty is purr-fect for it. You can see the updates on their journey and more photos at their website. Backpacker Cat Touring the World with French Couple]

NATIONAL POLITICS

Bradley Byrne is running for Governor of Ala. Did you know that Ala. as well as Florida gives drivers license in over 1/2 dozen languages? Do you know how much that cost? Road signs are in English, how safe is that. Bradley is willing to lose federal funds to make Ala. an English only state. Learn it, speak it or don't. That's up to you, but Ala. will not understand a word you said in Spanish or Arabian or send you to a special place just for folks that are so lazy and un-American that they will not learn English.

English only. I love it. I also love the Arizona profiling law and feel that many states will demand it. The federal government won’t do anything about it so it’s up to the states. Get involved. Vote or press1 for English for the rest of your life. Finally, a candidate with some stones. Meet Bradley

[Obama's Mass. Visit] Tea party patriots cheer as riot police leave Quincy, Mass. The picture of granny waving her flag at the SWAT team is priceless. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4Pk0Jygu4I&feature=player_embedded

[Constitution] How come the Tea Partiers are worried about the Constitution now, when Obama hasn’t even tried to change it or infringe on its intents? But when Bush and Chaney trampled all over it they said nothing? Is it because the TPs agreed with Bush/Chaney?

[Wet Backs] Most of the blame for the flood of illegal immigrants into our country lies on the backs of our sainted businessmen who will do anything for a buck or cheap labor.

[Kosovo and Arizona parallels] Recent events in Arizona are reminiscent of the Kosovo scenario of former Yugoslavia.  Illegal aliens from an adjacent country moved in with impunity over time and when local land owners finally convince local officialdom to take action, external "officialdom" insists on meddling in the process.  End result is that illegal aliens gain a plurality of votes, fund raising and push legitimate owners out of their way, by force if necessary.  That's how we now have Bill Clinton's statue in downtown Pristina, Kosovo and we'll soon have Obama's effigy in Hispanic dominated areas of the southern US. The pattern is undeniably similar and bound to repeat itself.

[Semantics] Okay, it's our country, not your country. So what was that country like before you ceremoniously lost it? FTR, your patronizing sounds like whining and your whining sounds like conservative propaganda drool.

[Immigration] The total budgeted cost of the wars to this day is 3.5 trillion dollars. That’s 3,500,000,000,000.00. Immigration is just another hot-button issue to do 3 things.
1. Give the politicians and media something to sway votes based upon.
2. Keep all the people fighting with each other so we are more easily manipulated and controlled.
3. Distract from the real issues, for example how the ‘too big to fails’ are now betting their credit default swaps on whether or not bridges, towns, cities, and even entire states will fail and default on their debt. After our money was handed to them as a ‘bailout’. Trillions of our dollars, roughly the same amount spent on those wars. But  who’s counting, right? I know the government isn’t.

The truth is an ugly thing, but the truth is the only thing that will truly set you free.

[Racism] Why is it that anyone who is white and dislikes President Obama's policies (who by the census poll would be bi-racial) is labeled a racist and anyone who dislikes a white President's policies is not labeled a racist no matter what color they are?

FTR: "The global warming sales staff sells the fear of global warming for great profit financially and politically."

I say, "The anti-global warming sales staff had better start looking for new jobs."

[Saving the nation's economy] Many of you criticize Obama for saving the economy by running up astronomical debt. Few of you realize what it would be like if the economy had collapsed. If it had, you’d all be complaining that Obama should have run up astronomical debt to have prevented the collapse.

There is no way he can win, only history will be able to tell (and those of us who can see past our noses).

I enjoy my Jane Fonda urinal sticker. I use it daily, often, and with pride of service.

[From the Right] Wow, hey hey, our liberally violent friends seem to be getting better all the time at the liberally violent demonstrations. I expect that they will keep ginning up the heat until someone gets hurt, then that someone will become a hero. Mr. Obama will undoubtedly say that the cops acted “stupid”, you know that he has a history of doing that. Perhaps Mr. Obama and the violently liberal amongst us can drag William Ayers out of semi retirement and he can put on classes on bomb building and bomb placement in police stations. What a wonderful time our liberally violent friends are having. Here’ just one of their game videos. Check out their skill at missile tossing and pushing and shoving; world class. Boy, oh boy, us Tea Party revelers are real wimps, all we do is wave signs, smile, wave at cars, drink coffee, eat donuts, and hot dogs. What wimps we are. And to think that we evil old white tea party-types want to prevent all this fun from happening by securing our borders.  May be we are just cruel racist old farts.  P.S. Isn’t this a lot like a burglar getting pissed at you when you install locks?

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Thursday April 29, 2010

Wednesday April 28, 2010

Piner’s are a funny bunch. they are older and younger, doctors and teachers, fishermen and hippies. Bartenders and servers. Folks that love art, music and wildlife. They love the ocean, fishing and diving and being outside. We have great weather year around.

[Hippies] I disagree with everything the poster wrote about old hippies rewriting history, particularly his errors in saying Jane Fonda was a hippy and “mind expanding increase of heroin use” is simply wrong. Jane Fonda was never a hippy and heroin is not a mind expanding drug; consequently, no hippy would use it because it wasn’t mind expanding and it was addictive. Hippies kept away from those types of people because they gave out bad vibrations. Hippies were even against alcohol because it didn’t expand the mind and caused negative behavior. That was all happening at the beginning and like all movements reality set in on our Utopian ideals signaling the end for us.

Clean window blinds in the shower. Spray with Windex and rinse with warm water. Clean your windows too, you’ll feel much better.

Did you know that the carrier pigeon was the most populous bird on the planet? Unfortunately they were good to eat.

[No Dogs Allowed]  No one can abdicate risk by posting a sign in our legal system. ("Dogs on premises, by entering this establishment you acknowledge and accept the risk"). When you go on an amusement park ride, on the back of the ticket it used to say you are riding at your own risk. That doesn’t count when there’s an accident.

[Eve of Destruction] When the Dallas Cowboys imploded Texas Stadium they put an interactive, 360° camera at centerfield. Watch, and move the camera, as a stadium is destroyed around you. You can click on the movie and pull the image any way you want. This is really cool! http://bit.ly/ doOYh0

[Assisted Living facilities] From the cursory knowledge I have, they vary in size, price, and services offered, so you have a wide variety of choices in where and how you would like to live. From small converted homes in neighborhoods with six beds to large high-rise towers having multiple floors, there are ALFs in Florida to suit just about everyone.  

One of my friend's mother is in one in Tavernier.  Pricing typically ranges from $950 a month to over $3000 a month depending on the facility, activities and services offered.  Be assured that there is a facility and service offering to meet everyone's budget and needs.

To the poster who made the offer of land for an assisted living facility, please email me at aslllandlllas@yahoo.com   Please be patient for a response, it's not disinterest, it's a busy schedule.

Pictures of Looe Key Reef from yesterday from the glass bottom boat we rented. Check out the 100 pound grouper and the 4 ft barracuda!

[Sloan] If I owned an home with an illegal downstairs enclosure, under the advice of Jesus (render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s, and unto God that which is God’s), I would be made to tear down and dispose of my illegal downstairs enclosure before filing to run for the County Commission. I would be made to first take the beam out of my own eye.
 
If I did not do that and was elected to the county Commission, and if an illegal downstairs enclosure item then became before that body, I would have a clear conflict of interest no matter that 7,000-plus other Keys people also had illegal downstairs enclosures. No way could I be in the clear with so much of my own personal financial interest at stake. No way. I would have to recuse myself, not only from voting but also from discussion. I would have to do that because, as an elected official, I would have a higher ethical duty than a private citizen. I would have to avoid even the mere appearance of impropriety.
 
So, what it looks to me happened in yesterday's post was I projected how it would go for me onto Danny Coll, and I then laid it off on John November, not realizing we were not operating from the same bodies of law. Once again I am reminded that the Florida Ethics Commission (this is not my first or even my second experience with the Commission) does not seem inclined to use the ”the mere appearance of propriety” test, which I  believe is a universally accepted legal standard for elected officials in America, even though it doesn’t seem to be universally applied.
 
County Commissioner David Rice, a psychologist, had a lucrative consulting and testing contract with the Monroe County Sheriff Office, the annual budget of which is approved by the County Commission, and none of the other Commissioners, including George Neugent, David’s good friend, felt there was any impropriety in that.
 
Commissioner Neugent, Commissioner DiGennaro and Commissioner/Mayor Murphy didn’t see impropriety this year dining in a closed meeting with the top brass of ORCA (Ocean Reef Community Association), the wealthiest and largest gated community and PAC in the Keys, despite prior warnings from State Attorney Dennis Ward that their attending that dinner would appear to violate the State Sunshine Law.
 
All of this commentary above leaves me deeply disturbed. I don’t even want to be involved in Keys politics, and especially do I not want to run for office and be brought a lot closer to what looks to me like a political system that is irrevocably beyond repair because elected officials who should be leading the charge to repair it are leading the charge to keep it the way it is, because that is the way they want it to be (the bubba system).

My own distemper over this, which John November received when I saw he was not on the same page I’m on, or in the same book, or, as I told him, not even on the same planet, puts me into a conflict of interest in my soul. A conflict of interest between living the way I have no choice but to live, and dealing with people who live anyway that suits them. That conflict of interest in me has to be bleeding into and poisoning what I write about Keys politics. It has to be. It makes me feel as if I need to shut up and do something else entirely, because Keys politics is beyond repair even by God. The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

[Too Ignorant to Vote] Yesterday’s poster stated Monroe County citizens are too “ignorant”, yes this poster actually called us too ignorant to be allowed to actually vote on Local Comp Plan or Local Growth/No-growth Decisions; stating that those important decisions should be left to intelligent people at the DCA in Tallahassee.

There you go Monroe County, those who want to keep the DCA want to do so because you are too ignorant, too stupid, to be able to make decisions about your own values, your own home, your own Keys!

Yesterday’s poster claims voter turnout is too low and the voters too ignorant to be relied upon to make decisions about our own local Comp Plan and Policies.  This same poster forgets that currently 5 County Commissioners and a few people in the DCA are making these decisions for us.  Saying that 40,623 voting persons are too ignorant and not enough to count, but 10 or less should continue to decide and dictate is ludicrous, folly, and laughable.

Yesterday’s poster is wrong. We Monroe County citizens and voters are quite capable of intelligent thought and educated decisions.

And no (wrong again), I am not a developer. I am an ordinary citizen, a full-time citizen and homeowner, longtime resident, and a conservationist.  What I am above all is intelligent enough to think and vote for myself; as are the other 40,622 people in Monroe County who vote.

You, yesterday’s poster, questioned who would “benefit” by allowing County residents to vote on their own Comprehensive Plan. The answer to that is simple.  Every person in this Country “benefits” from a free democratic society, including you.

More sex for better health. Brazil official urges more sex for better health - Yahoo! News

[Bike Path Etiquette] What are the bikes path rules on US 1?  When the path ends for a road for cars to come off the US 1 Highway do the cars stop on US 1 for the bike to pass or do the bikers have to yield to the cars?  Also if the biker goes over the bridges do the bikers have to get off the bike and walk their bike across or can they ride across?

If one marries their male cousin do they refer to him as their Cuzband?

[How did all of the illegal downstairs enclosures get built] The same way all those lumps of foundations got on Marvin Key—illegally.

[Immigrants] Remember about 25 years ago, when some people were fired up about too many blacks in prisons, claiming that it was racial discrimination?  Well, turned out the percentage of blacks in prisons equaled the percentage of blacks committing crimes. The percentage of blacks from a certain neighborhood or cities being put in prisons equaled the percentage of blacks living in those neighborhoods and cities.

The point is, an illegal is doing something illegal, breaking a law of our country (some are breaking many laws), while the rest of us are not. Anything else is extraneous and irrelevant.  

Don't confuse illegals with immigrants. Illegals have to go back, regardless of who they take care of, because they are criminals. Immigrants stay or leave at their will.

In AZ,  the illegal population is mostly Mexican. It’s interesting the your post referenced only Puerto Ricans and Cubans. So are you okay with Mexicans being illegal?

Here's another guy thing that sucks. These t-shirts that say: "Lead, follow, or get out of the way". You ever see that? This is more of that stupid Marine Corps bullshit. Obsolete, male impulses from a hundred thousand years ago, "Lead, follow, or get out of the way". You know what I do when I see that shirt; I obstruct. I stand right in the guy's path, force him to walk around me, he gets a little past me, I spin him around kick him in the nuts, rip off his shirt, wipe it on my ass, and shove it down his f**king throat. Hey, listen that's all these marines are looking for; a good time.  ~George Carlin

Where can you rent the sea glass kayak? I went by Parrotdise and didn’t see anything.
(Ed: they're just getting started. Give Ken a call at 305-393-3915.)

[Sex Tip Of the Day] When he says, "I want to make love to you in the worst way!" "Well you certainly succeeded." is not the right answer.

[Hippies] I love how the old hippies try and revise history. Wow, can you propagandize the people or what? You must be a retired or retarded reporter who worked for Big Brother, or at least an anti-everything dude. I’ll bet you big money, you were never anywhere near the 2 percent of the people who were hippies. It was all a scam, man! The press played with your brain and it worked.

[Assisted Living] I would think we locals can put a facility together that could be state of the art. No County input involved.

[Howard Livingston and the Mile Marker 24 Band] I have been invited to perform again this year for the Key West Songwriters Festival, this time with the entire band.  This is the 15th year for the festival and it is absolutely amazing.  Some of the greatest songwriters in the world will be attending.  We perform on Thursday at The Southernmost Beach Café’s “Beach Bash.”  The bash starts at 5:00 PM and we take the stage at 7:00.  This show is free and open to the public.  Please come out, I could use a good dose of seeing my friends.  For more information about the festival please visit our website www.milemarker24.com

[Architecture] 24 room apartment in just 330 square feet. YouTube - A Tiny Apartment Transforms into 24 Rooms

This miniature horse is just one week old and is already in the running to be the world's smallest horse. Einstein was born April 22, weighing only six pounds and standing at just 14 inches, reports Tonic. That's seven inches and 12 pounds smaller than the average, according to the Concord Monitor.

The wee little foal was born in New Hampshire, at Tiz A Miniature Horse Farm and while breeder Judy Smith knew Einstein was tiny, she was surprised to learn that he has a shot at a Guinness World Record. (The current record holder is a chestnut mare named Thumbelina, who was 11 inches tall and 8.5 pounds when she was born in 2001.)

Despite his eensy-weensy stature, Einstein appears perfectly normal and healthy. He was born three days after his due date, and, according to the Concord Monitor, is perfectly proportioned.

The folks who bought and named Einstein -- Rachel Wagner and Charles Cantrell -- did so in part to keep the petite pinto out of "some kind of circus thing," reports the Concord Monitor. They're focused on the animal's quality of life, and hope that by naming him Einstein, they can put a spotlight on the wisdom of supporting farms, such as Tiz, where the goal is a healthy horse and not on breeding the tiniest pet possible.

County Commissioners get paid $43,244 a year plus they get health insurance.

“The Islamorada Chamber of Commerce is delighted to have Onshore Therapy join us as a new member.  This is the only physical and occupational therapy member that we have and in our Chamber and they fill a big void that we have had in this specialized area.  We wish them all the best,” said Judy Hull, director of the Islamorada Chamber of Commerce. Chamber VIPs and members joined the therapy staff and friends for the ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the grand opening of Onshore Therapy and Hands On Therapy & Rehabilitation Center of the Florida Keys April 21.

Onshore Therapy Owner Leann Crockett and Office Manager Shae Lykins along with Hands On Therapists JB Jones and Brenda King, and Phyllis Bailin, a certified occupational therapist assistant, gave demonstrations and tours of their new facility. Physical therapy specialties of Onshore Therapy include orthopedics, balance/gait training, vestibular rehab, and foot/ankle assessments.  Occupational therapy areas of expertise available through Hands On Therapy includes pediatrics, hand therapy/splinting, orthopedics, neurological rehab, early steps provider with Miami Children’s Hospital, and Interactive Metronome Therapy. Interactive Metronome therapy helps people with a variety of problems including autism, ADHD, cerebral palsy, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injuries, balance disorders and stroke.

For more information call Onshore Therapy at (305) 587-7770 or Hands On Therapy at (305) 852-8600. The comprehensive clinic is located at 92400 Overseas Highway in the Vaughn building just north of Chad’s Deli in Tavernier.

