my own drum

We are what we eat. And for this following story, that truth may be more than some readers can stomach. You have been warned.

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Vice-President Cheney, speaking in Australia, had this to say.

"The only option for our security and survival is to go on the offensive -- face the threat directly, patiently and systematically until the enemy is destroyed."

I ask you, do you really believe that patience will win this war he co-sponsored. We can't fight them systematically either. We are in their backyard. It was the same way when the colonists fought the British in early American history. President Bush probably never read that part in his history book.

If we are going to plan on patience and systematically defeating our enemy, (excuse me, their enemy), then we need to plan on growing at least two generations of soldiers in Iraq. Just fence off Baghdad and turn it into a giant American military base, and start growing soldiers. Eventually, you might win. But I really doubt it.

Bring Our Troops Home!Bring Our Troops Home!

News reports are popping up everywhere regarding the re-emergence and apparently unexpected expansion of Al Qaeda’s operations. It seems that while President Bush was telling us that Osama was busy hiding in a cave somewhere being ineffective as a leader, Osama was quietly and efficiently amassing an army for his Jihad. And when I said army, I meant that. Troops are being recruited and sent to Africa for training and indoctrination in the ways of Jihad, and then being dispatched literally throughout the world. Our President may have once again underestimated the situation. Frankly, I think he bit off more than he could chew to begin with.

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This evening I added a new category to my blog, Gathering.

I'm going to use this message as a repository of good Rainbow video and photo galleries that I run across. Mostly these will be listed as links, so check back to see if what's been updated. Better yet, add this post to your RSS feed and you'll always have a fresh source of Gathering images and videos. Of course, if you know of something that I should add here then please leave a comment.

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Winter conditions seem to bring out something in people. Studies have indicated that a lack of light, being snowed in and other conditions are not helpful. And so it is with this in mind that I observed the following.

There is a world record for snow angels. These angels must all appear simultaneously (or thereabouts) and, to become a record they must be verified. As of this writing the holder of this record is Michigan, although according to recent news reports the old record may have just been shattered. Here's a brief history of the snow angel world record.

The snow angel category in the Guinness Book of Records was created in Bismarck in 2002 when 1,791 people flapped their arms and legs in the snow on the state Capitol grounds to create angel imprints. Students at Michigan Technological University in Houghton topped that mark about a year ago with 3,784 snow angels.

I hear you asking, what does New York have to do with any of this? Read more to discover the startling details.

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Place: New Orleans
Time: February 2007

Mardi Gras is underway in the city that was New Orleans. If you want to skip through all the rest of this, I found a slide show of some of this years events including Satyricon, Krewe of Cork, Barkus and Shangri-LA. The link is at the end of this article.

Mardi Gras isn't what has drawn me to New Orleans, however. What has drawn my attention is the general tone of the mainstream media, where good news is still rare in the ongoing tragedy that is New Orleans. Today I read a New York Times article about one young couple who had decided to pack up and move, this after returning from their Katrina evacuation. The young husband said that he bought his first house in November, and his first gun in December. Crime is very much a serious problem in the city, and the police department still has more than a few wrinkles to iron out. Add that on top of the devastation, from Katrina and again from a recent round of tornado strikes. Add that on top of high rents, soaring insurance premiums, and what is perceived by many a lack of leadership ability, money and progress.

Poppy Z. Brite, a New Orleans novelist, wrote: "This isn’t an easy place to be right now..."

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An announcement from Coast Guard Commandant, Adm. Thad Allen, reveals a new plan to restructure the manangement of the Coast Guard and, get this, expand its surveillance efforts along the nation’s coasts. Coastal surveillance is their job, why aren't they already expanded? The expansion was mandated by Homeland Security back in 2001. Full Ahead Stop! - it was interrupted by the last Coast Guard plan, Deepwater.

The proposed plan is far reaching, primarily affecting how the Coast Guards manages the business of guarding our coasts. Part of the plan will call to equip commercial and some pleasure boats with automated beacons. There's a boondoggle waiting to happen. I've got a question. How do you spot a small boat entering the harbor when your radar screen is full of beaconing dots?

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Another Valentine's Day spent alone. I'm not complaining because it is the state of my life. It's been like that for me since I was old enough to know that girls were different. There have been a few good Valentine's Days, when I had someone in my life to share the good vibes and chocolate with. One of them was even a keeper, but here we are...

No, I'm not complaining. But I'm also not buying chocolate and cards for anyone either. And, of course, I expect none of the same. But I did get a letter today, from a girl! And it made me very happy.

