Open Thread – Evening Glow
Beautiful glow on the mountains tonight. This picture was taken at about 11:30pm as the sun was setting. The colors looked just as surreal as they do here.
December 18, 2024
Thursday, August 3, 2023
The Quitter Returns! -Monday, March 21, 2022
Putting the goober in gubernatorial -Friday, January 28, 2022
Beautiful glow on the mountains tonight. This picture was taken at about 11:30pm as the sun was setting. The colors looked just as surreal as they do here.
Good news on the coal mining front from Alaska:
http://www.frontiersman.com/articles/2011/07/06/breaking_news/doc4e14ed5f5a120614665801.txt
I just wished that they’d said environmental groups are pleased, not anti-coal groups.
OMG @ 6
I don’t know about what’s her name, but MB is driving me crazy when I see her on our WHO news running around Iowa. They say that she is ahead of Rommey now—here in our State.
The next time you hear someone from the right claiming that the President is destroying the country by raising the debt limit, show them this little gem of a letter. It’s from their idol, Saint Ronnie of Reagan, written to then-Senate Majority Leader, Howard Baker, asking him to support raising the debt ceiling and explaining why it is so critical to the safety and security of our country to do so.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/r/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2011/05/14/National-Politics/Graphics/reagan_letter_0514.pdf
Just found this. No comment on it, really, because I cannot use that sort of language here.
http://tinyurl.com/663aw3l
From the Daily Kos about a Rethuglican Representative from Georgia and what he said on the 4th of July. Unbelievable – as SP might say – “flipping unbelievable.”
I guess he thinks America should only be for the people who believe the same narrow-minded drivel that he espouses. SOO patriotic to compare your fellow citizens to terrorists just because they have a different point of view than you do.
Years ago, politicians would attempt to hide their more radical beliefs but these days, the freakier and more radical right wing the belief, the more proud they are to proclaim it far and wide.
I’ll save you the trouble of commenting. I’d like to take the Cobb out of Cobb County and shove said cobb up the posterior end of a complete jackass. Then duct tape his mouth shut to save him the trouble of a comment.
Wow, that is the most disgusting thing I’ve heard yet. What I don’t understand is their constant rant against the government, but all we see is more government control of our private lives whenever these nitwits get in any political office. So control is OK if they are the ones deciding what is controlled but not if the federal government is in charge. And their aim is to take control of that so they can dismantle anything about it that might benefit someone who is not like they are.
LOL – just read your comment, mike from iowa. My comment was not directed at you but at the article about Broun. If you need any help with your, um, endeavor, I’m sure a lot of us would be willing to help you.
According to Sen. John Kyl.Rethugs have agreed to up to 200 billion dollars in revenue increases to help shrink the deficit. The catch is if there are user fees in place and they are to be raised,Rethugs will allow it. No mention of any new taxes or closing loopholes for the wealthy. The poor and middle-class will have to bear the brunt of balancing the budget while the rich get more tax cuts.Let freedom ring if only Paul Revere were here to ring those bells and shoot those guns and warn the British that we will let them have all the rethugs and tea-bag conscripts they want. As an aside to Irishgirl- Casey Anthony wrote a letter to a friend from prison in 2010 that said she would like to adopt a child from Ireland,accent and all. No.I didn’t make this up.
Hello. Happy belated holiday. Early, early on Sunday morning, the indomitable Miss Suzie called to say she was in great pain. If you know Miss Suzie, my mother, those words just do not exist. Uncomfortable. That word was the descriptive in answer to her surgeon’s question a week before hip replacement. She had called an ambulance, and wanted me to know in case I called…. Ah, dementia. How I hate your guts.
Turns out she was afflicted with sciatica, something we’d never heard of before the very kind (and, good grief, younger than the majority of my children) doctor explained it to us. A whopping shot of steroids in the hip and we were discharged. I was to call the wonderful 911 people when I had Miss Suzie back to her house to help me get her inside. I did, they came, popped a wheelchair out of thin air, and CARRIED her up the garage steps to her kitchen, wheeled her into the bedroom, and tucked her into bed. Told her to rest, suggested that her daughter be listened to when possible, gave me Kleenex and the wheelchair, and departed.
I just got home. I am beat. She is better. We go to her doc’s on Friday. That gives us a bit of time to muscle up to make the trek down the two steps to her car. She doesn’t drive anymore, but loves her car (1985 Taurus, 40K miles), so we keep it to haul her around.
Thing is, she has decided to skip a couple of steps outlined in “The Dementia Handbook for Only Children Who are Becoming Moderately Concerned.” I always knew she was brilliant, but is this really the time to prove it? Skipping is bad in dementia progression. Monday was okay. I spent Sunday night there, leaving an Himself with a house full of company, including a couple of Grandgirlies. Miss Suzie slept about 14 seconds. Steroids had kicked in, and the woman needed to talk.