[AA Basher] AA is said to be a "spiritual, not religious" program. This is a gross manipulation of words, just to make the program more acceptable to newcomers. A good way to see the clear distortion of information is to compare AA's promotional literature with their official basic text and the dominant discourse that takes place among the members. AA's promotional literature claims, "there is room in AA for people of all shades of belief and disbelief." The Big Book states, "to live life on a spiritual basis or face an alcoholic death are not easy alternative to face." In the meetings a commonly heard slogan is, "work the steps or die." This is one of a multitude of examples of how the promotional literature that one finds in AA pamphlets or magazine articles shows AA as an easy-going loosely defined fellowship.

The Big Book of AA paints a picture of grave warnings and death threats. It is obsessively religious as ruled by the courts and claims to be about hope and inspiration for the alcoholic, but is filled with dark and morbid overtones. The information that goes out to the public is clearly designed to make AA look inviting, all accepting, enjoyable, and effective. Once the member is inside, things change. All of the information is geared toward making the member obedient and dependent on the cult.

NATIONAL POLITICS

According to some of you nuts Obama really doesn’t exist. If anyone were to believe your nonsense he wasn’t even born, never was a lawyer, never taught law, never was a Christian, never saved the country from economic collapse, never was popular overseas, never reduced nuclear weapons, never made financial reform on Wall Street and never did all that in just one year.

What did exist and what did the Republicans do in their 8 years? Wars, trampling the Constitution, financial and corporate abuse.

Sarah Palin, like a lot of others these days, is ignorant and proud of it.

[Michele Obama's brother receiving stimulus money] False. Check out Snopes. There's a whiff of right-wing desperation in the air. They’ll say anything to foment hate and mistrust. http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/oregonstate.asp

[Spitting on veterans] FTR told us yesterday that there was very little hate mongering from the hippies. I guess he looks at spitting on returning Veterans and calling them baby killers are terms of endearment. I bet Jane Fonda is a teabagger now.

After the huge oil spill heading toward the Keys, Mr Obama still supports drilling off the coast of Florida!

I want our country back, not your country.

[Global Warming] Isn't it so obvious that all scientific research that supports the theory of manmade global warming is bought and paid for when all "honest" research amounts to only 3% of the published work on the subject?  The infamous "they" have put the word out that if you want a future in this field, you'd better spout the party line.  I wonder how those 3% manage to keep their jobs.

Rightfully Elected? The Diebold machines used in the 2 primary states have been proven time and time again to report completely inaccurate results and are able to be compromised within 25 seconds. Don’t even get me started on the Electoral College.

"The terrorists love our attacks"? I’m pretty sure they are too busy getting blown up while throwing a wedding, trying to hide from the invading imperialist conquerors also known as Marines (or even worse, the private contractors), and are  mostly just human beings trying to survive.

A case of too much Glenn Beck:  Here is a fact check-- the tea party movement was co-opted by the same fake republicans who are really rich, neo-liberal globalists that profit from misery, famine, destruction, disease, and war. The same people who bankroll Fox News and play the other side bankrolling MSNBC and CNN. You talk about the terrorists wanting us divided? You’re right, but the terrorists aren’t in some mountain cave in some far off country with a hard to pronounce name and a towel on their head saying “DURKA DURKA” like the TVs mantra repeats.

The terrorists are in the CIA, the NSA, Congress, the Senate, the White House, the major banks and corporations’ boards of directors, and the heads of the war department (the army, navy, and air force commanders). They are the real terrorists, relying on your fear and ignorance, which they ingrain in you from a young, young age, as well as your subservient nature and lack of real guts or morals to question the existing failing system. Please, don’t take this as a threat, take it as a heavy-worded call to action. The real freedom movement needs fighters, and it only takes some heart, courage, dedication, and a strict reliance on truth.

Spread the word, the only thing that can destroy the mountain of lies is the repetition of the truth. Above all else, love endlessly, and you will be endlessly loved. The truth is there in black and white. Capitalism is socialism for the rich, and we are all footing the bill. Someone who has paid into Medicare their whole life now hears it trotted around as an entitlement as though they hadn’t paid at all. The people who run this country, in the spotlight and in the shadows, are nothing more than leeches draining the blood from honest, hard-working Americans and the truth is their salt.

Viva la Revolucion!

[Illegals] Come to Arizona and live for a while and try to work if you are a legal citizen. You won't like what you get, and forget trying to work for a decent wage.  To the people that won't be able to have house keepers, care takers, yard workers, etc, they can still have that by paying a fair wage for it.  Not all people in America live on beans and tortillas. Some of us that have been born here like to pay rent/mortgage to live in a house not a dirt floor shack.  I am a native of the South West and like the Mexican people and there heritage, but they need to do as all immigrants that are legal do--get legal.  Many, many of these illegal have been here working for years and have children here, but never bothered to get legal. My grandparents came here from the old country, had no help, took care of themselves and became citizens of the U.S.A. and were proud to do so.  So for you people that hire illegals for less then minimum wage, shut up or put your money where your big mouth is. 

Haitians get sent back, but not Mexicans. Why is that?

[Illegal Aliens] Why is the USA bankrupt? You think the war in  Iraq is costing us too much?  I have been hammered with the propaganda that it is the   Iraq war and the war on terror that is bankrupting us. I now find that to be ridiculous.
1. $11 billion to $22 billion is spent on welfare to illegal aliens each year by state governments.
2.  $2.2 billion dollars a year is spent on food assistance programs such as food stamps, WIC, and free school lunches for illegal aliens.
 3. $2.5 billion dollars a year is spent on Medicaid for illegal aliens.
4. $12 billion dollars a year is spent on primary and secondary school education for children here illegally and they cannot speak a word of English!
 5. $17 billion dollars a year is spent for education for the American-born children of illegal aliens, known as anchor babies.
6. $3 million dollars a day is spent to incarcerate illegal aliens.
7.  30% percent of all federal prison inmates are illegal aliens.
 8.  $90 billion dollars a year is spent on illegal aliens for welfare and social services by the American taxpayers.
9.  $200 billion dollars a year in suppressed American wages are caused by the illegal aliens.

10.  The illegal aliens in the United States have a crime rate that's two and a half times that of white non-illegal aliens.  In particular their children are going to make a huge additional crime problem in the US.
11.  During the year of 2005 there were 4 to 10 million illegal aliens that crossed our Southern border--as many as 19,500 illegal aliens from terrorist countries. Millions of pounds of drugs, cocaine, meth, heroin and marijuana, crossed into the US from the Southern border.
12. The National Policy Institute estimated that the total cost of mass deportation would be between $206 and $230 billion or an average cost of between $41 and $46 billion annually over a five year period.

From The Reich guy. Oh, please tell us more about your knowledge of “The Jews". I'm tasting a bit of anti-Semitism.

I would suggest you do a little research into how good ol’ Uncle Sam actually treats vets nowadays. No health coverage, multiple tours even after being diagnosed with mentally debilitating disorders, some 60 Iraq/Afghan war vets attempt suicide every month. Thousands are homeless and broke. Personally, I’d much rather be spit on.

[Hippies] To whoever is responding bashing the hippies about drug use, especially heroin, while displaying undertones of pro-Americana propaganda. I am a man in my young 20s, and yet it seems I know more about the situation than you do. Regarding your claim that widespread use of heroin was a result (whether directly or indirectly) of hippies, here is a little history lesson to take you to the source:

The checkered history of the CIA
In August 1996, investigative journalist Gary Webb released the first installment of Dark Alliance in the San Jose Mercury exposing the CIA's involvement in the drug trade. The article blew the lid off the murky dealings of the agency's covert operations.  Webb's words are as riveting today as they were when they first appeared 14 years ago:  

"For the better part of a decade, a San Francisco Bay Area drug ring sold tons of cocaine to the Crips and Bloods street gangs of Los Angeles and funneled millions in drug profits to a Latin American guerrilla army run by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, a Mercury News investigation has found.

This drug network opened the first pipeline between Colombia's cocaine cartels and the black neighborhoods of Los Angeles, a city now known as the "crack'' capital of the world. The cocaine that flooded in helped spark a crack explosion in urban America

and provided the cash and connections needed for L.A.'s gangs to buy automatic weapons.

It is one of the most bizarre alliances in modern history: the union of a U.S.-backed army attempting to overthrow a revolutionary socialist government and the Uzi-toting "gangstas'' of Compton and South-Central Los Angeles." ("America's 'crack' plague has roots in Nicaragua war", Gary Webb, San Jose Mercury News)

Counterpunch editor Alexander Cockburn has also done extensive research on the CIA/drug connection. Here's an excerpt from an article titled "The Government's Dirty Little Secrets", which ran in the Los Angeles Times.  
"CIA Inspector General Frederick Hitz finally conceded to a U.S. congressional committee that the agency had worked with drug traffickers and had obtained a waiver from the Justice Department in 1982 (the beginning of the Contra funding crisis) allowing it not to report drug trafficking by agency contractors. Was the lethal arsenal deployed at Roodeplaat assembled with the advice from the CIA and other U.S. agencies? There were certainly close contacts over the years. It was a CIA tip that led the South African secret police to arrest Nelson Mandela." (The Government's Dirty Little Secrets, Los Angeles Times, commentary, 1998)

And then there's this from independent journalist Zafar Bangash:
"The CIA, as Cockburn and (Jeffrey) St Clair reveal, had been in this business right from the beginning. In fact, even before it came into existence, its predecessors, the OSS and the Office of Naval Intelligence, were involved with criminals. One such criminal was Lucky Luciano, the most notorious gangster and drug trafficker in America in the forties."

The CIA's involvement in drug trafficking closely dovetails America's adventures overseas from Indo-China in the sixties to Afghanistan in the eighties. As Alfred McCoy states in his book: Politics of Heroin: CIA complicity in the Global Drug Trade, beginning with CIA raids from Burma into China in the early fifties, the agency found that 'ruthless drug lords made effective anti-communists." ("CIA peddles drugs while US Media act as cheerleaders", Zafar Bangash, Muslimedia, January 16-31, 1999)

And, this from author William Blum:
"ClA-supported Mujahedeen rebels ... engaged heavily in drug trafficking while fighting against the Soviet-supported government," writes historian William Blum. "The Agency's principal client was Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, one of the leading druglords and a leading heroin refiner. CIA-supplied trucks and mules, which had carried arms into Afghanistan, were used to transport opium to laboratories along the Afghan/Pakistan border. The output provided up to one half of the heroin used annually in the United States and three-quarters of that used in Western Europe."

And, this from Portland Independent Media:
"Before 1980, Afghanistan produced 0% of the world's opium. But then the CIA moved in, and by 1986 they were producing 40% of the world's heroin supply. By 1999, they were churning out 3,200 tons of heroin a year--nearly 80% of the total market supply. But then something unexpected happened. The Taliban rose to power, and by 2000 they had destroyed nearly all of the opium fields. Production dropped from 3,000+ tons to only 185 tons, a 94% reduction! This  drop in revenue hurt not only the CIA's Black Budget projects, but also the free-flow of laundered money in and out of the Controller's banks." (Portland Independent Media)

Hopefully this should enlighten you a bit on where good ‘ol uncle sam has his priorities, not to mention his slimey fingers. Do you think it coincidence that now we’ve been in Adghanistan for 10 years with no tangible result, while a CIA-trained U.S. backed dictator, who also happens to be a well-known heroin trafficker, (Hamid Karzai) is now the leader of the torn country? You must also think it coincidence then that heroin production has steadily grown every year since we invaded and is now back at near-record-breaking levels.

More people need to be aware of the fact that the leadership in this country turned its back on We The People a long time ago, and with the help of the CIA, NSA, FBI, DOJ, and all the so-called ‘NGO’s promoting ‘democracy by force’ around the globe, our government has become the bane of human as well as all life on this planet. The facts are right there in black and white. If you truly love this country, you would stop hating the people trying to change it, and realize the only thing you should hate is what we are becoming. Turn off the corporate news and read.

[From the Right] My goodness, several of our violently liberal friends certainly seemed to have a major case of agita yesterday. I urge them to sit quietly, drink green tea, to chant ooooom, oooooom, and to think calm thoughts. It will ease their painful symptoms. Sit back, relax, and browse the latest copy of The American Spectator, you will find it soothing.  I’m very happy that I can’t feel your pain. You see, the truth is often painful One poster seems at least as interested in attacking this writer as he/she is in the quaint possibility of sea level rise. I would point out to this angry gentleperson that the sea has waxed and waned over the millennia.  What you see around you today will most certainly be fundamentally different in the future. One day a yellow tail snapper may be foraging in the exact spot you now occupy. Or there may be an ungulate browsing on an arid plain.  For this time, for this now, however, it is the Antarctic that holds 90% of the earth’s ice and 80% of the earth’s fresh water. I hope it won’t pain you too much when you learn that the Antarctic ice cap is growing. Yep, it’s growing, it’s sucking up water and converting  the water to ice and storing on the ground.  At the other pole, the Arctic sea ice is now at the same average coverage as it has been since 1979 when accurate recording began.  How odd.  Another suffering CT fellow traveler seems to be a major fan of Dominic Chinni. Dominic who? Dominic what? Apparently Mr. Chinni is a writer who has an opinion concerning the demographics of the Tea Party movement and its potential impact on the future politics of the U.S. That’s nice, very sweet. Bill Bennet is a writer with an opinion concerning the Tea Party and its future influence. That’s nice too.   Who cares?  We do know for rock solid sure, that right now the Tea Party movement is a major influence on today’s politics. Because of the Tea Party movement the Democrats no longer have a filibuster proof majority in the Senate. Any democrat or republican politician who denies that is whistling past the graveyard. A couple of other offended CT posters seemed enraged that I have a viewpoint on the issue of global warming. It seems especially irritating to those folks that I voice my opinion.  Oh well, life is full of pain, check with Dr. IRS of Obamacare for relief.  Let me make my viewpoint clear.  Look, I don’t know for sure if the globe is warming or cooling. I don’t believe anyone truly knows. There are theories galore. There is evidence on all sides of the issue. I do know that the earth’s climate is in constant change--often dramatic change.  We do know that where we now live has been an ocean reef at least once. We know that since the arrival of man on this continent that where you are now sitting has been high and dry. We know that the coast line was miles off shore from where it is now. None of yesterday’s agita sufferers even thought to bitch about the theory of anthropogenic causes for global warming.  I’ll help them out, I believe that if GW exists, and it might, or it might not, man has had nothing or nearly nothing to do with it. I believe that we are approaching a period of global cooling. I believe that our sun is approaching or is in a Maunder minimum cycle. I believe that there is a strong possibility that we will next experience a climate similar to the times of the Little Ice Age that existed from the 16^th to the 19^th centuries.  If that were to come to pass, global cooling has the potential to wreak far greater havoc on humanity than does global warming. Can anyone deny that it is the sun that is responsible for all life on earth? Can anyone deny that it is the sun and variations in it’s “output” that is the prime engine that drives global warming/cooling.   I believe that the controversy is kept alive by persons who profit greatly from the controversy. I believe that today’s man can do nothing to drastically alter our climate. The global warming sales staff sells the fear of global warming for great profit financially and politically. Hey! I thought that the Tea Party revelers, you know, the old white rich bloodthirsty violent racist misinformed bigoted  rabble had a monopoly on violence in political demonstrations.  What a relief to know that we are not the only players in town. It’s lonely being the only voice in the wilderness. Welcome, my liberal Arizonian and nationwide liberally violent friends. I saw your excellently violent riots in Arizona yesterday. I was particularly impressed with your accuracy and strength in "Rock Throwing at Cops" event.  You did wonderfully well in the "Hit your opponents with bottles" marathon. Don’t get all puffed up and feeling cocky about your violence skills, because you’ve had a lot more experience with violence and demonstrations  than we have.  I only wish that we Tea Party types had a rabble rouser to come into the field of combat with us such as your champion Al Sharpton. I must confess that I envy your organization and enthusiasm.  But it’s not surprising you’ve got a lot of support from high places. Plus, you guys have real advantages over us. First, you guys wrote the book on violent demonstrations.  Mr. Obama’s background is chock full of violent demonstrators.  Second, you guys are younger than us; you’ve got stamina on your side.  Of course there is one big difference between us. You liberally violent folks are demonstrating to protect illegal aliens from American law.  We’ve been demonstrating to protect America and Americans from illegal aliens. Of course we have other deep concerns, but that’s for another day. My Deer liberally violent friends, I urge you to calm down, drink green tea, just relax and think calm thoughts.

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Wednesday April 28, 2010

Tuesday April 27, 2010

If we are a nation of laws then how did all of the illegal downstairs enclosures get built?

