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2014 December

Monday, December 8, 2014

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The-Coconut-Telegraph-w-CoconutsSince 2002. Anonymous Letters to the Editor with pictures. Published Monday through Friday by Noon.

chodsen-hemmingway-contest[The Mad Russian Dies] Michael Chodzin, who once claimed to have been on every roof in Key West, has died of cancer. He was born in Russia and grew up in Chicago’s Loop. He lived for 40 years in Key West and was the owner of Chodzin Roofing.  He died on Nov. 15 at the age of 70 in St. Petersburg, Fl. Chodzin used to say that a house without a roof is just a fence. He fell off 4 of them. He also said that he became a roofing contractor because no one ever went on the roof to check the work. He was on the Code Enforcement review board until he got caught working on many roofs with out permits thus ending his political ambitions. The picture was when he grew a beard and bleached it to get ready for the Hemingway look-alike contest that he was barred from entering when he showed up with a shotgun to portray Hemingway as the hunter. He thought he’d be a shoe-in to win. He barely escaped going to jail. He later accidentally shot his brother in the stomach with an old zip gun he kept from his wilder days in Chicago. That was on the night of his Black and White Ball so the Ball had to be canceled at the last minute. When Chodzin walked into the Green Parrot he would always bellow as only he could. And you’d know he was ‘in the house’. One time I was walking down Margaret street towards the Raw Bar when his old red pickup, coming from there, tore around the corner on Caroline St towards City Electric. The faulty passenger side door opened and out fell another friend (a fugitive from the law who was later captured while working for me by the FBI). Chodzin stopped his truck in the middle of the road, gets out, and starts yelling at his friend, lying on the road, for falling out. He bundled the other drunk back in the truck, slams the door a few times to get it to catch, and zooms off still bellowing at his passenger. He was one of the most colorful characters in the old Key West of the 1970s. Full Menu > Big Pine Museum >The Good Old Days
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[“Genetically engineered mosquitoes”] Wow, doesn’t anyone remember Love Bugs, Kudsu, water lettuce, walking catfish or Australian pines? When will we learn. Don’t mess with Mother Nature. She has a habit of biting us in the ass.
spam covered happy thanksgiving
[Thanksgiving a Hoax
] In his History of Plymouth Plantation, the governor of the colony, William Bradford, reported that the colonists went hungry for years because they refused to work in the field. They preferred instead to steal food. He says the colony was riddled with “corruption,” and with “confusion and discontent.” The crops were small because “much was stolen both by night and day, before it became scarce eatable.” Link
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nira8
Nira Tocco
has another beauty for sale on Big Pine. Video Classified Ads > House For Sale
Two weeks on a top-of-the-line cruise ship with some bad weather and ports-of-call not worth the fuel to get there, told me the Bahamas and the Eastern Caribbean islands are as useless and productive as Smashes’ Auto Junk Yard. The quality of the cruise was also degraded by new management and most passengers were underwhelmed with the changes. Food, dress codes, cabin maintenance, ship condition, crew attitudes were all downgraded. It appears the travel industry is getting Walmartish in their greedy thinking. Trying to enjoy a nice quite adult level cruise with a few hundred mutants screaming and running amok has cured us of ever traveling with the large ships again.
Nira-Tocco-6.14
I guess that new Hyatt in Marathon has opened. In my humble opinion, it’s about the ugliest new building I’ve seen in some time.
emerald
[60 Minutes on Emeralds
] Phony diver says he’s discovered tens of thousands of raw emeralds at the bottom of the ocean off Key West. Video
Today in 1941 the USA declared war on Japan for being very, very bad.
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Is the IKC still active? I counted 15 on the bike trails between Big Pine and Little Torch today, Friday. I’ve never seen that many in one location. It’s scary.
[“Genetic Mosquito Control“]  Population control of a harmful species involves fighting on many fronts. Anyway back to the genetic stuff/ species population stuff. I must find out how the mosquitoes have been modified, but the usual method is to introduce males that are sterile. Allowing these males to propagate preferentially will create maybe ten thousand less mosquitoes for every sterile one released. In the course of a few breeding cycles, a distinct reduction in the local population of mosquitoes should be seen. Once they are under control, I suggest a release of male sterile “no see um, till you feel ums” . Wouldn’t that be neat to do for the islands that have human populations on them. Please do embrace that plan if it is being proposed and ensure it doesn’t become another free spending department of this bloated county government, Much better option than the mutation causing mosquito spray being used now.
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The flu vaccine used in the nasal inhaler is live. The IM shot in the arm is dead virus.
frog unicycle
[TED Talks on Frogs] Frogs are disappearing worldwide at an alarming rate. Video
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dianne-ulma
Dianne Umla