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I almost need a Day-Timer to keep up with the I. Lewis Libby perjury and obstruction trial. So far these facts are known. I. Lewis Libby Jr. is charged with perjury and trying to obstruct an investigation into who leaked the name of C.I.A. officer Valerie Wilson.

Today his defense paraded a Who's Who of reporters and journalists across the stand, each in turn faithfully stating that no mention of Ms. Plame was ever made to them by Scooter. How can I say this.. So What! He didn't tell me either. This is a weak line of defense. Weak. These guys need to go find O.J.'s other glove, or something!

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I ran across something totally useless on Technorati's new WTF, which is an acronym for Where's The Fire... huh? wtf. Anyway, WTF is all about community building, and the premise is to have fun. Blogging with hemorrhoids is never fun. I'm still trying to figure out this WTF, and what it takes to be seen - to rise to the top. As far as I can tell its all about having enough friends to post a blurb on your WTF so it can be pushed to the top. More blurbs, higher visibility. The interface makes it difficult to search the WTF's, basically you need to scroll through a page of listings at a time until something strikes your fancy. I'm done after about two pages, who knows what I missed. There are options to sort the list, by Topic, number of blurbs or date. I'm not sure what makes up the Hottest WTF's, but I assume its about the number of attached blurbs and the total of votes for all of those blurbs. I haven't seen any real purpose other than to try to promote yourself or your cause. The topics that I see just aren't that hot button enough for me to ask Where's the Fire? I added a few of my own WTF's just to see what would happen to them. The results have confirmed what I already knew, I have no friends, and quite possibly no writing skills.

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I gotta tell you family, this is a poor choice for a National Rainbow Gathering. There is a good reason that we gather in forests and meadows of the mountains in this country, it's July and it's hot. If you have never spent a summer in the south central US then you are in for a surprise. God forbid that you should actually get anywhere near the Gulf of Mexico.

Please don't misunderstand my motive for speaking my voice at this late date. I know I can't affect the consensus decision, and I'm not trying to. I grew up in the south and there are many beautiful places in that part of the country. Believe me when I say its going to be HOT. And hot takes on more than one perspective, as I'll explain.

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Remember the Borg? An alien species who assimilated by pumping nanoprobes into the circulatory system of their hapless victims, who then evolved into bio-mechanical beings incapable of individual thought. Well, they're still here.

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This morning I was enjoying my daily half-hour of television news. There it was on my screen, the ultimate bathroom fixture, the Pimped Out John. ( I finally got off my lazy butt and found a picture for you. You can bet if I had been sitting on this thing, you would still be waiting to see it! )

Roto-Rooter is giving away this beautiful home-entertainment toilet to some lucky pooper in honor of Thomas Crapper Day. This isn't your grandpas outhouse, it has everything. This one is for you, the modern man or woman on the move. Check out this list of luxury features for this very luxurious commode.

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What do you think? Leave us a thought.

work sucks viral campaign

If you have followed our national shrub, you will no doubt be aware of his catch-phrase mentality. I think it's a deeper thing than that for him, but what do I know..

Here's are some phrases you may recall, "Mission Accomplished", "Stay the Course", "Axis of Evil". Well, right on cue we have a new catch phrase from the Oval Office. "Can't work together". I'm trying to be careful in my analysis of this new phrase. So far I've have only heard it used in the context of "why can't we work together", or "..see if we can't work together" But pay close attention, and you will always find those three words worked into a sentence. There is no mistake, he is telling everyone that he has no intention of working together with anyone who opposes his plan.. whatever that may be.

Listen closely.

There sure is a lot of talk in the air - denials of an invasion or an attack on Iranian soil. It's beginning to sound like Iraq again. You can bet your last dollar that the planning is going on in the Oval Office. Our national shrub would probably like nothing more that to leave a HUGE mess for the Democrat that is most likely to follow him in the office. You don't seriously believe another Republican will be elected, do you? Not this time, buddy, not this time.

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I've read last weeks National Intelligence Estimate, the one where all 16 intelligence agencies unanimously agree that the situation in Iraq was dismal and that our foreign policy there is doomed to failure without specific and clear action, and even then it could fail.

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Most of my friends call me a fool for doing what I do. For the last 5 years I have been a friend to a small family business, providing them with some valuable computer and technology services. As a friend I've provided this work for a mere token of its real value. We are talking far less than a minimum living wage. In fact, without support from the family I could not provide these services. They provide electricity for my motorhome so I can stay warm in the winter. They provide meals, sometimes. And so I figure it's a good trade for both of us, I don't have any bills to pay and they get pretty good service.

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