[Sloan] On the local (Florida Keys front), an interesting “revelation” came to me yesterday after I was called by John November, Law Fellow for Citizens Not Serfs (CNS), founded and headed up by Phil Shannon of Summerland Key. John said he’d like to get together with me for lunch. After tossing around some places, we decided on the Square Grouper, where I’ve never eaten. We decided on today, Tuesday.
 
When John then said Phil would be there, too, I said then maybe we shouldn’t meet in a public place. Maybe we should meet at Phil’s home. I had in mind that I’d recently busted Phil and John in a post. I also had in mind that maybe what we would talk about might not be something we would want people in a restaurant to hear. John said he’d have to check with Phil about meeting at his home, and he would call back. I said okay.
 
Ten seconds after I closed up my cell phone, it hit me that District 2 County Commission candidate Danny Coll would have a serious conflict of interest if he got elected. The conflict of interest would be his home has an illegal downstairs enclosure. Therefore, any item about illegal downstairs enclosures that came before the County Commission would be off limits for Danny. He would have to recuse himself.
 
John called back maybe ten minutes later, to say he had been unable to reach Phil about changing the location of our meeting, so to be safe, let’s meet at Phil’s home on Thursday at 1:30 p.m. I said okay. Then, I described the revelation, fully expecting John to see the problem Danny Coll would have as a county commissioner on any item involving illegal downstairs enclosures.
 
What’s that saying? ASS-U-ME? Yep. I fell right into that one. Law Fellow John said he didn’t see a conflict of interest. I said, then maybe we’d better not meet on Thursday, because I didn’t see any reason to meet, if John, who had graduated from law school, didn’t see a conflict of interest in Danny Coll, as a county commissioner, voting on illegal downstairs enclosure items.
 
The conversation went on for a while. I became less and less kind to John about his legal training. He became more and more vocal about my disrespect for him, when he was trying to get us on the same side. I said I would be more respectful when he started acting like he understood the law.

(Part II) On both a state and local front is a huge election issue for all of Florida, as well as for the Keys. A Republican ploy is well underway to eliminate the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), which has oversight and veto power over changes in and sneaky attempts to circumvent local Comprehensive Plans by County Commissions. Our Republican-controlled (translate that to developer-controlled) State legislature has declined to fund DCA’s continuance, by leaving it for the State legislature to either provide funding for DCA next year, or let DCA sunset by not getting any further funding.
 
DCA has played a vital role in keeping our County Commission on track and out of the hands of developers. There are two things Keys voters can do to counter what the Republican-controlled (translate that to developer-controlled) State legislature is doing in Tallahassee.
 
One thing is return our incumbent Democrat legislator, Ron Saunders, to office this year (translate that to not elect his Republican opponent Morgan McPherson, who is generally viewed in Key West, where he served two terms as mayor, to be a tad whored-up with developers).
 
The other thing Keys voters can do is vote for Amendment 4 on the ballot, which will turn voters into their own local DCA. The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

[LA Oil Spill] Coming soon to a beach or fishing spot near you. I'd like my lobster marinated in Premium 66 thank you. Spill, baby, spill!

[Grilled Cheese Academy] 30 great grilled cheese sandwhiches. http://www.grilledcheeseacademy.com/

[Hurricane Looters] Locals are the looters in the Lower Keys. We had a neighbor that did the right thing and evacuated during Wilma.  He had a hot tub that was purchased for his sick wife the previous Christmas. Although he had raised the motor end up and put some ropes around it, the afternoon flooding from Wilma proved to be too much.  A local Bubba on Cudjoe Key stayed behind to profit from others miseries and secured this hot tub for himself. As well as any other items of value that were scattered around.  After bragging about his new found belongings in a local watering hole the hot tub was finally found by the rightful owner. So for all of those that have suffered during those Hurricanes, don't blame people that are coming down from Miami. Take a good look around your neighborhood. It's the local Bubba's that will do you wrong.

[The Haitians are Coming] The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Vigorous repatriated 90 Haitian migrants to Cap Haitien, Haiti, Wednesday, after they were located at sea on a grossly-overloaded vessel Tuesday.

While conducting a routine patrol in the Caribbean sea, the crew of the Vigorous discovered a 25-foot Yola approximately 20 miles northeast of Ile de La Tortue, Haiti, heading toward the Bahamas or Turks and Caicos Islands. Vigorous crewmembers distributed life jackets to the migrants and safely transferred the 57 men, 32 women and one child to the cutter.

The Coast Guard has multiple aircraft and cutters patrolling for vessels trying to smuggle or otherwise move migrants into the U.S. or other Caribbean countries illegally.  Safety of life at sea is always paramount and every effort is made to rescue persons embarked in unseaworthy craft or in peril from the sea regardless of nationality or circumstances.  Many of these vessels, including the one located Tuesday, are grossly overloaded, unstable, and dangerous.  These vessels can capsize quickly throwing migrants into the water.  Additionally, unsanitary conditions often found aboard the vessels present significant health hazards to the migrants, many of whom have paid their life savings to embark on these ill-fated voyages.  Virtually all Haitian migrants interdicted at sea will be repatriated back to Haiti into an area relatively unaffected by the Jan. 12, 2010 earthquake.   

To date in fiscal year 2010, which began Oct. 1, 2009, the Coast Guard has interdicted 317 Haitian migrants, including 92 in April.  In addition, one-hundred-thirteen Haitian migrants were interdicted by the Royal Bahamian Defense Force on April 8, 2010 and 31 Haitian migrants were apprehended after arriving ashore in Jamaica on April 10.  Three Haitian migrants were apprehended by law enforcement personnel on April 12 after they landed ashore in Haulover Beach, Fla., during an apparent human-smuggling operation. 

There are currently no indicators that lead the Coast Guard to believe Haitian migrants are taking to the sea in increased numbers.     

Once aboard the cutters, all migrants received food, water, shelter and basic medical care.

Coast Guard Cutter Vigorous is a 210-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Cape May, N.J.

Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.  ~Confucius

The Conch Republic did not in any way succeed at anything or secede from anything and if you believe anything else you are dangerously delusional and need to quit promoting this notion on federally controlled radio airways in ways that feed the fantasies of some who are innately gullible.  If you want to use this concept to make money off people hard up for something to do, go ahead, but you need to add some sort of disclaimer to your promotions.

[Dogs in bars] When I got here in the 1970s dogs weren’t allowed in bars. I know because they kept throwing my dog out. The first bar I remember letting dogs in was the Schooner Warf, but that was years later.

[Hippies] I love how the old hippies try and revise history. Let’s review their claims of being pro-American. Let’s see, did they support the Armed forces in Vietnam? Nope. They chose to spit on our troops and called them baby killers when they returned. In fact that famous hippy Jane Fonda jumped on top of a gun used to down American pilots. Did they work hard and study hard? Nope. Drop out and drop acid. Remember that? Did they support the police force? In no way shape or form. Remember how they tried to disgrace the "Pigs"?

They wanted to expand their minds. Great job with that mind expanding increase of heroin use that has been a plague to this country for years. Yeah, real great Americans all right. There’s a reason they died out so fast. Peace and love led to massive drug overdoses and neighborhoods festering with crime. Trying to make that era romantic may work on some of the young today, but back then it wasn’t all love and peace. It was the most narcisstic time in American history.

[Collected 5,056 GIF animations] Here’s one I bet you do not have. Welcome to the club of what the hell am I going to do with them and I wish I knew ACCESS data base so I can find them. It’s a great hobby as you and I know although it’s a bitch sorting them and sometimes finding an appropriate GIF for a topic. You know you have one, but where the hell is it!

[Procedural Ordinance requiring a county-wide vote. And get rid of the DCA] Relying on Monroe County citizens voting as a method to decide anything is ludicrous, folly, laughable, and firmly in concrete reinforces exactly why DCA has to stay. 

Monroe County has a historically dismally low voter turnout. Look at the County Supervisor of Elections web site, and compare how many people are registered to the number who voted. And you want to trust that number to decide Comp Plans and development?

Using voters as the basis for Comp Plan and growth decisions is inherently unreliable and dangerous thanks to "vote buying", and "voter ignorance and bias".   The majority of voters are not knowledgeable about the long term ramifications of Comp Plan and growth decisions; and do not have the expertise of DCA.

You must be a developer (the fox in the henhouse), because only a developer benefits from removing DCA (the farmer with a big gun guarding the henhouse.) 

The advantage of rotary-wing over fixed-wing aircraft. I'll bet she's glad she wore her undies.

[Conspiracies Everywhere] We had our eyes and minds opened by LSD. Bull s**t. I lived through that era and the so-called hippy movement amounted to no more than 2% of the populous and the LSD crap was only in the heavy areas in NY and Frisco. That amounted to less than one in a million.

It is all media hype designed by the government to stop the free thinkers and to get back control and marketing profits. You people today, don't and won't see the truth. Suffer with the future, you made it this way!

[How We Do It Up North] I am really fed up with the people who live here part time, join boards of churches, condos, and organizations (which can be a good thing) and then try to take over everything.  These egomaniac-dictator-wannabes think they know more than the folks who have been on the boards for many years.  The board of directors is supposed to represent the needs of the members.  These guys think they know it all and their way is the best way.  Ask for input from other board members or general members?  They never do.   Go back where you came from.  We were doing fine before. We allowed you on the boards and we can take you off!

Great shot! Video

[Assisted living facilities are regulated]  Putting a home like that where it would have to be regularly evacuated doesn't make a lot of sense.  Do a little research and see the problems encountered during Katrina and Ike, and even the bolt during Rita's approach.  The expense of staying prepared for such an event would have to be written into the residents' contracts.

[The Keys have changed] 20 to 30 years ago most everyone down here looked and acted like Dude from The Big Lebowski. 

[Dogs in bars] It is part of Key West. Don't like it, don't go in the bar. People who are crying about it are the people who ruin things for everyone. Are you the kid that got punched in the face in high school at the parking lot of McDonalds?

[Mothman] There are several of these blue butterflies in my yard and look like maybe MBB(?). Any help with this?

We need the DCA and the Keys designation as an Area of Critical State Concern more than ever if we want to keep the Keys “The Keys”! What developer wrote that post calling for the abolition of the DCA?

The Blue Beauty. Pictures of Earth. Slide Show

White supremacists, demonstrators square off in LA. http://www.nwofighters.org/white-supremacists-demonstrators-square-off-in-la/

[AA Basher] In Alamosa, Colo.on April 9 a woman found not guilty, by reason of insanity, of killing her boyfriend and mutilating his body has been set free. Jane Lynn Woodry was deemed ready for a supervised return to society by a judge after a two-hour hearing.

She shot him four times with a .25-caliber revolver, dismembered his body, wrapped his torso in a blanket, and stored it in a closet in his home. She took his legs back to her apartment, where she cut hunks of flesh from his legs. Investigators found bite-sized chunks of human flesh prepared in a stew on the stove at Woodry's home.

Conditions for her release also include holding a job, attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, writing daily diary cards and a journal for review by a social worker, and meeting with her case manager three times a week. "I want people to know that the community is safe," Woodry said. "I am not a danger to the community."

So, if you go to an A.A. meeting, you might discover that the woman who is sitting next to you is a murdering cannibal, but not an alcoholic.

[Nail gun artist] I wonder how many hours of company time it took him to learn to do that? Video

[Let’s Drill off the Keys] Gulf rig spewing 1,000 barrels (42,000 gallons) per day. They say, it can't happen, but it does. Louisiana Gulf Rig Spewing 1,000 Barrels (42,000 gallons) of Oil per Day | CommonDreams.org

Cashier wanted. Video

Some more WW II photos, some never seen before. http://blogs.denverpost.com/captured/2010/03/18/captured-blog-the-pacific-and-adjacent-theaters/

NATIONAL POLITICS

Arizona law allowing law enforcement officers to require proof of citizenship] How many people reading this can prove that they are American citizens? Unless you carry a notarized copy of your birth certificate, American passport, certificate of naturalization in your pocket or on your person your out of luck. A driver’s license is not proof of citizenship.

Dante Chinni is the director of Patchwork Nation, a project funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and hosted by The Christian Science Monitor. Based in Washington, D.C., he has been covering politics and the media for more than 10 years. Chinni has worked as a reporter-researcher at Newsweek and a senior associate at the Project for Excellence in Journalism. At PEJ, he was a major contributor to two books: "Warp Speed: America in The Age of Mixed Media" and "Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect." Chinni was also co-author of "We Interrupt This Newscast: How to Improve Local TV and Win Ratings, Too." He was a columnist for The Christian Science Monitor from 1999 through the 2000 presidential election and again from 2003 through 2007. Chinni has written for publications including The New Republic, The Economist, Columbia Journalism Review, and The Washington Post Magazine. A native of Detroit and a graduate of Michigan State University, he lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife, Christina, and their two children.

It's too bad that you don't like the findings that Chinni has uncovered, but that doesn't change reality.  Your attempt to discredit the messenger shows how shallow your position really is.  Why don't you drop him an e-mail or give him a call?  You might learn something.  The tax day tea party gatherings were a dismal failure if increased mobilization and growing the "brand" were the goals, and what you miss completely is the fact that media coverage has been completely out of proportion to their actual numbers and influence.  The Tea Party is for the most part a collection of dumbfounded crazies; they're always good for an outrageous soundbite and they make for good video with their inflammatory signs and dangling tea bags.  That's why they're all over the news-not because they have a snowball's chance in hell of seizing control of this nation.  A year from now they'll be a distant memory.  Political movements come and go, but the Republic endures.

[Hippies] Eight posts in one day about what the hippie movement was and still is all about. Can you FTR people get it now? Hell, the FTR people and Tea Baggers are using the tactics that the hippies perfected to call attention to the serious problems of that time. The difference is the hippies based their commitments on love. The FTRs and TBs base their ideas on selfishness and fear.

[New Sales Tax] Quote:  Under the new health care bill, did you know that all real estate transactions are now subject to a 3.8% sales tax?

Not quite, with a few exceptions. The first $250,000 in profit from the sale of a personal residence won’t be taxed, or the first $500,000 in the case of a married couple. The tax falls on relatively few — those with high incomes from other sources.

The sort of people who would have to pay the tax might include, for example:

A single executive making $210,000 a year who sells his $300,000 ski condo for a $50,000 profit. His tax on the sale of that vacation home would amount to $1,900, in addition to the capital gains tax he would have paid anyway.

An "empty nester" couple with combined income of over $250,000 a year who sell their $1 million primary residence to move to smaller quarters. If they cleared $600,000 on the sale, they would be taxed on $100,000 of the profit (the amount over the half-million-dollar exclusion). Their health care tax on the sale would amount to $3,800 over and above the usual capital gains levy.

However, a typical home sale would not incur any tax. In March, for example, half of all existing homes sold for $170,700 or less, according to the National Association of Realtors. Obviously, none of those sales could possibly generate a $250,000 profit, and so none would be subject to the tax.

Full answer here: http://factcheck.org/2010/04/a-38-percent-sales-tax-on-your-home/

[Blatant obstructionism] How arrogant. Who the hell died and left you in charge? What gives you the power to label my viewpoint (aka opinion) obstructionist and relegate it to a status lower than yours?  What I want for this country has just as much standing as what you want.  Exchanges of ideas and opinions neither wastes time nor hurts the country. 

Being a bully, pushing people into "your way" is the real time-waster and country-hurter. Being insulting to people with whom you do not agree accomplishes the opposite of your intentions.

Read Jim Hightower sometime if you are even slightly interested in the real "I want my country back". I suspect you will not, because you are not. 

[False allegation concerning real estate tax and the health care bill] The Facts: There is a new 3.8% tax in the bill. It is not a “sales tax” on all real estate transactions. It is a Medicare tax. Many people will not have to pay this tax.

The new Medicare tax on real estate sales is actually a tax on investment income for so-called “high earners.” The income requirements are clearly spelled out in order to define “high earners” – $250,000 for married couple filing jointly, $125,000 for couples filing separate returns, and $200,000 for everyone else. If your income is above these levels, you will be paying a new tax on investment income. If it falls below that, you will not be taxed.

With that in mind, a 3.8% Medicare tax on the sales of a $400,000 home would be $15,200, which is a lot of money to pay in tax. This is where many people’s calculations have gone astray however, as the real estate “sales tax” is not on the entire amount of the sale. Instead it is on the amount of income that exceeds the capital gains threshold ($500,000 for married couples filing jointly, $250,000 for single filers).