, seen here with her dog Lokki, is from Chicago and has lived on Big Pine Key for more than 20 years. Umla works at the Navy base as a systems engineer and loves the philosophy of life in the Florida Keys and the nearby water. “What makes this place really special is its uniqueness on just about every level,” she said. Umla likes that she has a fun job in a wonderful place.
~MIKE HENTZ/The Citizen
December 8, 1980. R.I.P. John Lennon. Imagine. Give peace a chance. War is over!, Happy Christmas. Words still true, remembering you. Link
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[Winner Wonderland Sweepstakes] We start with one great appliance on the first day and keep adding one more every day for 10 days. That means you have a chance at winning* up to ten smart appliances. CNET is spreading cheer, one win at a time! Link
elf mooning
To the Santa letter writer
: I agree. I spent quite a bit of time looking at the moon too. We are truly blessed.
There are two theories to arguing with a woman. Neither works.
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Monroe County’s Solid Waste and Recycling Administrator abruptly resigned, after six years on the job and bringing the county from a recycling rate of 6% to the 2013 rate of over 55%. Sorry to see her go!
Thanks for the Dear Santa letter Friday. I really, really, needed that. I think a lot of others do too.
Radio-Shack10.31.14
[“Grand Jury”]  A famous man once said a Grand Jury could indict a ham sandwich.  It’s true,  the DA can present only one side of the evidence (the bad stuff, ignoring any good stuff or reasonable doubt or defense)  and can sway any jury to indict.  Does the system work?  For the most part, yes it does.  Of course mistakes can be made and juries are human and susceptible to emotions.  If the evidence is presented without a lot of grandstanding by the DA, and presented with just the facts, the jury will make a decision.  They usually get it right.  Usually.  Not always.  In the Ferguson case they got it right.  In the more recent NYC case they got it wrong.  In our own KW Charles Eimers case they got it right.
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The Hydrogen bomb blows up a peaceful South Pacific island.
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pearl-harbor-arizonaPearl Harbor attack anniversary was yesterday’s news. I work in the Flea Market and watch for old guys wearing military hats. Many of my favorite WW2 vets are gone now. I always say, “Thank you and tell me your story.”
Many say they lied about their age so they were 16 or 17 in battle. One nice old guy told me that he was 17 on a ship in Pearl Harbor when he lost the use of both feet, his back didn’t work. He has 3 daughters and 6 grand kids. Another guy told me he was in Germany when his whole platoon was killed. He was wounded, they thought he was dead so they laid him with the rest of the pile. He woke up in a body bag 3 days later. One was a pilot that goes to reunions every year only to see 500 men turn to 25 attending and most died.
We are really lucky if we get a chance to talk to a WW2 vet, please listen to them, you will never get a second chance at it. My husband’s dad was 32 when he joined and ended up running the fire department in Japan after they took over the country.
Our youngest son was in Iraq, he got a job after that in the Marshall Islands. That is where our country dumped all their extra tanks and aircraft and ammo after they fought one of the biggest battles of the war and there are 10,000 Japanese buried in a 10′ x 10′ memorial.
Please thank a Vet and if you see a guy wearing a military hat or shirt ask them to tell you their story. It’s worth it
carol fa-la-la-la
Star Trek Christmas song
Make It So  Quite clever!
[“FTR looks for details”] Thank you FTR. The saying that the Devil is in the details wasn’t made up for no reason.
Isaksen11.5.14
wi-fi8[How to See Who’s Connected to Your Wi-Fi Network] Do you know who’s connected to your router’s Wi-Fi network? Take a look at the list devices connected to your Wi-Fi network from your router or computer to find out. Bear in mind that many devices connect to your Wi-Fi these days. The list will contain laptops, smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, set-top boxes, game consoles, Wi-Fi printers, and more. Link
A few years ago I was surprised to see, what I thought to be,  a county police helicopter doing aerobatics 50-100 feet above the avenues over BPK. I was mesmerized. The quality of his incredible flying told me he must be a fighter pilot relaxing with a little low flying or the least a helicopter gunship pilot on his day off. I assumed he was County police looking for a dangerous armed criminal on the loose. Much later I heard that was the mosquito spray helicopter. And much later I saw the tax bill with a line for mosquito control department or something. To the pilot: Excellent flying!
captain america pumping[“Puerto Rican Civil War Veterans”] During the 19th century, commerce existed between the ports of the eastern coast of the United States and Puerto Rico. Ship records show that many Puerto Ricans traveled on ships that sailed from and to U.S. and Puerto Rico. Many of them settled in places such as New York,  Connecticut and Massachusetts. Upon the outbreak of the American Civil War, many Puerto Ricans joined the ranks of the military armed forces. However, since Puerto Ricans were still Spanish subjects, they were inscribed as Spaniards. My Great Great Grandfather and his 2 brothers happened to be 3 of the many Puerto Ricans who volunteered in the Union Army to fight the Rebels, even though they weren’t required to. It was never stated on the previous post that the Island of Puerto Rico supported the U.S. during the Civil War. It states that Puerto Ricans served as courageous soldiers during the American Civil War.People are under the illusion that Steve Rodgers is Captain America, but in reality he’s Capitan Puerto Rico. That happens to be the Puerto Rican flag on his chest!