Anyway, things are getting better, and we are now looking at Assisted Living again. We’ve done the first round – got that out of the way several months ago. This time, I am having to be firm. She is not amused, but I can’t imagine her living on her own much longer at all. She also has Home Care coming at night so I can come home. Good God, that is frigging usury. $30 an hour for someone to stay awake from 6 pm to 6 am.
The object of this not-so-coherent post is to remind you all to check, if you have elderly parents, or even for yourself, which Assisted Living Centers will transition to Nursing Homes with acceptance of Medicaid. It will take every penny of Miss Suzie’s not-inconsiderable savings to pay the monthly fee for the AL. We have a good place close to us that will transition to Medicaid when the need arises.
Just to let you know,I’m not demented yet,but I can bore you to tears with scary tales of sciatica and ungodly pain. I won’t,however,being too much of a coward. I hope your Mother is able to relax and not be plagued by pain. Good luck and best wishes. A kindred spirit from NW by god Ioway.
{{{jimzmum}}}
It’s always difficult when roles are reversed. Keep thinking of the grandgirlies’ giggles and that will help you get through the rougher patches.
My Empathy for what you are going thru,; Mother in law has dementia also; and we’re just begining the process of taking things over- wife is beside herslf with knowing what needs to be done, and yet interfacing with her mon without expressing her frustration. She’ll end up with us soon, but is a bit complicated due to oldest daughter having RSD and living here. We just finished a month vist here and Grandma keeps forgetting to NOT touch daughter’s arm,,Daughter bursts into tears from pain, grandma bursts into tears because she knows but has forgotten,,,,and then it’s repeat scene 30 minutes later cuz Grandma has forgotten again – we literally had to lock daughter’s door to break the cycle. She’s in NM now with son that lives with her. It’s going to be a challenge, as she has ONLY SS for income..but we’ll find a way.. Thnaks for the heads up on the transition stuff…
Stinks to high heaven, doesn’t it?
🙂 Life is a B****H, and then you die 🙂 , in the meantime, we’ll just keep chugging along, enjoying what we can, and dealing with the rest of it the best we can ! 🙂 and try not to whine too much about it … It’s just part of having family,..
Her mom was a big emotional support when oldest was a babe, and we were living out of the hospital for weeks on end ( ulercitive colitus and liver disease – and the darn kid is STILL here 27 yrs later!) She nothing then amd nothing now, but VERY grateful that she GAVE all that she could…. so going to do as much as we can for her now,,, 🙂 even if she’s screaming and fighting the whole time about wanting to be independent… and can’t remember the last time she took a bath ! 🙂 ay, yi, yi ! … If I was a drinking man …… 🙂
ZYX, I absolutely agree with everything you said. Women should NEVER be forced to have a child they do not want. They become the children that are badly abused or killed. Sickening, but true.
My daughter and another writer are writing a fiction book on the Casey Anthony case. It is more “true” fiction than not and is titled “No Reason to Believe.” It should be in the book stores within two months.
Just saying hi. Every so often life throws a stinker at you.
I watched the Anthony case from start to finish. And all I can say is that precious baby did not get justice. I watched a video of her former boyfriend that said the family was disfunctional.
On a lighter note—-here is a video that I should have posted on July 4th. It will lighten our hearts.
Real neat video – especially for the 4th!
Take a look at this site and enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5lbNXNn3CI&feature=email
LOVE it!
There’s something about flashmob videos that always makes me tear up, usually while I’m laughing!
Thanks for sharing… 🙂
Have there been any explosions in Wasilla lately? Just for grins I went to a couple of conservative websites and saw that Michelle Bachmann is gracing the covers of both the National Review and the Weekly Standard. That’s got to be driving ole what’s her name crazier.
You could get up close to some real pretty mountains north of Anchorage heading toward Palmer along that old highway.
And a cheerful reminder from Gin & Tacos, following a horrifying account of the Piper Alpha disaster 23 years ago:
“Thankfully most of us don’t have to work on anything as unavoidably dangerous as an offshore oil platform. That said, this has been your friendly daily reminder: Your employer has your best interests at heart. The free market, not regulation, will protect you. Do not think; always do as you’re told. Remember those three unassailable truths and I don’t see what could go wrong.”
http://www.ginandtacos.com/2011/07/06/your-best-interests/
Pour yourself a cup of something, Bob Cesca has an eloquent one today:
The Republican Spectrum of Stupidity
http://bobcesca.com/blog-archives/2011/07/new-huffington-post-column-2.html
“Progressives and Democrats need to shout the following question into every microphone available: Who is best able to contribute to deficit reduction: the super rich or our embattled public school system? The single most effective antidote to our national decline is education. It stimulates the economy over the long run, it encourages innovation, it resurrects the American dream and the middle class and, most importantly, it encourages informed civic participation. Clearly an array of benefits the Republicans and modern conservatives are merrily against as they undermine education in lieu of tax cuts for Koch Brothers and Donald Trump.