Real world examples.
Example 1: Meet Bob and Susie, a couple who make $300,000 in income a year. They have a beautiful home that they sell for $2 million, this nets them $750,000 in profit (sale price of the home – commissions and fees – price they paid for the home = profit from the sale of the home). Because they are defined as “high earners” (making more than $250,000 a year for a married couple), they will be required to pay the Medicare tax.

Calculating the tax:
Proft from the sale – capital gains threshold = taxable investment income
taxable investment income x 0.038 (3.8%) = tax due

Example 3: Frank (from Example 2) gets a promotion and begins making $50,000 more a year. This pushes Frank and Cindy’s combined income to $250,000, which now qualifies them as “high earners.” They finally sell their home for $400,000, but after paying their mortgage and the fees associated with a real estate transaction, they take home $50,000 as profit from the sale of their home. They are again excluded from the tax thanks to the capital gains threshold of $500,000 for married couples filing jointly (they would need to take home $500,000 or profit more from the sale of their home to be required to pay the Medicare tax in the health care bill.

[God is like Sarah Palin] Who knew? Does she? We are fortunate to have such a great intellect in the Keys (more than likely a snowbird from Michigan) that has figured this all out. Give us more of your wisdom.

The next time a Black person is the candidate, all the voters, and the press, will not be distracted by the race/anti-race accusations.  Unfortunately, next time a lot of people will remember that any time you disagree with a Black person's policies, you will automatically be labeled a racist.

The other 97% receive grant money to support global warming; their belief plays a minor role.

[Hippy TEA] Sorry, but the guy telling us what hippies were unhappy with are the exact same things the tea baggers are unhappy with.

FTR and you hippies have and had the same mindset. Rail against anything our President does and wrap a flag around it and call it “being an American”.

A Tokyo Rose by any other name is still a Tokyo Rose.

FTR and Osama and Bin Laden share their hatred of America’s President. At least admit your agreement with the terrorist that see and enjoy your attacks on the President and look at us as a divided country. You embolden our enemies with your daily attacks against our rightly elected President. They love your attacks from within our borders. Just saying "No" isn’t a political stance its obstruction. Lead, follow or get the hell out of the way!

[Black Nepotism] Some have said that the stimulus hasn't saved any jobs, but here is a case where at least one job was saved.  Oregon State University Athletic Director Bob DeCarolis was considering firing their basketball coach, Craig Robinson, after an 8-11 start (2-5 in the Pac 10 conference).  When word of this reached Washington D.C., Undersecretary of Education Martha Kanter was dispatched to Corvallis with $17 million in stimulus money for the university.  Craig Robinson's job is safe for this year. 
 
For those of you unfamiliar with Coach Robinson, he just so happens to be Michelle Obama's brother! Just a coincidence I'm sure. 

[USA I.D.] Do all legal American citizens carry proof of citizenship at all times? Hell no! Here's the list of approved documents: http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/immigrationnaturalizatio/a/proofofcitzenship.htm

To those who want a law similar to the Arizona Immigrant Law, please educate yourself. Puerto Ricans and Cubans are not illegal.  Plus if all the immigrants leave who is going to take care of your grandchildren and your mama?

FTR (Fact-Twisting Rube) says that the Arctic ice sheet is growing. I fed those exact words into a Google search and the first article that came up was on the Fox News website.  In fact all the articles on melting ice sheets linked back to science journals and studies. The articles about ice sheet growth were all on right-wing sites without any links to back them up, only links to other right-wing sites. 

By the way, FTR (Flawed-Thinking Reject). I've noticed you've been referring to yourself in the third-person quite a bit. Either you have Asperger syndrome, or it's just proof of your megalomaniacal tendencies.

Nice try FTR, using cherry-picked predictions of the possible consequences of global warming as evidence that it's all a sham.  Nice try, but an epic failure.  I think you underestimate the ability of most people to see right through you.

Since some global warming predictions haven't already met FTR's personal standard of fulfillment, they're obviously all bogus and not worthy of consideration.  How foolish to think otherwise.  Let's try though, shall we? 

Scientists have predicted that the more the Greenland and Antarctic ice caps melts, the higher ocean levels will rise.  That's simple physics and not a matter for serious debate.  The Greenland ice cap is experiencing a rapidly accelerating net loss of ice which is currently equivalent to about 1 cubic kilometer per year, although some estimates place the figure in the hundreds of cubic kilometers.  If the whole thing melts, ocean levels will rise about 7 meters.  But the big one is Antarctica.  If that continental ice cap winds up in the ocean half the world's population will have to relocate. 

Not to be alarmist or anything, but various models have predicted ocean levels to rise to somewhere between 3' and 30" feet by the end of this century.  Let's be conservative for a moment and focus on the low end of those estimates.  What would a 3 foot rise in ocean levels do to life in the Keys?  I'm sure FTR knows, and we'll soon find out.

Charlton Heston on the Second Amendment. http://la-gun.com/videos/torch/

[Health Care Tax: all real estate transactions have 3.8% sales tax] This chain mail e-mail not supported by the facts. Click on this link for the facts. No more fear mongering! FactCheck.org: Would Obama tax my profits if I sell my home? Would he tax my IRA? Would he tax my water?

[From the Right] Have you noticed the Sycophants Of Barry (Obama), aka SOB’s have fallen into dreary commonality. In short, they attack any person who speaks out against Mr. Obama or his programs. Yet they rarely defend Mr. Obama, rarely defend his programs, but nearly always attack anyone who has the temerity not to fawn over Mr. Obama. What follows is a sampling of just Sunday’s posting by the SOB’s. They write that Obama critics are dope smoking old hippies who hate America; old rich white men; blatant obstructionist; liar’s; and hypocrites.   And folks, that was just Sunday’s postings. The SOB’s did not submit one word promoting or defending Mr. Obama or his agenda. As to the Hippies, the fact is that I do have respect for their courage to speak truth to power and to exercise their right to free speech.  Plus as I recall there was precious little hate mongering on their part, I don't recall any violence, and I can’t recall any hippy demonizing their critics. I was too old and too much a young cop to be a hippy, but I do recall that they damn sure didn’t like big government, and they were deeply offended by government intrusion into their lives, especially any diminution of their liberties. On reflection, it seems to me that the latter day Tea Party folks share a lot with hippies. I know a couple of Tea Party types who lived the life, and they have evolved into mainstream middle America. Even conservatives.   One the other hand someone wrote an interesting item about GM and its loan/stock situation. I couldn’t tell if that poster was an Obama supporter or critic.  It was an excellent item. There was a posting speaking in favor of the new Arizona illegal alien legislation. Yesterday we read an item that chronicled Mr. Obama’s handpicked Attorney General Erick Holder and his relationship with a blatantly anti white organization, once headed by H. Rap Brown. We read a very revealing and damning item about Mr. Obama and the issue of his association with the Chicago Law School and the Harvard Law Review. Yours truly submitted a piece concerning the demographics of the Tea Party, and an item about global warming. It seems to me that the critics of Mr. Obama really know what the hell is going on, and have their act together.  My Deer friends, please draw your own conclusions.

(Part II) Are Mr. Obama and his administration dedicated to being the first post racial administration. If they are, they have a very odd way of accomplishing it. Yesterday Mr. Obama released a video wherein he specifically spoke only to Latinos, Blacks, and Women. Isn’t that divisive?  It is now common knowledge that Mr. Obama is striving to gut our historic relationship with Israel and the Jews at the same time he is fluffing the Muslim states.  If any Obama supporter has any doubts about that, I’d be happy to address it. On Sunday Mr. Obama’s National Security Advisor, Gen. James Jones (ret), was giving the key note speech at a Washington Institute For Near East Policy and started it out with a "joke" that was anti Semitic.  The joke portrayed Jews as being greedy, inhumane merchants.  Remember that Mr. Obama is much more annoyed at the Jews building apartments than he is about Iran building missiles both conventional and nuke tipped. Does anyone doubt missiles will hit Israel first. Nothing good can come from Mr. Obama’s treatment of Israel and his relationship with the Muslim world.

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Tuesday April 27, 2010

Monday April 26, 2010

[Illegals] An Arizona headline says  illegals  are protesting that its illegal to harass an illegal.

Hippies weren’t Democrats. We were against the existing society that our parents told us we had to conform to. We had our eyes and minds opened by LSD and saw the corrupt and destructive government of the past and how everything natural was being destroyed by corporate America. We were afraid of our government. We were a return-to-nature movement. We were open-minded about sex and relationships. Peace and love was our mantra and changing the planet was our goal.

We’ve had many successes, but they’ve taken far too long for most people to remember that we were the first popular movement to espouse them. You can see it now: organic foods and energy conservation are two of our accomplishments, though belated. World peace and legalizing marijuana were two of our biggest failures. We couldn't change either, no matter how hard we tried.

DCA is neither critical nor is it needed to control growth. We can and should immediately implement the County safeguards to police ourselves.  If approved, Amendment 4 would allow the citizenry to vote to approve or disapprove Comp Plan changes.  Regardless of the outcome of Amendment 4, we can implement big development safeguards ourselves.

The County Commission could, and should, simply add a County Ordinance whereby any variance over the county-height-limitations would need county-wide citizenry approval at the next election.  This same procedural type of Ordinance requiring a county-wide vote and approval could, and should, be written for any big development projects. Problem solved. No need for the DCA.

No longer would henny-penny, or Last Stand, need to worry that a new commission might bulldoze the Keys and build towards the heavens.  Those who hide behind this mantra of fear, point to the DCA as our saviors –how absurd! 

The citizens of this county are not stupid. The citizens of this county are perfectly capable of governing and policing ourselves, our lives, our direction, our Keys.  To say that we need the DCA to do that for us is the same as saying that we are too stupid and incompetent to do so ourselves!

As you look back at this last week of Conch Republic Celebrations remember why and how the Conch Republic came to be.  Remember the local heroes who stood up to big government and said we will not be dictated to, stepped on, and pushed around.  To let the DCA continue to do that to us flies in the face of all of that. If we are the independent, self-governing, Conch Republic of the Florida Keys, the DCA needs to go. If we are not, then let’s stop fooling ourselves and just dismantle the County Commission right now and turn ourselves over to Tallahassee, because that’s essentially what we’ve done by allowing the DCA to control our Keys.

[Looting] The Miami thugs don't wait until after a hurricane to loot.  As a dispatcher here that worked through Wilma I can tell you that when we are evacuating northbound they are heading in.  Most break-ins occur before the storm hits.  Deputies do everything they can to stop them before they get off the 18 mile stretch, but of course there are thieves that slip through.  Many people that live on the mainland also have homes here, so we have to let them in to secure their property.  It’s hardly a flawless operation, but it's the most that can be done without infringing on people's rights.  Many of the looting thugs already live here, so this is only part of the problem.

[Arizona Law Sparks Fears of Racial Profiling] I can't help but think the real fear is that the Arizona law will work and many other states will follow. Arizona, like many states, has hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants. We are a nation of laws. They should not be here. That's it in a nut shell. There is no more to understand. Good, glad you agree,

The illegal immigrant would not be in our schools, E.R rooms, on welfare. selling drugs and sucking our resources dry. I understand that 17% of crime in Arizona involves illegal immigrants. Here in south Florida we have Cuban and Haiti to deal with. Press 1 for English my butt!

Press 1 for Spanish. Driver's licenses are given in 3 languages.  I think the biggest fear is that all of us at the voting booth may demand the Arizona law for our state too.    

[Dogs in Restaurants]  I agree, the tourists shouldn't ruin our way of life down here. I am a manager at a restaurant on Duval and we are very pet friendly. We have dogs come in all the time, big, small, therapy dogs and service dogs. When a customer comes in with their pet, they are greeted with dog treats and a bowl of ice water. The dogs either stay on their persons lap or lay under their chair or close to the wall. We never had a problem. We make sure the animals are away from the traffic area for their safety and those of our customers and employees. We also have a doggie bar in the front for our four legged friends, with two bowls of ice water and a basket of treats. We even had cats patronize our doggie bar. We had but one complaint from a customer being afraid of dogs. We moved her to the back and made sure no dogs were seated back there. She was happy. The woman who is suing shouldn't receive a dime, just how drunk was she? The most dogs we had at one time was 4. Two therapy dogs, a Yorkie and a lab mix. They were all very well behaved. I wish I could say that about the children I see in some places.

[Tunnel Bore Machine] Every so often when I say, "Why don't they (fill in the blanks)," I must remember that sometimes it's as difficult as this.
tunnel-boring-machines

[Sloan] The front page of Today’s Key West Citizen features an article about a local defamation lawsuit over alleged anonymous false allegations made against a Keys teacher. The plaintiff’s attorney will attempt to get the server provider to reveal the identities of the senders of the alleged defaming emails. A New York State court has already ruled in a similar case that the server provider has to cough up the names of anonymous senders of alleged defaming emails, posts to blogs, etc. The local court might make the same ruling, which probably would be appealed.
 
My personal view, I agree with the New York State court. If you post something to the Internet that defames another person, it is libel and you should not be able to hide behind the server provider. I say this as someone who posts a lot of very rough stuff about people online, and I always have my name with it. I get a lot of heat for it. I have even been threatened with a libel suit.
 
Threatened by former Mayor of Key West, Morgan McPherson, because I asked in posts for his wife, Christina, Vice-Principal at Key West High School, who had given Monique Acevedo access to the 9th grade there, to receive the same scrutiny and be subjected to the same rigorous investigation as anyone else in the county school system who’d had school dealings with Monique.
 
As far as I know, I have yet to see anything reported in Key West Citizen, or anywhere, about Christina being examined by school or law enforcement authorities, over her supervision or lack thereof of Monique’s activities with the 9th grade, which news reports have indicated resulted in a considerable theft of County school funds by Monique.
 
I never said Christina did anything wrong. I simply said she should be treated like everyone else in the school system that had dealings with Monique. I would be lying if I did not say in the back of my mind was knowing that Morgan and Monique’s husband, Randy, our Superintendant of Schools, was accused of being her accomplice (and was later convicted of it), are best friends.
 
I would be lying if I did not say in the back of my mind was Morgan announcing at a fund raiser in Key West that his wife had been promoted by Randy to Principal of Key West High School, which promotion was overruled by higher ups.
 
I would be lying if I did not say I do not feel the School Board and its attorney and law enforcement and the State Attorney Office did their duty, if they did not put Christina through the same examination process they put other school staff who had dealings with Monique.
 
I would be lying if I did not say I feel Monique and Randy killed a lot of children in the soul sense. Never again will any Keys student, who knows what the Acevedos did, trust teachers in the way they trusted them before the Acevedos went out of control.
 
I would be lying if I did not say the position of School Superintendant should be an appointed instead of an elected position, which issue the voters of Monroe County will get to decide by referendum in the next election.
 
I would be lying if I did not say Morgan looks to me like he is out of control, and if you put him into the State legislature, you might as well have put Randy and Monique there instead.
 
I am not the only person around these parts who thinks Morgan is out of control. You might be very surprised to hear the names of two Key West people who told me they agree Morgan is out of control. The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

I was sure the new hundred dollar bill was just going to be the Chinese Yuan.  ~Stephen Colbert 

The Keys are losing their uniqueness … losing … lost. I think that happened about 20 years ago. I have deep roots here and love to fish. If not for that I could find many places that would be more to my liking.

[Downstairs Enclosures] Our County government has the flimsiest spines money can buy.

[Dogs in Restaurants] I’m glad they are no longer allowing dogs in bars. I tripped over one, but I knew I was drunk and should have looked where I was peeing. Many dog owners think that it’s okay to take their dogs with them everywhere—it’s not. Don’t blame the ban on tourists. Open your eyes and you will find that locals don’t like dogs in bars either. Only dog owners find it acceptable.

Assisted living facilities are regulated. In emergency situations, there are the phone numbers and websites that will determine what goes on with the residents. Their transportation won’t come out of your pockets so don’t be threatened.

[Amy the Bartender] I am so happy that my bar wised-up and hired Amy back. We missed her smiling face!

To be considered affordable, assisted living facilities need to be affordable to the low to moderate income resident, the reimbursement to the facility needs to be adequate, and the cost to the state and federal government needs to be affordable.  This is all doable and should be here in our Keys.

The 1940s. In the Mood. War and peace. Slide Show

Dear God, How thoughtful of you to get involved with posting your disdain about Bill Maher. It just proves that you don't have anything better to do. Also proving that you're so petty that one man's commentary can get under your skin. You're like Sarah Palin wanting to comment about people that disagree with, or lack belief in you, but really not accomplishing much. Please go back to being a silent icon whose fellowship folks can use as an excuse to be jackasses.