Surveys show the average man thinks about sex every tits seconds.
BP-Flea-Market10.10.14
Cats kill 1.3 billion birds yearly! Now we just have to wait for those 6,000 fixed cats from Forgotten Felines to die so they will finally stop killing the local wildlife.
palm8
This is why you don’t put xmas lights on certain palm trees.
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dead chic8
[Eimers] This Key West homeless chicken morns the tragic violent death of her homeless friend that was run over by a KWPD patrol car. Maybe we should have a Grand Jury investigation into the actions of the officer that was driving the vehicle.
Tuesday’s KW City Commission meeting so your readers can watch what Sloan actually said during citizen comments this past Tuesday night. Mark Songer, speaking for Last Stand, leads off. Then Margaret Romero, then Sloan. Perhaps if your readers watch that video, they will not send you dumb ass, uninformed remarks like this one in today’s CT: “Gadfly Sloan Bashinsky said at the Commission meeting last night that ‘the police killed Eimers’ because he was homeless. I doubt the police even knew Eimers was homeless. Commissioner Rossi ripped Mr Bashinsky a new one and Yaniz joined him.”Even the dumbest of ignorant dumb asses, who have followed the Eimers case, know the cop who made the traffic stop thought Eimers was living in his car, and that cop passed that news along to all the backup he called in, and Officer Gary Lee Lovette acted on that news with great gusto, along with the other cops who helped Gary Lee kill Eimers.  A link to a video showing Tuesday’s citizen comments. Video
manley-deboer-7.11.14
Firefox browser sucks. It cancels out the audio of my speakers, prevents me from downloading books directly into my Overdrive App and the Bookmarks are a convoluted affair. I’m going back to Chrome!
santa stuck chiminy
[Even Santa Poops] What happens when all those milk and cookies catch up with Santa on his big night? Video
Havana Blue. Saturday Drama, The Havana Quartet. The first story in Padura’s much-loved detective series set in Havana. Audio
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Use a rubber band to unscrew stripped screws.
[“Barricades”] I’ve often wondered what the rent is costing for all the barricades, barrels and cones up & down our highway. Friday’s ode was perfect.
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[“Genetically modified mosquitoes”] Are they the live ones or the mechanical ones Big Brother wants to send down here?
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Star Wars holiday commercial
. Video
[Bionic Pancreas] It regulates your blood sugar levels. This test involved using a device implanted in type I diabetes patients that received both insulin and Glucagon. Video
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merry xmas snow flakes
This is for all you people that miss the real winter. Video
I don’t know about genetically modified mosquitoes, but I have a strong suspicion that there are genetically modified people that frequent both bars on Ramrod
johnsons-7.9.14
Pigeon Key is a tourist attraction. The Monroe County Tourist Development Council is in the business of funding tourist attractions and has been giving taxpayers’ monies to Pigeon Key. There is an FDOT bridge to this tourist attraction attached to the City of Marathon, where Monroe County Commissioners George & David live. The city of Marathon gets tourist dollars from those walking out to Pigeon Key. So then why did those two City of Marathon residents, who are County Commissioners, vote to divert monies to fund the mandated sewers instead of the TDC donating the 14 million dollars to FDOT so that FDOT would fix their falling down bridge? Would anyone suspect chicanery is afoot? What kind of sweetheart deals did the County Commission bequeath to Key Haven, Shark Key, Duck Key, and who knows where else. Is everyone out there asleep or couldn’t care less? Hey folks, it’s our tax dollars they’re frittering away.
covered dish steam
Meals.
Wanted, a restaurant, deli, or person in the Summerland Key vicinity to prepare and deliver a daily nutritious dinner to a long time, single, Summerland Cove resident needing help with every day living while recovering from surgery and rehabilitation. Another possibility might exist for the right person to live in the waterfront house, rent free, to cook, do basic cleaning and laundry. This possibility would require an extensive background check. If interested, email your phone number to Classified Ads > Wanted
Rumor has it that in 1979 So. Fl. Water Management had to come down here and take over the FKAA. I wonder if it is for the same situation that is going on now with all the BS that’s coming out of Kennedy Dr. Cooked books, doctored data, threats to the “losers” of King George’s district. Why are we sitting back and taking it?
globemaster[C-17 on final approach] I never did get to fly a Globemaster, but back in 1959, I hitched a ride on a C-130 Hercules from Bermuda to my home base, Savannah (Hunter AFB). The long story is that Bermuda didn’t have enough water to wash their aircraft, so they would fly to my home base empty and return all nice and clean. And we got to spend a few days in Bermuda–free.When the US Marines landed in Lebanon, and all training flights were cancelled.  I was forced to hang out at the base for the next available flight stateside.  I was lucky to hitch an empty troop carrier returning from delivering Marines to Beirut. Had to wear a parachute the whole way to Charleston (the closest AFB to home), and then find my way to Savannah on my own. And that, is the extent of my war stories.This is an amazing shot of a C-17 on final approach. This photo is much better than my memory
If I had a band here I’d name it District 3.
hareens 12.2.14
If you love the smell of rotting seaweed in the morning, then move to the East shoreline of any of the Keys.
Bobby Shew – Salsa Caliente
juggle plates
[Inflation] “If you calculated inflation the way they did in 1980 (the system has been modified twice since then), you’d have an inflation rate today of about 9%, not 2%.” That statement makes sense based on my groceries and the increase of my mortgage with taxes and insurance. The quote is from Bill Bonner who points out how economists win the war on poverty with just some number juggling.
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rebekah-dunaj
TV 88 Morning Show with Rebekah Dunaj. Hear what Rebekah has to say 10 days before going live. Video
[“Pepper spray petition”] For all that might be interested in signing a petition about the pepper spray monster on Hudgins Dr in Summerland. A couple weeks back I posted a story about my neighbor spraying my sweet tongue/wagging/licking dog. I have started a petition. I am letting this woman know that she has just messed with the wrong person. She has done it before and I intend on stopping her from doing it again! If you would please, sign it and forward it to your Facebook , Twitter and any other media that will get it mass audience. I don’t care who signs it, I am seeking 2000 signatures for her review. The web site asks for your address, but it dos not get displayed on the web site, only your state does. You have the option to hide your name. Please make a comment about pepper spraying our pets. I will make sure she gets them all. Thank you so much to any and all who sign. Susan funkymonais@yahoo.com
politics-zone-750w
El Caganer. If you want Caganers, go here for the real deal. Lots of celebrity Caganers available. http://www.caganer.com/celebrities-c-47.html
Shhh,  be very quiet. Don’t tell the poster on the C.T that said Conservatives cut taxes because they want people to keep the money they earn how many times Ronald Reagan, Republican hero, raised his/her taxes. No need to inject reality into the conversation.
Conservatism versus Liberalism – An addition to your list: L- Spend most of their time engaged in worthwhile pursuits. C- Spend most of their time writing goofy and meaningless lists.
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Senator, you’re no Franklin Roosevelt: During the 3-1/2 years of World War 2 that started with the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 1941 and ended with the Surrender of Germany and Japan in 1945, “We the People of the U.S.A.” produced the following:
22 aircraft carriers,
8 battleships,
48 cruisers,
349 destroyers,
420 destroyer escorts,
203 submarines,
34 million tons of merchant ships,
100,000 fighter aircraft,
98,000 bombers,
24,000 transport aircraft,
58,000 training aircraft,
93,000 tanks,
257,000 artillery pieces,
105,000 mortars,
3,000,000 machine guns, and
2,500,000 military trucks.
We put 16.1 million men in uniform in the various armed services, invaded Africa, invaded Sicily and Italy, won the battle for the Atlantic, planned and executed D-Day, marched across the Pacific and Europe, developed the atomic bomb, and ultimately conquered Japan and Germany.
It’s worth noting, that during the almost exact amount of time, the Obama Administration couldn’t even build a web site that worked.
I really studied the post on Liberal v Conservative. My conclusion is that I am 99.5% Conservative and that Liberalism is a blight on the Country. I am courious to see what other readers took from the comprehensive listing of CvL Ideals. Also whether or not they thought the differences accurate.
Remember this WHEN YOU DO YOUR TAXES IN APRIL) ! ! ! ! ! !
In case you didn’t notice. Here is what happened on January 1, 2014 :
Top Medicare tax went from 1.45% to 2.35%, an increase of 62 %
Top Income tax bracket went from 35% to 39.6%, an increase of 13 %
Top Income payroll tax went from 37.4% to 52.2%, an increase of 52 %
Capital Gains tax went from 15% to 28% an increase of 87 %
Dividends tax went from 15% to 39.6%, an increase of 164 %
Estate tax went from 0% to 55%, an increase of infinity . . .
Remember this fact: These taxes were all passed with only democrat votes
No republicans voted for these taxes.
These taxes were all passed under the Affordable Care Act, aka OBAMACARE
from the right
dirty harry gunA couple of days ago a crazed gunman ran amok in Austin Texas. He had maps of many downtown buildings and hundreds of rounds of ammo. He was armed with at least two weapons, an AK47 and a .22 cal rifle. He had fired more than 100 rounds in his rampage. Ultimately, an Austin Mounted Police Officer, was in progress of stabling horses, he had the reigns of two horses in one hand. He spotted the shooter who was more than a 100 yards away. The officer, one handed, shot the suspect center mass in the chest from 312 feet away using a S&W M&P .40 cal pistol. The shooting spree ended with the suspect deceased on the ground. That’s shooting. Thank God that a man with a gun was there to stop the killer wannabee.Part 2) Last Friday’s BOLS employment report seemed to be very good news, God knows we need some good news. But it still revealed serious problems in the in our tortured economy.