[Peace] While standing at the light on BPK today, rallying for peace, I received many returned peace gestures, and 3 one-finger unfriendly responses (from war fans). I try to hold up my hand with 2 fingers for peace every Sunday for 1 hour.

Roughly 30 veterans a day try to commit suicide, new data shows, and 18 succeed. 600,000 troops have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from PTSD, traumatic brain injury or both. I have thought about quitting the peace vigil many times, but 6 veterans have stopped to speak to me, 3 on leave, to thank me. I now must continue. My sign says Bring Our Heroes Home and Please, when they get here, say Thanks. Veteran Suicides Soar | CommonDreams.org

I love no-edit Saturdays and have decided I will read it that day religiously; and I love the site. I’ve collected 5,056 GIF animations so far and they’re just the good ones!

[Hippies] I read an article in a national publication in the early1980s that said Key West was the last place in America where you could still find hippies.

We are still here except our Hair has fallen out.

[Midgets] Size matters! Video

If you're up when dawn is just beginning, the Moon lights the way to an early preview of the summer constellation Scorpius.

[Enforce Existing Laws] We don't need any new prisons we have plenty of available room in the existing ones to tap from. Anyone on death row shouldn't have to wait another minute along with sex offenders, drug dealers and so on. Eradicate just these 3 types of offenders and then there's more room. Oh, and then just start over with the same process.

Kid's Fishing Clinic Saturday May 15th – 9am to 12pm Proudly Presented by Florida Fish and Wildlife, Reef Light Tackle, and The Boy Scouts of America at the Brinton Environmental Center, Sea Base on Summerland Key MM 24. Registration begins at 9am. This is a Catch-and-Release Event.  Bulletin Board

[AA Basher] Signed AA court slips. Part 2.  Anyone can start an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. There are no forms to fill out or any other requirements to be met. All it takes is a room to hold the meetings. Meetings are usually held in churches even though AA claims to be spiritual, not religious.  Hang a sign up, spread the word and you’re in the recovery business.

I will soon be starting up a new AA meeting to be held at a local bar. There will be a sign on one of the tables that states “Friends of Court Slips Signed Here.”  There will be a five minute meeting with an opening silent prayer, two minutes for discussion then a closing silent prayer. Your court slip will be signed and you’re out of there in less than 5 minutes. There will be a nightly $3 fee per signature. If you miss a few nightly meetings that’s not a problem, just arrive 5 minutes early for each meeting you missed, pay the $3 per each missed night and your court slip will be signed.

If you are a social drinker, not a real diseased alcoholic, you can order your favorite cocktail from the bar to be consumed during the meeting. You don’t have to sit in a room filled with every type of deviant criminal you can think of. You don’t have to hold hands at the end of the meeting so you won’t have to worry about contacting some nasty staph infection. There will be no ego deflation. There will be no sexual harassment. You will have met the requirements of the court without having to attend those boring hour long religious meetings where the Big Book thumpers are trying to indoctrinate you into the cult.

AA is not mandated by the courts to sign these slips; you are mandated to have your slip signed. AA keeps no attendance records. After 30 days you turn in your first initialed monthly attendance slip to your probation officer. They check to make sure it’s signed and you have met the requirements of the court. No more having your wife or friend sign your slips without attending meetings. You are truly in compliance of the conditions of your probation.

NATIONAL POLITICS

[Hippies] FTR: Bashing of our President isn’t any different then the hippies of the 60s’ hatred for America.

Don't bring us hippies into your opinions. I'm a 60's hippie. Speaking for myself, and my many hippie friends and hippie acquaintances, we never hated America. We hated what the politicians, elected officials, money grabbers and power mongers were doing to America, and in the name of America.  Come to think of it, that sentiment has never changed.

I voted for Obama. I won't repeat that mistake. And that's not bashing. That's me standing for what I think is best for America.

As for the process, we were blind-sided.  He was never properly vetted by the Democrat Party leadership, or investigated by the American voting public. This election was a first. The next time a Black person is the candidate, all the voters, and the press, will not be distracted by the race/anti-race accusations.  Next time will be a "been there done that" attitude so the focus will be on the candidate's qualifications, not color.

Under the new health care bill, did you know that all real estate transactions are now subject to a 3.8% sales tax? You can thank Nancy, Harry and Barack and your local Democrat Congressman for this one. If you sell your $400,000 home, there will be an added $15,200 tax.

Obama has been in office for over a year now, and this same press still cannot locate Obama’s official birth certificate, or any of his papers while in college, or how he paid for a Harvard education, or which country issued his visa to travel to Pakistan in the 1980’s as Barry Soretoro and even Michelle Obama’ s Princeton thesis on racism. It just can’t be found. Yet the public still trusts this same press to give them the whole truth, which is truly remarkable!

Remember November. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABVmx24chnU&feature=player_embedded

From the Right guy says hippies hated America. He must have been out of the loop because hippies loved America. What we hated was our corrupt government and its corporate rulers. The only thing that has changed is we’re now older and we now have Hope.

FTR asks: If the Tea Party movement is so inconsequential, why do our liberal classmates have their shorts all in a bunch over it?  

It is because they are dangerous in their violent rhetoric, ignorant of any facts, obstructionists in their behavior and misinformed by choice. Need I say more?  They are also parasites on our society by means of taking and never giving anything constructive.

[Global Warming] Indeed there are legitimate scientific researchers who have doubts about the causes and implications of global warming and actually publish peer-reviewed papers on the subject.  In fact they publish around 3% of the peer-reviewed papers on the subject.  The other 97% have no doubts.

[Hippies] Wait a minute, someone is comparing the hippie movement to the FTR guy? Please, that comparison is so far off base that's it's difficult to even respond, but I'll try. For the benefit of those of you too young to have experienced what actually happened.

The majority of politically active hippies were Leftists, not Democrats, universal Leftists. The hippies were a grass roots movement that wanted the country to return to a more natural, people-orientated posture rather than the corporate military industrial complex, money oriented, my-way-or-the-highway, military-minded-right-wing-scourge that had been growing since the end of the Eisenhower administration. The anti-chemical, back to the land, organic lifestyle was basic for the hippies. Grow your own, have babies at home, smoke pot, anti-alcohol, anti—war, anti-draft, compost, make your own clothes, make love, not war, f**k Wall Street and big business, let the children grow-up-to be-happy movement was a return to the roots of America's political and social movements that an agrarian country such as ours had come to be.

To compare Abbie Hofman to the FTR guy is a huge comedy of errors. Abbie was the court jester of 60's and 70's politics, something the FTR guy could never even understand. Abbie was not afraid to spend a few nights in jail for his beliefs, as is evident from the historic record. I don't see any of these Tea Baggers missing any meals for the sake of their beliefs. And, for the FTR guy to even get into a Dead concert, he would have to crawl under the back gate and then hope no one spotted him. Not that he wouldn't have been welcome to listen to the music, as long as he could keep his pontificating in check. The mouth that runs continuously isn't welcome when the music is playing. 

[Hippies] Daily bashing of our President isn’t any different then the Hippies of the 60s hatred for America.

You can't be serous or sane, the so-called hippies loved America and wanted to fix all the problems and corruption, but the Fraternal Order of Bankers and corporate gangsters didn't want to lose the great green machine so they used the media and other tools to degrade us and destroy our ideals. To say hippies and other peace loving people hate anything is a misstatement in itself.

Hippies of the 60s hatred for America. That statement alone tells me that this writer was a Nixon supporter and, like him, totally failed to grasp what was really going on in the streets with the hippies.

Obama scares me in so far as he does associate with Muslims, does have very questionable credentials and is sleeping with some really dangerous big money people. Otherwise, he's okay.

[Hippies alive and well] I really am starting the think a few regular posters here are card caring communists for the way they rebut everything and degrade any ideas to help fix this country. Negative vibes, man, negative vibes!

[From the Right] A poster has developed a fixation on challenging those who say “I want my country back”. It seems that this individual is itching to slap America in the face by trotting out the sins of its past in a game of "gotcha".  His idea is to annoy someone enough that they will pick a time period as being the time of the “Ideal America” and our friend will then blast back with a pre packaged set of sins of those particular days. All the better if a Republican were President during those time. Just for the exercise let’s trot out some of these sins and consider them.  Let’s pick the 40’s. During the war FDR grew the government to a previously never before imagined level.  He had failed to end the Depression by massive spending and public works programs. Were it not for the war, FDR’s policies would have dragged the country into several decades of Depression. The war cured the Depression. Early on in the war FDR imposed rationing. He imposed wage and price controls. He built and filled concentration camps.  He filled them with Japanese Americans, German Americans, and Italian Americans. He did nothing to battle segregation and the exploitation of blacks.   In the 40’s segregation was in full bloom. We were saddled with the massive debt that we accrued during the war. FDR refused to strike out against segregation. Segregation in the military was the norm.  It took Truman to begin that battle. Black Americans could not dine in white restaurants, nor could they drink from white water fountains. Literacy tests and poll taxes stripped black citizens of the right to vote. In 1937, angered by a Supreme Court that refused to do his bidding, he attempted to add 3 new Justices who would be his quislings. Did I mention that FDR was a Democrat? Before the war even began the highest of FDR’s marginal tax rates was 81.1%, during the war it hit 94%. Yessir, the ‘40’s America was dominated by Democrat Presidents and Democrat legislators.  Even then we were upbeat and saw a rosy future, we expected our children to exceed our accomplishments. We were certain that America's best days lay in the future. FDR’s Social Security scheme is now playing to its predictable end, it will soon be broke. The 40's was not such a hot time to be a working person, a rich person or a black person. I can’t recall hearing too many of us right wing types who yearn for yesterdays governance. I think that many do yearn for a quieter and simpler time when it was fashionable to have a solid nuclear family. A time when mutual respect was considered the norm. A time when the government did not intrude in nearly every facet of life. A time when we didn’t fear our government. I think that gauzy memories do not always accurately portray the trying times of the past. That’s what I think. On the other hand, I'm convinced that this administration is ensuring that this time will never be remembered with a golden glow. I’ve observed every President since FDR. Some I disagreed with, some I respected and liked. There even were a couple who were a disgrace to the office they held. Mr. Obama is the first President who has given us reason to doubt his fealty to the US. He is the first President that is addicted to apologizing for American accomplishments.  He is the first President who is ready and perhaps anxious to surrender American hegemony to world governance. Mr. Obama is the first President that we can argue that he does not put America and it’s values over other nations. He is the first President who may be able to surrender our liberties and economy to socialism. I respectfully request that any Obama supporter who is in disagreement demand that I post my reasoning. I fear for our nation, and our sovereignty.  Now we have a President who promised that his tenure would be one of cooperation and openness.  It isn’t. He promised to be a post racial President. He isn’t. The list of his “isn’ts” is long and excruciating. Today, most Americans believe that their children will not exceed their own life accomplishments. We are now at a time when most Americans are convinced that America has seen it best days.  Today over 60% of Americans fear the US is on the wrong track. Personally I'm saddened that we live in a time where it is difficult not to believe that our President is actively attempting to destroy capitalism. I'm deeply concerned that he is gutting capitalism and seems hell bent on socializing our nation. I long for a time when such fears would be farcical. I would like to again see a time we could be positive that our President is not acting to purposefully surrender America’s preeminence and world stature. This is not that time.  Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.

(Part II) The other day a poster bitched because I drew attention to the fact that the Arctic ice sheet is growing, not shrinking. It has now achieved the average area coverage since records began in 1979. For the past few years the ice coverage area had been shrinking.  I know that item is painful because it refutes one of the most often used arguments in favor of GW.  The lynch pin argument for acting against GW is and has been that if it exists, our “clement” weather will be deteriorate causing great damage to our globe and its population. The GW sales staff has insisted that GW would increase the number of catastrophic weather events.  More trouble for the GW sales staff surfaced today. NOAA Storm Prediction Center released data on tornado activity this year as compared to past 3 years. The numbers are startling. The number of tornados has plummeted. In January 2010, there were 28 tornados vs. 84 in ’08 and in Feb 2010, there was 1 vs. 52 in ’07. You really should check out the web site, it’s instructional, if you are a GW true believer, it will irk you. http://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/online/monthly/newm.html

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Monday April 26, 2010

Sunday April 25, 2010

[Downstairs Enclosures] Sloan is absolutely right about Citizens Not Serfs missing the boat by not looking into filing a federal lawsuit.  It's clear that the County does not have the stomach to stand up to FEMA, even though the County is the one that allowed downstairs enclosures to exist in the first place.  It was only the filing of lawsuits against the County that got them to come up with the idea to pass the buck on to FEMA.  Similarly, FEMA will continue with one set of rules for Monroe County and another set of rules for the rest of the nation until a federal judge tells them that they can't discriminate against one county in a federally-funded insurance program.  A lawsuit is the only language that the federal government understands.  More importantly, a federal lawsuit is the only way to get onto the radar screen of Congress; who each year reviews FEMA's activity and approves their budget.

The current enforcement scheme already depends on the County passing the buck to FEMA if a homeowner does not submit to a downstairs inspection.  I did not submit to a County inspection, and sure enough, the County turned me over to FEMA, who summarily canceled my flood insurance policy.  Within a month, my mortgage company “called” my mortgage. I was able to pay it off, but I am still unable to get any permits for repairs until I submit to a County inspection of my downstairs enclosure. 

My downstairs enclosure was not illegal when I bought my house; FEMA even issued me a flood policy.  And my downstairs enclosure is safer than a trailer or ground-level structure, because I can go upstairs if a flood occurs while people with trailers or ground-level structures must climb onto their roofs to get out of the water.  If the County wants to punish the owner that made improvements to a downstairs enclosure twenty years ago, then re-sold the home to someone else, let them track down the original owner. I say sue the bastards!

[Marathon] I just spoke to the owner of the Brass Monkey. I have been friends with the family for 30 years. She shared with me that the Monkey is, in fact, being booted from the Kmart shopping center. There are a few legal moves that can be made to slow down the eviction but it will take place none the less. They do not own the building. They are a true Keys icon and a home away from home for many folks and will be missed. I also understand the CVS will be looking for a new site on Big Pine Key now that Walgreens is near opening.

The only real way to minimize hurricane looting is to limit the number of people from Miami coming down here after a storm. I think the stickers were supposed to do this, but the crooks in Miami made a bunch of bogus stickers (much like the bogus handicap stickers). This is the price we pay for living near a third world country.

David Troy Francis  in Concert tonight at the Methodist Church on Key Deer Blvd.

I saw this notice on the Bulletin Board and was reminded of the concert we went to last year at that church.

It was supposed to be a piano concert, but turned to be a few tunes on the piano by this old wreck of a man who spent almost the entire time telling us how he was so blessed after having had seventy-two operations. He was also totally broke and drove a broken down vehicle that he had to ask for donations so he could get it running enough to get him back home (he was so blessed). My wife and I had to stifle our laughter because I think we were the only ones there who understood the irony. I guess it's evident that we aren't church goers.

[Enforce Existing Laws] Let me know if you think we need more laws, or do we just need to elect judges who have the guts to enforce the laws we already have. This particular rant comes to you courtesy of the front page of the April 21st Citizen about the Hate Crime Law. If somebody beats you half to death, it is a safe bet they have hate in them, no matter your color, age, religion, or sexual orientation.

Then on page two’s Crime Report there is a story about a guy who has been arrested twenty-five times since 2003. That’s three and a half times a year for things like drug sales, assault--you know, big stuff. Yet this person is out of jail committing more crimes. Some say we can’t afford to keep them locked up. I say we can’t afford not too.

You want to use tax money to build a day care center for homeless, transient, vagrants? Fine, right after we build a prison big enough for the truly deserving.

[No Dogs Allowed]  Dog in bar leads to $18K jury award. A Key West jury has awarded a Massachusetts woman $18,000 for injuries she suffered after tripping over a dog at Turtle Kraals Restaurant & Bar four years ago.

Alayne Bonnie Dunbar of Marlboro claims she tripped over a customer’s dog that was lying near the women’s restroom on June 15, 2006, suffering disfigurement and a loss of wage-earning capability. (from the front page of the Key West Citizen Saturday 4/24/2010)

This is the second instance I've heard of where a tourist has sued a restaurant for injuries suffered from another patron's pet.  I recently stopped by Alabama Jack's on Card Sound Road to visit with bar tender Michael and he told me he too had suffered a lawsuit from a dog incident.