BOLS reported about 321k new hires during November, that’s good news, we should have been having this hiring rate for at least the last 36 months. Remember that the recession has been over since June 2009.  Even with the 321k new hires, by the end of November, there were only 4000 more people with jobs than there were at the beginning of November. We must note that during October, 683k more persons were employed than during September. Further there was an increase of 115,000 persons in November who became unemployed.  None of that is good news, its rotten news.

The unemployment rate remain unchanged.  Meh!

The labor force participation rate remained at a 36-year low of 62.8 percent in November. That is bad news.

no job8At the end of November there were 92,447,000 people who did not participate in the labor force. These Americans did not have a job and were not actively trying to find one. When President Obama took office, with full Democrat control of Congress, in January 2009, there were 80,529,000 Americans who were not participating in the workforce, which means that since then, 11,918,000 Americans have left the workforce. In October the number of people who had quit looking for work decreased substantially, but in November it increased by 69k.

The unemployment rate for black males and females again increased. Now the u/e rate for blacks is more than twice that of whites. How can that be good news? We have had Democrat governance for 7 years and I cannot recall a single imitative by our black President to remedy that travesty.

Naturally, given the time of year, most of the hiring has been in the retail sector. The Holiday Season is upon us. But last year, more than 10% more persons were hired in November for the retail sector than were hired this year. That is not a good omen. What will happen during January?

Just for the record you can check out all of the foregoing at: Link