My dog was a "regular" at AJ's for 7 years.  She got water brought to the table just as I did, ate conch fritters and drank a little beer too; although she always stuck me with the tab.

Perhaps it's time for establishments allowing dogs to post signs for the patrons "Dogs on premises, by entering this establishment you acknowledge and accept the risk".

The Keys are losing their uniqueness by slowly being raped by the money mongers who have no desire to experience the Keys other than to stay warm.  They're not Keys people or in any other way, shape or form Keys Pirates. We don't mind you visiting and we don't mind taking your money, but take heed of your surroundings folks! When you look in the mirror in the morning, you're looking at the person most responsible for your safety.

[Spring Gardening] Home Depot's Channel. Raised bed gardening and more! YouTube - homedepot's Channel

Everything old is new. Far out, man! Psychedelic trips aid anxiety treatments in study - Yahoo! News

Have a better day if you can, knowing everything’s dying. Deadly Airborne Fungus Spreading in Northwest - Infectious Disease - FOXNews.com

I guess this new stop and check law in Arizona is a symptom of all our governments, big and small, responses to tough problems.  They just kick them down the road until they get so big a draconian response is necessary to solve them--if solving them is possible at all.  

Just look at the Keys’ sewer situation and the illegal downstairs enclosure problem.  Years' worth of County Commissions have let themselves be bullied (even doing some of the bullying themselves) into dodging these issues and letting them grow until now we are left with some very expensive problems. 

At least they got short term vacation rentals in our residential neighborhoods somewhat under control.

Holy stem cell research. Maybe they can find a cure for pedophilia. Vatican to finance adult stem cell research - Yahoo! News

I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word of what I am saying.  ~Oscar Wilde

[Magic Chair] No, you’re not stoned. I don’t know how he does it either (actually, I do). http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=6NPF0A_vGC4

[Bill Maher]  Hey Bill, I am glad you are the supreme authority on who is running the universe. What a genius you are to have figured it all out. It is amazing that any human can comprehend all of this. Since you are smarter than me, then you must be the highest power in the universe. Just to let you know, you are pissing me off--Old Testament style pissing me off. And that is not a good thing. ~God

[Sloan] In my sleep before dawn yesterday, I heard “Marathon.” The same thing happened the previous Saturday morning before dawn. As that Saturday progressed, I felt like I was poisoned and being taken through hell upside down and backward. I was barely able to move. I passed out three times. I realized that entire day was the marathon. It started to lift after I started writing an answer to Ron Black about the Jesus I know. Ron, whose wife Carolyn I had represented over the death of her husband, Jay, in an airplane crash when I practiced law in Birmingham.
 
I remembered last Saturday that this marathon stuff started happening on Saturdays when I lived in this little cabin in the woods from the Spring Equinox of 2006 until the the Spring Equinox of March 2007. When I completed my move back up here on the Sping Equinox of this year, 2010, the Saturday marathons resumed. There is no way the timing of the three moves was coincidental. It was arranged, just as my Saturday marathons are arranged in this little cabin in the woods. The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

2% of illegal aliens are picking our crops while 30 %are on welfare.  Let’s hope the rest of the states follow Arizona’s lead in trying to control this much neglected problem.

[Scurvy Awareness Day May 2^nd] This next Sunday (actually any or every day), we will be again taking our citrus juice (along with an alcohol preservative) to ward off that dreaded disease of seafarers’.

Sorry Ed, but I hate no-edit Saturdays and have decided I just won't read it that day, otherwise I love the site.

[No-Edit Saturday] This is almost the Editor's day off. Or - This is the Editor's day off, almost. Your version says this day is the same as the rest and your day off is almost here. My version says you're having a partial day off this day.

Everybody out of the pool with sneakers on! Yes, I'm in Editor mode today. The crappy grammar and bad writing in today's papers has pushed me too far.

[Political Season] Regarding Commissioner George R. Neugent’s Post  yesterday. In the political season now starting, local politicians' posts should go in a "Local Politics" section, same as your National Politics section, and posts from people now running for any office should have that fact attached to their posts.

No slide-bys, no free rides. You should have a paid political ad place too.

Assisted living in the Keys sounds good but won't work.  Every time we get a hurricane we would have to move them all to the mainland. Some are too fragile to make the move. People die when moved from hospitals when the evacuation order comes, and more would die leaving this type of facility. Also who pays the cost of moving them?

Atlantic Hurricanes from 1851 to 1929. Use the pause button to view specific years. Did global warming cause the number of hurricanes back then too, or could that have been an earth weather cycle? Video

[Missing Mom] The No Edit Saturday is great. Will you have more no-edit days? And does this mean that if you do, you'll not edit my entire comment, because my Mom, Diana Harris, is still a missing person from Monroe County.

You’ve got to love those no-edit Saturday posts.  It's a revealing look at the right-wing hatred that the editor has to deal with the other 6 days of the week.  Keep those warm, civil thoughts coming folks...the ones you wouldn't dare express in public.

It's a dog's life! A day at the shore. http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=pkPNa4DBFHI

If the low renters want to have legal enclosures, then by all means let them do it legally.
1. Petition your neighbors as to whether or not the majority wants this in their neighborhood.
2. File a legal document asking the County to allow such in your area.
3. Re-title your property to a multi-family residence and register it on the tax roles.
4. Get all required permits and licenses to operate a rental property.
5. Get the proper services and suppliers for rental maintenance.
6. Buy the required insurance.
7. Follow all the rules and laws of the County.

See how simple it is to be legal?

Watch Venus pass between the Pleiades and the Hyades this week.

[Keys Doomed] It is very easy to keep this paradise as is, just make it so ugly and expensive that no one would want to come here. “Oh”, somebody just said, that's not working now is it? The greedies are going to take over just like they always do for their bank accounts and the “betterment” of the community.

[Kittens for Lunch Pictures] It's a damn shame humans can't get along that well.

[AA Basher] Signed AA Court Slips. You go out one night and have a few drinks. As you’re pulling out of the parking lot you hit a parked vehicle causing minor damage. You’re having a few drinks at home and get into a loud argument with your wife. You’re downtown having a few drinks and you get out of control and a fight starts. These and other situations lead to having the police called. You get arrested, spend the night in jail and then have to appear in court. You have to pay a fine and court costs. Maybe you will have supervised probation to extract a few more bucks from your wallet. Then it happens, you’re sentenced to a 90/90 program. You have choice, jail or the program. The courts have already ruled that this is a violation of your constitutional right under the separation of church and state. Of course you’ll take the program rather than sit in jail for a few months.

There is no such thing as a 90/90 program. Alcoholics Anonymous has what they call a recovery program for alcoholics. They want you to attend 90 meetings in 90 days to start your indoctrination into the cult. You are not an alcoholic but you have been sentenced to attend. You are not in denial, you are a social drinker. AA states there are three types of drinkers, the social, the heavy and the alcoholic. You have been ordered into a religious organization and you have to get your court ordered slip signed every night. If you don’t attend you can end up back in jail.

Now you’re sitting in a room declaring you’re an alcoholic and not to happy to be sitting there. The group consists of ex-convicts, convicted felons, wife beaters, thieves, perverts, burglars, con-men, transsexuals, child molesters and every other type of criminal you can think of. There are also several mentally insane people in attendance. When you walked into the room they all stare at you and think of you as fresh meat. Anonymity is part of the spiritual foundation of these meetings even though these meetings are a gossip monger’s dream come true.

I have signed many of these court slips. Due to Alcoholics Anonymous being an anonymous group I always initialed the slips with the letters BM.  These initials were a joke as I always laughed when I signed the slips. I’m not Bat Man or having a Bowel Movement.

NATIONAL POLITICS

FTR: "why anyone supports Obama is still a mystery". No it isnt. It’s just over your ability to understand. What is hard to understand is how someone born in this great country can be so un-American and hate the President that won the election fair and squarely. That’s how America works. Daily bashing of our President isn’t any different then the Hippies of the 60s hatred for America. Roll another one, FTR, put on the Dead and relive the old days. Abbie Hoffman and Osama Bin Laden are most likely your heroes. Same rhetoric; you just wrap your hatred in the flag when you spit on our President.

To all those that want their country back, please form a line on the right. There will be a test to find out just what you are talking about. I see the numbers are reduced as the line finds out that there will be a test.

Blatant obstructionism is a waste of everyone's time and hurts the country.

[Michelle Obama lied; also she gave up her right to practice law] Edukation? I don't need no stinkin' school stuff. Hey daddy, roll over, you are crushing my cigarettes.

GM received $52 billion from the U.S. Government and $9.5 billion from the Canadian and Ontario governments starting in 2008. At first the entire amount of U.S. Aid was considered a loan as the government tried to keep GM from going under and pulling the fragile economy into a depression.

But during bankruptcy, the U.S. Government reduced the loan portion to $6.7 billion and converted the rest to company stock. Canadian governments also converted part of their debt to shares, reducing its loan balance to $1.4 billion. The final installments on those loans were repaid Tuesday, comfortably beating a 2015 deadline!

The U.S. Government still owns 61 percent of GM. The automaker is counting on a public stock offering to allow the U.S. Government to begin recouping its remaining $45.3 billion investment. The Canadian government's $8.1 billion stake, which equals a 12 percent ownership interest, also could also be unlocked if GM sells shares to the public.

Whitacre said he expects an initial public offering in late 2010 or early 2011. GM officials said it likely will take years for the governments to divest themselves fully, but after meeting with the Michigan delegation, Whitacre said there is a "high" possibility that taxpayers will end up being fully compensated.

"I think the stock could be worth a lot and the taxpayers could get all their money — plus — back," he said.

FTR quote: " I can’t understand why so many Obama sycophants continue to buy into his bull crap propaganda, and why anyone still holds him in high regard. It’s a mystery."
Answer: It beats the alternative, Lies by Limbaugh and you.

[Ariz. governor signs immigration enforcement bill] Hot damn!  Now we're getting somewhere.  Next we’ve  got to get the AZ governor to be the governor of FL.

[Hyprocrits] It seems like the people who complain the most about government intervention in their lives have absolutely no problem ramming their beliefs and values down someone else's throat.

That's not being conservative, it's just hypocritical.

Attorney General Eric Holder gave the keynote speech at the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the Student National Coordinating Committee in Raleigh, North Carolina. The organization was formerly known as the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee but explicitly rejected nonviolence and expelled all whites from membership.

The leader of the organization, H. Rap Brown murdered Fulton County, GA Sheriff Deputy Ricky Knichen on March 16, 2000.

Had John Ashcroft given the keynote address of the KKK convention, or the Aryan Nation convention, the Washington Post front page would have the story on the front page, day after day, week after week. Of course Ashcroft would exercise the judgment that Holder did not and refuse to attend. But publications like the Washington Post and the New York Times turn a blind eye toward racism, violence and discrimination from minority organizations. Indeed, they even have a propensity to brand those who even mention this phenomena as “racists” in their own right.

I spent some time with the highest tenured faculty member at Chicago Law a few months back, and he did not have many nice things to say about “Barry.” Obama applied for a position as an adjunct and wasn’t even considered. A few weeks later the law school got a phone call from the Board of Trustees telling them to find him an office, put him on the payroll, and give him a class to teach. The Board told him he didn’t have to be a member of the faculty, but they needed to give him a temporary position. He was never a professor and was hardly an adjunct.

[From the Right] Just a couple of weeks ago Gallup did a poll that discloses that more Americans support the Tea Party than oppose it, 28% support, 26% oppose. 38% have no opinion, and 8% just said, “huh?”.  Just for the record, I am not a Tea Party member. Like nearly 30% of all Americans I am a supporter of their message and goals.  I’ve actually seen Tea Party types in action, I like them. I respect them; they have the stones to get involved. I wonder if there are any other Tea Party supporters who are not members of the Tea Party who read this site? I invite you to tell us your feelings on this matter. On the other hand we have a dud named Dante Chinni  of Patchwork Nation, who also did a study. Dante who? Patchwork Nation what? According to yesterday’s Tea Party pooper, and Dante Chinni, there are not enough Tea Party types to even fill a good sized football stadium. By the way, if the Tea Party movement is so inconsequential, why do our liberal classmates have their shorts all in a bunch over it?  

(Part II) Is our globe cooling, warming, or is it in stasis? FTR doesn’t know, neither does anyone else. Theories abound.  If it is warming will that be catastrophic? Maybe, maybe not, says FTR, and legions of reputable scientists.  If the global climate is changing, is that change caused by man? Nobody knows.  Theories abound. Will the “fixes” demanded by the anthropogenic GW crowd wreak havoc on our economy, our society, and our national status? Yes. Hell yes. The issue is no longer a quest for good science, it is now a quest for science that bolsters leftist theology.  It is advocacy science at it worst. In the recent past AGW types insisted that we would be shattered by increased numbers of hurricanes because of AGW. I'm certain that every reader remembers that. Today, they tell us that AGW will result in fewer hurricanes. The issue is far from being "settled science". Were it settled science there would be no controversy. We know that Greenland once was home to a thriving colony of the Norse. The Norse farmed and kept livestock from about 800AD until about 1500 AD when it became too cold to survive. The climate changed to cooler. We do know that the North West passage was successfully navigated early in the 20^th century. A list of proof that the Arctic, in modern times,  was relatively warm and comfy could fill pages. A similar list describing  a drastically cooler world in the very recent geologic past would also fill pages. Closer to home, just a blink of geologic time ago, our little string of islands was high and dry, with the coast line 7 or more miles from where you are reading this. Lately we are deluged with strident claims that global warming is here, that man is the culprit, and unless we meet the demands of the AGW folks, we are doomed. One of the keystones of that argument has been the claim that the Arctic ice sheet is dwindling. That so called "fact" was claimed to be proof positive that we were on our way to cinderdom. That balderdash relies on records that track ice aggregation for only the last 30 years. 3 decades is but a nano second in the history of man to say nothing of the earth. Now, that so called "warming trend” seems to be reversing. The Arctic ice sheet is back to it's 30 year average. Before 30 years ago, there are no reliable records of the extent of the ice nor it's thickness. I suggest that Arctic ice has waxed and waned for the millennia. Joe Blothohmoz, had/has nothing to do with it, and neither did any other human.  We know that at least two of the prime advocates of the issue have in engaged shoddy, if not corrupt, research practices. The investigation of the researcher’s activities and conclusions  continues in the UN.  We know that the AGW controversy had made millions of dollars for AGW entrepreneurs.  We do know that these entrepreneurs have become the most strident of voices in the issue. As long as the AGW controversy exists, they will continue to reap millions. We know that there are hordes of respected scientists who do not believe that a case for AGW has been made. Just a heartbeat ago the AGW sales staff was shrieking "The hurricanes are coming". They said that AGW was certain to pound us with more and more hurricanes and super hurricanes as the globe warmed. Today, the same AGW sales taff tells us that because of AGW, the number of hurricanes will decrease, but they might be more intense.  Settled science? No Way! I do know one thing with absolute certainty. If the case for anthropogenic global warming was a criminal case, the case would be tossed out of court. Our nation, its economy, and every American deserve at least the same treatment that criminals receive. The case for AGW has not been proven to the exclusion of every reasonable doubt.  I believe that the case for AGW does not even constitute “probable cause”. Please keep in mind folks that localized weather and global climate are in a constant state of change and that that change is the only global constant. Isn't it arrogant to believe that the weather that is currently around you is the only "norm"?

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Sunday April 25, 2010

Saturday April 24, 2010

(eD:  No edIT SatuRDAY!!!!!!......b-cuz u assd 4 iT!!!!!!!!!

[No-Edit Saturday] For those of you visiting for the first time, don’t judge the Coconut Telegraph by today’s un-edited episode. This is almost the Editor's day off. Tune in tomorrow for the edited version. You’ll find its format and graphics more pleasing. (Note to friends of the Editor: I can get out of here a lot sooner on Saturday if you don't send in any photos, attachments or Classified Ads for Saturday publication. That's because it takes a lot of time to resize and re-format them. Please email them to us by 6am on Sunday  for Sunday's publication. I'll appreciate it a lot.)

By: Commissioner George R. Neugent

Poll after poll suggests that Floridians consider themselves environmentalists.  That’s not to say that constituents don’t want growth but rather they value balancing development with ecological limitations.  Yet, here we are once again watching lawmakers launch another assault on the enforcement agency that stands between more sprawl and sustainable growth - - the Florida Department of Community Affairs (DCA).

Our residents, both full-time and part-time, along with over 4 million tourists come to this paradise because we’ve managed to successfully counterbalance the efforts of developers and special interest groups.  This triumph is largely attributable to the DCA, our unique designation as an Area of Critical State Concern, and the many environmental groups of the Florida Keys led by citizens who are ready and willing to take off the gloves when need be.

As a 3-term commissioner, I have always understood that our environment plays a central role in the Keys economy.  Critics often claim that large development leads to more revenue which can provide tax relief for homeowners and/or additional services.  This is not the case; growth does not pay for itself.

Several studies conducted by communities in Florida have determined that for every one dollar of economic benefit generated by new development, the municipality pays roughly $1.55 for additional required services.  Moreover, that figure is on the low end considering that impact fees are often waived in the process, leaving taxpayers to provide subsidies while developers produce for profit.

It is very clear to me and hopefully every public official in the Sunshine State, that the people are screaming, “enough is enough.”  Over one-million signatures were collected demanding that voters be given the power to veto any changes to a municipalities’ comprehensive plan for land use.  This measure, sponsored by Hometown Democracy, will appear on the November ballot as “Amendment 4.”  This public display of the lack of confidence voters have in government’s ability to responsibly monitor growth should serve as a big wake-up call.

It is rather astounding to me that we are even having a conversation about the status of the DCA.  Plain and simple, it should remain.  Furthermore, lawmakers should fully fund Florida Forever, one of the most environmentally effective initiatives in the state, that has protected more than 2.4 million acres of land.

Earlier this month, “Florida Forever Day” was held at the Capitol hosted by The Nature Conservancy.    I hope the Florida and the Fabulous Florida Keys that we know today will be forever but that is left to be seen.  I call upon my fellow residents to join me and others in this battle.  There are ample opportunities with organizations such as Last Stand and 1000 Friends of Florida to get informed and get active.  Ultimately, the decisions we make today will have consequences for the many future generations to come.  It is not just our responsibility but rather our moral imperative to protect our paradise.

NATIONAL POLITICS

Have you ever wondered why is Mr. Obama more annoyed by the Jews building apartments than he is about Iran building nukes? Why Did Mr. Obama burn a gazillion gallons of jet fuel that spawned several gazillion tons of CO2 in his hours long trip to Des Moines just to give a speech about Earth Day? Isn’t the Rose Garden at the White House  a dandy venue?  Why do we keep hiring new government employees when a passel of them spend hours  watching porn on their guvmint (sic) computers? Is it true that one SEC dude got caught with his hand in the porn jar 1800 times in a two week period? Calluses? Why, when we have such massive deficits, and we are looking at huge tax increases, is it necessary for the Obama regime to increase the federal government’s payroll  by  200,000 to 600,000 which will result in about  2.15 million smiling guv’mint hired hands?  Won’t that be one hired fed for each 150 Americans?  Won’t that result in record deficit spending of $9.3 trillion?  I wonder why the average pay of federal workers is now over $71,000 (in Washington, DC, it’s $94,047), whereas the average pay in the private sector (if you have a job) is $50,028? Do fed hired hands work that much harder than you do? Do you think that  government workers unions are major political contributors to leftwing causes and candidates, especially Mr. Obama? Why is it that it is reported that 20% of fed employees make $100K or more?  We know that we’re broke, so why did Mr. Obama give fed employees a 2% raise? How much of a raise did you get? So, how’s the job going?  I was just wondering.

I’ll bet that somewhere in today’s CT an angry Obamaist is yelling that FTR is full of crap because a couple of days ago I reported that GM did not repay it’s indebtedness to the US taxpayers in full. Perhaps worse, GM isn’t making money, so they paid the $6.7 Billion with money that they took from another tarp trust fund. Instead of paying off higher interest rate loans that they got from the Unions, they chose to pay the Gov loan which had a signifigantly lower interest rate. So GM is making sure that the unions continue to earn high interest on the money that they loaned GM. Do you suppose that Mr. Obama and his union cronies had anything to do with that? The day before the GM story broke, Neil Barofsky, the government TARP watchdog, testified before the Senate Finance Committee. He explained that GM did not use earnings to repay its TARP debt. The April quarterly report to Congress from his office stated: “The source of funds for these quarterly [debt] payments will be other TARP funds currently held in an escrow account.” If you are like millions of other Americans, Obama propaganda has you believing that the American taxpayer has been made whole by GM’s  $6.7  billion dollar payment. Not so. GM has received $52 Billion in tax payer bucks. So far the tax payers have gotten back $6.7 Billion.  One CT poster was all giddy happy thinking that GM is in the green, it isn’t. It remains more than 70 percent government-owned and is still losing money — $3.4 billion in last year's fourth quarter alone. I can’t understand why so many Obama sycophants continue to buy into his bull crap propaganda, and why anyone still holds him in high regard. It’s a mystery.

Saturday April 24, 2010

Friday April 23, 2010

[Buy American] You can't buy American anymore, I tried when I bought my new car—locally, I might add. I was leaning toward buying a Honda pickup then felt guilty and wound up buying a Chevy HHR after I saw one and liked the looks. I found out after it was delivered to me that it was made in Mexico. Then I had problems with it and wound up calling Chevy corporate which connected me to India. After I talked to them for an hour about my problem I was told that my local service representative would contact me within 48 hours. I was called the next day by Ricardo and when I asked where he was calling from he said Brazil.

So good luck with the whole buying American thing. Every day I wish I had just bought the Honda pickup.

[Commissioner Purdo] That man can't spell.  It's their money, not there money; and it's our locals not are locals.  How do these people get these jobs? If a man can't even write a short reply correctly, why on God's green earth is he involved in big financial decision-making?  That (sadly) was one of the funniest things I've seen on the CT yet.

Suggesting a resident with a grievance just "move" shows the insensitivity and lack of respect much too prevalent in this bubba culture. Pathetic.

[Border Rancher Murdered] As you know, one of the local ranchers was murdered in Douglas, two weeks ago. His funeral is tomorrow. I received three messages similar to the one below from different officers within the Rangers and law enforcement.

Yesterday afternoon I talked to another rancher near us who is a friend of ours and whose great grandfather started their ranch here in 1880. These are good people. He told me what really happened out at the Krentz ranch and what you won’t read in the papers. The Border Patrol is afraid of starting a small war between civilians here and the drug cartels in Mexico.

Bob Krentz was checking his water like he does every evening and came upon an illegal who was lying on the ground telling him he was sick. Bob called the Border Patrol and asked for a medical helicopter evac.  As he turned to go back to his ATV he was shot in the side. The round came from down and angled up so they know the shooter was on the ground. Bob’s firearm was in the ATV so he had no chance. Wounded, he called the Cochise County Sherriff and asked for help. Bleeding in the lungs he called his brother but the line was bad so he called his wife, but again the line was bad.

Several ranchers heard the radio call and drove to his location. Bob was dead by this time. The ranchers tracked the shooter 8 miles back towards Mexico and cornered him in a brushy draw. This was all at night. The Sherriff and Border Patrol arrived and told them not to go down and engage the murderer. They went around to the back side of the draw and if you can believe it the assassin managed to get by a BP helicopter and a Sherriff’s posse and back to Mexico. So much for professional help when you need it.

One week before the murder Bob and his brother Phil (who I shoot with) hauled a huge quantity of drugs off the ranch that they found in trucks. One week before that a rancher near Naco did the same thing. Two nights later gangs broke into his ranch house and beat him and his wife and told them that if they touched any drugs they found they would come back and kill them. The ranchers here deal with cut fences and haul drug deliveries off their ranches all the time. What ranchers think is that the drug cartels beat the one rancher and shot Bob because they wanted to send a message. Bob always gave food and water to illegals and so they think they sent the assassin to pose as an illegal who was hungry and thirsty knowing it would catch Bob off guard.

What is going on down here is not being reported. You need to tell people how bad it is along the border. Texas is worse. Near El Paso it’s in a state of war. 5000 people were killed in Ciudad Juarez last year and it’s over 2000 dead so far this year. Gun sales down here are through the roof and I get emails from people wanting firearms training.

Something has to be done but I don’t hold out much hope. These gangs have groups in almost every city in the US. This is serious business.  The Barrio Azteca and their sub gangs are like Mexican Corporations and organized extremely well. If this doesn’t get dealt with down here you guys will deal with it on your streets.

The Deepwater Horizon oil rig is going to collapse into the Gulf of Mexico and you can bet there's going to be a hell of a spill. That stuff is going to gush into the water. Florida--you want these things off your coastlines?

All it takes is one tragedy like this one; and with the right water and current conditions, you can kiss your pristine beaches, and Florida's economy sayonara.

Terrific Aircraft Photos. Slide Show

[Sea Grape] You showed me yours the other day, so I’ll show you mine. This is a new leaf taken in the morning sunshine.

[Illegal workers] Arizona is poised to issue Identification cards to be used when getting a job in that state. Only legal immigrants will get them. The Feds say the cards are unconstitutional.

                          Parrotdise Waterfront
TGIF Beach Party. Beach Bar opens at 3pm. KC & Lisa will serve for Barefoot beach dancing.

Saturday Beach Party starts at 3pm with DJ George playing at 6pm. KC & Lisa will serve full bar with games to play.

Sunday, beach your boat for a free order of Caribbean Jerk Wings (1 order per boat served on the Beach).

Sun, waterfront views, beach and fun at Parrotdise on Little Torch Key all weekend.

[Hurricane Evacuation] What happens when a bridge goes out?  Do you think they will air drop a few cases of Busch Lite in cans?  With all the earthquakes and funny weather we have chosen to evacuate the Keys this season when advised.  So many people think we are going to have another unremarkable season, but I feel strongly enough to purchase an evacuation vehicle and a sturdy boat trailer to get out of harms way when we get another big blow.  We have stayed in the past but my instincts are telling me to go and stop pressing our luck.  Why do people stay here in their trailers?  Did their moms drop them on their heads?  Maybe some of you should review what happened in New Orleans and then start working your plans which includes taking all of your pets with you.  I went to the trouble of getting direct telephone numbers of the hotels since they filled up fast during the past evacuations. http://www.dogfriendly.com/ 

Does Monroe County really need a 1950s style road prison on Big Pine Key? Wal-Mart or Publix would be quite an upgrade on that tract of land. Imagine the economic gift either company would create. Or we could condemn the prison and just add 4 more pharmacies to compete with Walgreens and CVS. How about some more banks, real estate offices or churches?

[Mosquito Control] Who is worried about contrails and hazardous air born chemicals when the government runs this department?

This morning I went to sign my Dogs up for welfare. At first the lady said, "Dogs are not eligible to draw welfare". So I explained to her that my Dogs are mixed in color, unemployed, lazy, can't speak English and have no frigging clue who their Daddy’s are. They expect me to feed them, provide them with housing and medical care, and feel guilty because they are dogs.  So she looked in her policy book to see what it takes to qualify. My Dogs get their first checks Friday.  Damn this is a great country.

[Learn Medical Spanish] Better yet, change the class to Learn English and send (as in make mandatory) all the non-English speaking people to English classes to learn better communication as well as cultural sensitivity to English speaking people. And call the class: Learn How To Assimilate.

Someone please stop American Idol and let the star process happen the old fashioned way… sexual favors, cocaine and cash.  ~Pat Godwin

[AA Basher]  Okay, I give...Uncle! No more smart-ass responses to this dipsomaniac. I think we're just encouraging him. He's joined the triumvirate of annoying posters (Sloan and FTR being the other two) who we just scroll through.  Can you put him on the bottom in teeny-tiny type so we get a warning in advance? 

[Hair Colorist]  See a professional. I've never seen color out of a box yet that looks real. I know it's more expensive, but you wear your hair every day.

Top Ten Country Songs
10. I Hate Every Bone In Her Body But Mine
9. I Ain't Never Gone To Bed With an Ugly Woman But I Woke Up With A Few
8. If The Phone Don't Ring, You'll Know It's Me
7. I've Missed You, But My Aim's Improvin'
6. Wouldn't Take Her To A Dogfight 'Cause I'm Scared She'd Win
5. I'm So Miserable Without You It's Like You're Still Here
4. My Wife Ran Off With My Best Friend And I Miss Him
3. She Took My Ring and Gave Me the Finger
2. She's Lookin' Better with Every Beer
1. It's Hard To Kiss The Lips At Night That Chewed Out My Ass All Day

[More bar wisdom] Alcohol doesn't solve any problems, but then again, neither does milk.

[Church and State] Oklahoma law passed, 37 to 9, had a few liberals in the mix, an amendment to place the Ten Commandments on the front entrance to the state capitol.  The feds in D.C., along with the ACLU, said it would be a mistake.  This is a conservative state, based on Christian values.
Guess what, Oklahoma did it anyway.

Let's hear it from the County Commission candidates right up front, using the K.I.S.S. method.  Yes or No and even add a few words if you like.

What is your position on short term rentals in our residential neighborhoods?
What is your position on illegal downstairs enclosures?
What is your position on local areas tying to incorporate themselves? 

The next meeting of our computer club is coming up this Saturday, April 24, 10 am at the Senior Center.  We hope to see you there. Bulletin Board

[Indian Wanted] I’m looking for anyone who can dig up a relative of any Indian tribe that lived in the Keys. Then that descendant can petition the state to build a Casino for me.

What happened to our George at the local bar?   We miss him.  We are not going back if he is not there.  Let us know where he will be. 

[Senior Health Care Solution] So you're a senior citizen and the government says no health care for you, what do you do? Our plan gives anyone 65 years or older a gun and 4 bullets.  Your are allowed to shoot 2 Senators and 2 Representatives.  Of course this means you will be sent to prison where you will get 3 meals a day, a roof over your head, and all the health care you need.  New teeth--no problem.  Need glasses--great.  New hip, knees, kidney, lungs, heart?  All covered. 

And who will be paying for all of this?  The same government that just told you that you are too old for health care.  As an added benefit, because you are a prisoner, you don't have to pay any income taxes anymore!

[Learn Medical Spanish] Hell no! Let them learn freaking English.

[How to make hair go back to natural color] Let it grow back or color it green like it was.

[AA Basher] When AA members try to convince the new comers that AA really works, they almost invariably point to a large AA meeting and say something like, "Just look at all of those sober AA members. We have hundreds of years of sobriety in this room."

But what those people in that meeting room actually prove is merely that AA has managed to get a bunch of people to meet in a room. (We do not even know for sure how long they have been sober, or if they really are continuously sober.)

There is no evidence that meeting in a room and telling stories made those people quit drinking.

There is no evidence that doing the Twelve Steps caused people to quit drinking.

And there isn't even any evidence that all of the sober people have actually done the 12 Steps. After all, the Big Book says that the 12 Steps are only "suggested".

There is no evidence that those people who successfully quit drinking didn't really quit for some other reason that has nothing to do with Alcoholics Anonymous, like that.

They were sick and tired of being sick and tired, and finally really decided that they didn't want to die that way.
They decided that they wanted to be healthy and happy.
They finally just decided that they really couldn't and wouldn't drink any more.
They wanted to save their marriage.
They wanted to save their job and career.
They wanted their self-respect back.
They wanted to accomplish something in their lives besides suicide by bottle.
They wanted to stop hurting their loves ones.
They decided that alcoholism was too expensive, in too many ways.

The A.A. boosters merely assume a cause-and-effect relationship between going to A.A. meetings and quitting drinking, when there isn't really any evidence to support such a belief.

It is false logic to say that a few sober people in a room prove that A.A. works. It is just Observational Selection , i.e., "Cherry Picking". What the A.A. promoters never do is look at the A.A. failures. They never get together all of the A.A. failures and dropouts (95%) in another, much, much larger, extremely larger room, and point at them and say, "Look at all of those drunken people. They prove that A.A. does not work very well at all."

No, the A.A. true believers just ignore the failures and continue to incant, at the start of every A.A. meeting, "RARELY have we seen a person fail, who has thoroughly followed our path." And if you point out the failures, the true believer’s just weasel out of it with that qualifier, and blame the victims: "Well, they don't count. They didn't thoroughly follow our path." or “they are just dry drunks” or “they weren’t really alcoholics.”

NATIONAL POLITICS

[The ant and the grasshopper] Old version
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.

Moral of the story: Be responsible for yourself!

Modern version
The ant works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving. CBS, NBC , PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food. America is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so? Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing, 'It's Not Easy Being Green'. ACORN stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house where the news stations film the group singing, "We shall overcome." Then Rev. Jeremiah Wright has the group kneel down to pray to God for the grasshopper's sake. President Obama condemns the ant and blames President Bush, President Reagan, Christopher Columbus, and the Pope for the grasshopper's plight. Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his fair share. Finally, the EEOC drafts the Economic Equity and Anti-Grasshopper Act retroactive to the beginning of the summer. The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government Green Czar and given to the grasshopper. The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant's food while the government in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn't maintain it. The ant has disappeared in the snow, never to be seen again. The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the ramshackle, once prosperous and once peaceful, neighborhood. The entire Nation collapses bringing the rest of the free world with it.

Moral of the story:  Be careful how you vote in 2010.

Americans see Obama inviting attack. Nearly two of three Americans surveyed in a new poll believe the United States is more likely to be targeted in an attack – either by a hostile military or a terrorist organization – because of the policies of President Obama. A majority also disagree with his newly announced policy against using nuclear weapons against nations or groups that would attack the U.S. with biological or chemical weapons of mass destruction.

"I want my country back". Sorry, but Disney already owns the rights to Fantasyland.

[UAW] The main reason the Republicans wanted to let the American car companies die was to eliminate the best union in the country, the UAW--United Auto Workers.

The TEA Party is just the same old Republican conservatives dressed up with a new name.

The University of Chicago released a statement in March 2008 saying Obama served as a professor, but he was not a professor. He taught part time courses there. He was not a professor but he clamed that on his bar application.

The Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury unveil the newest 100 dollar bill. To be honest, each time they come out with a "new version" of U.S. currency the new bills tend to look more and more like funny money each time.

[From the Right] We heard a little huffing and puffing yesterday about anthropogenic global warming. Background: two scientists considered to be the preeminent scholars of AGW, one named Phil Jones, (a Brit) and Penn State Prof Michael Man were accused of cooking their books, faking data, and generally engaging in professional chicanery about AGW. The row became known as Climategate.  Recently the Brit House of Commons and Penn State U. decided that the actions of Jones and Mann, while inappropriate, did not invalidate their theory. The Penn State inv only concluded that Mann had not violated any University rules.  The Brits, in Parliament decided that the Jones’ description of his handling data as “tricking” “hiding the decline (in global temps)”, and declaring "war" or those who questioned his theory was not  inappropriate scientific behavior, and that his findings were probably valid.  Well now, on its face that sure sounds like the death knell for the beliefs of those who do not subscribe to the theory of AGW.   But it doesn’t, and for a lot of reasons. Each of the investigating bodies rely on substantial funding from government and industry sources that would dry up if they had concluded that Jones and Mann’s findings were fraudulent. Both investigating bodies had skin in the game, and AGW is a golden egg laying goose to them. Neither of the investigating bodies took testimony from anyone other than supporters of Jones and Mann. The Brit inquiry took only a single day to consider thousands of pages and data by the long ton.  Perhaps the most damning charge is that the Penn State three-person panel, which claimed it had spent hundreds of hours investigating the allegations, interviewed only two people in its inquiry, neither of whom had any direct knowledge of the e-mails or Mann's work. Moreover, the panel didn't ask Mann for any documents to support his work or to confirm the charges (see Steve McIntyre, a climate scientist, in Climate Audit). McIntyre said “They only looked at what was public," In fact, the entire issue is still under investigation. Oh did I mention that Arctic sea ice is at average coverage from 1979 to date, and it is on the increase. So, Deer Friends this old fart continues to have grave doubts about AGW. It remains a theory that is suspect by thousands of scientists.

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Friday April 23, 2010

Thursday April 22, 2010

[A letter to Islamorada commissioner Purdo about the proposed ordinance protecting local contractors from outside competition]

While I appreciate this idea, I do not and cannot support it.  How hypocritical of you to come out in one of the last meetings about how this is a small town and we should live and let live in regards to code enforcement and then come out with this?  This is the fundamental problem with many elected officials.  You appear to be a pawn of a select special interest group of the moment. 

This is entirely too much government intervention and opportunity for corruption for me to even believe you would send this out to your supporters.  Why should we pay up to 10% more just because someone chooses to live in the Keys and feels entitled to charge more?  When I wanted my yard landscaped I received quotes from $32,000 to over $70,000 for a landscape design my in-house landscape architect created.   I drove to Homestead, hired a company and did the job for $4000!  Are you telling me that because these were local landscapers, they were worth 10 times the price?  

Remember that I build here. I use a local builder, but he realizes that the only way I will continue to use him is if he’s competitive in pricing--and he is.   Why? Because he wants the steady work and guaranteed pay that I can provide. Now, tell me why he can build me luxury homes, renovate buildings, and do all sorts of contracting work for me, from Islamorada through Ocean Reef for the same prices of mainland builders and much less than the other local guys even though he is based in Monroe County?  We are involved with the building of a new home on Lower Matecumbe and it’s the same builder and his prices were far less than any of the local guys that bid the job, even in this shit economy.   He wants the work and will take a little less profit to keep his men working. 

Don’t bullshit us with keeping tax dollars in the Keys. You are asking us to use our tax dollars to pay more.   How about the council getting competitive bids from all looking for work and providing the tax payers with a savings for once?   Sure, there will be a grassroots populist support here in public, but those same people will be the ones calling the tax collector to fight their assessed values come September. 

There is plenty of profit built in to building and the reality is the crazy market days of $300+/sq.ft to build what should of cost $150 are gone. 

Just like Barbara and I have to adapt to lower commissions and sales prices on the properties in our area, so too must we all tighten our belts and let the market dictate.  Don’t you think I miss selling homes for absurd prices per square foot?  Don’t you think I would love to charge what some of my competitors charged for the same stuff I sold?  Sure, but I didn’t, even though I live and play here, and actively support the community. That is why three have gone out of business and I’m still plugging ahead. 

This is a free market.  How do you believe government hand-outs are going to really help?  Sure, these people live here, but do they buy their supplies from Forest Tek or Ace only? Do they only hire local Keys residents or do they ship in their workers from Homestead?  Do they only shop at the Trading Post or do they leave Islamorada (where this tax base you are looking to donate comes from) to buy their groceries?  Do their clothes only come from Islamorada?  How about their supplies?  There are many things to be considered here much larger than just doing good for a select special interest group.  What’s next? Should we pay our service people more because we have more sun days per year than other municipalities?  Should our bus drivers get 10% more because we have only one road?

You are not talking about Keys taxes you are referring to Islamorada taxes.  Where do you shop for groceries?   

What are you really saying?  Our contractors are charity cases and need special coddling? 

We are not Marathon, which adds an additional 25 miles to the commute.   We can obtain Miami laborers and many local contractors actively do.  I do not support paying more just because they live here when there is a free market that can dictate and will ultimately win no matter what.   I support a competitive bidding process.  No one told anyone else to over extend themselves. There are plenty of people out there willing to work given the opportunity. 

The reality is when you start to dictate to the free market, you are instantly creating unfair advantages.  Everyone can tighten their belts and bid to get work or suffer the consequences.  We, as tax payers, are not here to supplement the incomes of others when we are working ourselves. 

Commissioner Purdo’s reply:
Seems it might be time for you move if you don't support our local residents. We pay outsiders and then they spend there money out side. At least are locals will spend there money here. Sorry you disagree but I welcome your comments.  

[Iceland Volcano pictures] Bad in the air, worse on the ground. http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/04/more_from_eyjafjallajokull.html

[A Ray of Sunshine Law] County passes lobbying ordinance. Maybe that will stop some of the special interests from “getting” to a politician.

[Potato Salad Song] In the innocent 40s they sang about potato salad while dirty dancing and pretending not to have dirty thoughts about it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNR74UCidBI

[Marco Rubio Campaign] Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright,
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and little children shout;
But there is no joy in Teaville — mighty Marco has struck out.

Now that Rubio's cube has been solved, hazardous traffic conditions have been observed in certain residential areas known to contain high concentrations of Tea Party supporters.  Slippery roadways caused by exploding heads have caused massive backups which are expected to continue until further notice. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/21/rubios-ethics-becoming-is_n_546216.html

[Mindless Paintings] Paint what you can't say. Center's Alzheimer's patients paint what they can't say - San Jose Mercury News

The Keynoter had a front page story about mosquito-borne illness.  Mosquito Control (who does a good job) advises us to remove standing water.  Monroe County requires all new houses to build a swale (which is a ditch) around the house to catch the rain water.  In other words, they are forcing people to take good drainage and make poor drainage, so the swale will capture the rain and make a perfect place for mosquitoes to breed.  Then they tax us to kill the same mosquitoes.  Plus they warn us about standing water, but we are not allowed to fill in the swale that they forced a new homeowner to build.  Moron County.

[3-Laning Big Pine Key] The middle lane they already have should be turned into a lane used to turn off the highway from both directions. It would also make it easier to get out on the highway from both directions.

The Old Wooden Bridge Kids Fishing Tournament will be held on Saturday May 1. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. Or register early by picking up your registration in the News Barometer. Fishing rods and bait will be given to each child. Each child only needs to bring terminal tackle and sunscreen.

Fishing is from 10 a.m. to noon. Free lunch for the whole family beginning at noon, and then the awards. Age categories are 5 - 9 year olds, and 10 - 12 year olds. Younger children will receive fishing rods if still available, but are not eligible for prizes. A Parent or guardian is needed to attend. For more information call Holly at 879-6824. Bulletin Board

Night landing in Aspen, Colorado. The right side is the normal vision the pilot sees of the landing strip during an evening approach. On the left side is the vision of a monitor of the infrared image of the terrain. Heat is transmitted through an infrared optical device. This system shows the terrain exactly as if it would be daylight. This is an unreal and amazing technological advance. Video

[Sign in men’s room] Wash your hands or you will get sick and nobody will have sex with you.

[AA Basher on Basketballism] My understanding of alcohol dependence is that it is a chronic, neurological disease influenced by genetic and environmental factors. This could just as well be said about basketball players who suffer from the horrible disease of basketballism. For example, it often is a chronic progressive disease. A child might play just once, make just one basket, and become addicted from that very moment, but usually the disease progresses more slowly, often going unnoticed until it is too late. Basketballism is a chronic disease and can last a lifetime, although most often people just quit playing basketball without going to basketball anonymous meetings.  A careful examination of the neurology of professional basketball players also turns up the disease. Their brains are not normal. The parts of the brain which work with kinesthetics and judging distance are overdeveloped and often go into an overactive state especially when engaging in disease behavior.  Basketballism also has genetic factors and probably wouldn't exist, at least as we know it, without the predisposing genetic factors. It is only those who have the genes responsible for excessive tallness that are most likely to succumb to the disease.

And there are also environmental factors. Children who grow up in homes and neighborhoods among others who suffer basketballism or even who play other so-called sports are far more likely to later suffer from the disease. In a school district where basketballism is rampant, a child who is genetically predisposed is far more likely to grow up to be a basketballer. Sometimes a child with the genetic predisposition to basketballism is lucky and manages somehow avoid the talent scouts for professional sports who hang around in the shadows near schools selling their wares. But these sports pushers are definitely a serious factor.

So playing basketball is a disease by the same criteria as alcoholism is. Of course, just like with excessive drinking, not everyone who plays basketball excessively has the disease.

But if you admit you are powerless--you have it. If you say you don't have it, then we all know you are in denial about having it.  Alcoholism was once called a malady, then an allergy, then 70 years ago a proctologist, yes a proctologist, started calling it a disease.

[Fly Navy!] Blue Angles video http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=W6tB8Lf7YoU

Bocce League Winner and Combined Final Standings are available on the Bulletin Board.

Where's the freaking money for the Keys? How about fixing the freaking roads first? How about the freaking sewers? How about freaking good water? Politicians all have one thing in common; they stink of greed and corruption.

Is there a colorist in the house?  How does one make their hair go back to their natural color?  I used a box of something which made it go back, but after a couple of weeks of playing outdoors it is back to that loud blond color I am trying to avoid.  I just want my natural hair color back.  Thanks in advance. 

[Learn Medical Spanish]  For non-Spanish speakers and/or those who speak limited Spanish to learn better communication as well as cultural sensitivity to patients. The program offers 16 hours of Continuing Medical Education Credits. Thursday-Monday at the Double Tree Grand Resort in Key West. Cost is $50, which includes course materials. For more info call 305 743-7111, ext. 201. Si Senorita!

[Sewer 101] Sewer installation tips. Sewer primer: Tips for hiring a contractor | KeysNews.com

[Keys Politics] Land sharks test the waters. Candidates test the waters at big forum

[Wild bird trapper caught] Butterflies and birds are supposed to be free for all to enjoy and see, not caged and sold. I am saddened by the greed. Cuban immigrant caught illegally trapping birds in Homestead thinks strict animal rules are for the birds - Page 1 - News - Mi  

Super-Dooper Animal Slide Show

Can you spot which one of these is not like the other.

[Price Increase] Well it looks like the airlines are going to stick it to us like the oil, food, auto and all the other thieving bastard companies did. Plan to pay a lot more for a ticket to anywhere. Cruises will also go through the roof, price wise. The whole world is turning greedy. How many times will your income increase?

Spanish thieves get a surprise. Video

NATIONAL POLITICS

[Payback] In only one year General Motors (formerly Government Motors) paid off their entire $8.4 billion loan--early. They must have made some big bucks last year to have that much extra cash to pay back that much so soon. It turns out that Obama was right in bailing them out. The bailout is estimated to have saved about three million jobs in America. There are still those who would rather have let the nation go in to depression rather than loan big business the cash.

I think it’s impossible to find a down-side to this great news, but I’ll wager that the FTR guy will dispute the facts and throw in a few of his own “facts” to try to make the President look bad for this big success.

Buy American even if you can get it cheaper elsewhere. Video

[Muslim with No Birth Certificate] I work hard every day and I earn every penny.  Have you lost your mind? The man you voted for is Islamic.  He has stated that himself. He claims to be the president of the United States.  I don't believe that for one second.  Show us proof of your original birth certificate.  Why would he want to hide these documents? He told America shortly after the Ft. Hood massacre, "Let's don't jump to conclusions." The man is taking this country towards Socialism. You don't get that do you? Why is he reducing our nuclear power?  It's evident that you have no idea what's happening to our beloved country due to this administration.  You will be paying higher taxes for years to come. This leader of our nation is not what "Americans" want or deserve.

Hey, Captain Arrogant. It ain't just your country. Quit whining and grow a pair.

[Super Power Status] Asked this week about his faltering efforts to advance the Middle East peace process, President Obama did something remarkable. In front of some 47 foreign leaders and hundreds of reporters from all over the world, President Obama said that “whether we like it or not, we remain a dominant military superpower.”

Whether we like it or not? Most Americans do like it. America’s military may be one of the greatest forces for good the world has ever seen, liberating countless millions from tyranny, slavery, and oppression over the last 234 years. As a dominant superpower, the United States has won wars hot and cold; our military has advanced the cause of freedom in Iraq and Afghanistan and kept authoritarian powers like Russia and China in check…

The truth is this: by his actions we see a president who seems to be much more comfortable with an American military that isn’t quite so dominant and who feels the need to apologize for America when he travels overseas. Could it be a lack of faith in American exceptionalism? The fact is that America and our allies are safer when we are a dominant military superpower - whether President Obama likes it or not.

[Tea Party types is a catalyst for violence] Perhaps a more analytical and nuanced approach is what's called for here.  In the 1950's, a large number (about 65%) of Americans polled said that they trusted the fed.  We'll most likely never see numbers like that again but if you ask people specific, pointed questions instead of broad-brushed catch-alls like "Do you trust the government?", you'll get some different responses.  Ask the elderly if they want their "socialized" Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security messed with and they'll say that the government is running things just fine and don't you dare tamper with these programs.  Most people are all for whatever government program benefits them and opposed to anything that doesn't.  Tell me otherwise.  The Tea Party claims that their top 3 concerns are the recent health-care overhaul, unchecked government spending, and the lack of a receptive audience in Washington.  I didn't know you could train sheep to bleat on cue, but you learn something new everyday.  They offer no concrete plans or initiatives beyond "get the bums out" along with calls for secession and even violent revolution.  They feel that they can no longer work with a system that has sustained them, so why should anyone listen to them?  The core dialogue (I use that word loosely) coming from the Tea Party and its supporters is simply a message of vapid, bilious discontent.  "We're not happy and damn it, you'd better listen to us!" they cry.  They're not happy because a black man is president and it's not the '50s anymore.  They can't handle change.

I noticed that FTR could offer no rebuttal to the fact that the "smoking gun" supposedly revealed by the Climategate investigation turned out to be one of those clown guns you see at the circus. The kind where a flag with the word BANG! written on it as it pops out of the barrel when the trigger is pulled.