The Republicans are welcome to act like idiots as a means of pandering to dumbstupids. Just leave the rest of us alone. America needs more smarties, and I don’t think we can afford to wait for the right-wing to catch up to speed.”
That was a lovely read. Thanks for posting.
Okay,someone has to do this. The natives are getting really restless about the Casey Anthony verdict. Casey Anthony has proven to be a lousy mother and a poor human specimen. That does not mean she killed her daughter,although I believe she certainly was a party to a crime.Unfortunately,she was never charged with being a lousy mother. The prosecution overcharged in this case(IMHO) and because no cause of death could be determined,had no chance of a guilty verdict of murder. What I think of Casey Anthony and what the juror’s verdict says are diametrically opposed. I grieve for a young life casually discarded.
I wrote about this in the Forum, before the verdict. I don’t have cable TV, so until I got to the boyfriend’s home for the weekend, was unaware of the non-stop coverage of the trial.
It is my opinion that, considering her age and where she lives, Casey Anthony grew up in a cultural milieu that indoctrinated her with “abortion is murder,” even though she was a party girl who should not have become a mother. Young women who are pressured to believe that if one gets pregnant, one must have a child, no matter their fitness for motherhood, have children they’re not fit to care for. For Casey, Kaylee was a burden. She was just at the age when one acquires language, so her ability to talk about her unfit mother was increasing daily. Casey Anthony should not have had a child, she should have had an abortion. That she could not even consider abortion as an option is a reflection of the redneck Xtian culture she was raised in. This tragedy could have, and should have been prevented, with a legal medical procedure. Just my opinion.
Hadn’t really thought about it that way, but you’re spot on, Zyx. And from all appearances, Casey’s mother wasn’t fit to have her (or her brother), either…any woman who isn’t curious enough about her own grandchild –one who lives in the same house/town– to start pumping their offspring for information about the wee one’s whereabouts, is one sorry, sorry piece of work. beth.
What is interesting to me is that Casey wanted to give up her child and her mother (or parents) did not want her to give up the baby. I believe that Casey knew on some level that she was not ready to be a mother. I believe in a moment of clarity she might have seen that she was not ready to put her child first or maybe she just had an inkling that the continued dependence on her parents would be detrimental to her and her child. I think it is extremely selfish that Casey’s parents did not allow their daughter to give up the child when she expressed the desire to do so.
Such a tragedy. I do believe that that the members of that family will be in a living hell for the rest of their lives.
I didn’t keep up on the trial much as I don’t have cable and grew tired of the constant coverage long before the trial. I think these incidents are red flags of trouble and speak of our society’s failings as a whole more than a single mother’s lousy parenting. Rather than being mad or upset with this particular verdict, what can we do to help prevent the death of innocent children in the future?
My answer, Merry, is “Not much”. I was a child protection worker for too long to be shocked by this case. Mothers and fathers have killed, or found some way to get rid of, their children since our species began. There are many people who never should have had kids, and perhaps better access to birth control and abortion would help. But there’s also a pervasive belief that having babies will make you happy, or fulfill you, or help you prove you’re an adult, or whatever. I’m sure Ms. Anthony felt that having a baby would mean she “had someone to love her.” And I’m sure the grandmother gave her full encouragement, getting some kind of thrill for finally becoming a grandma. Sadly, many women define themselves solely by their reproductive history, as if being a mother or grandmother is the height of human acheivement.
I’d like to think that maybe this case could help us as a society realize that not everyone is cut out to be a parent, and that not everyone should do it. It’d be great to be at a point where we encourage young women to hold off on parenthood till they finish growing up. But I’m afraid we won’t learn these lessons from this trial. People will complain about how justice was not done, and in two weeks, they’ll be off to something else. And sadly, this will happen again.
We have what we call a justice system, but please explain to me if it is the best system, not the best system that money can buy (think Strauss-Kahn), why is it that accused murder is not required to testify? I agree that they could be entrapped by the prosecution, but why couldn’t there be some mechanism where they would have to answer a few questions perhaps asked by the judge.
All too often the strategy is to avoid having the accused testify at all vosts.
I do believe the 5th Amendment to the Constitution answers your first question.
“No person shall……be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself…”. We have a good justice system, not perfect. Humans are not perfect and therefore, we cannot expect perfection in any system that requires humans.
The prosecution did not prove it’s case. Sadly, because my take on this is that she either did kill the baby or at least helped cover it up. On one jury I was on, we were all agreed that the defendant probably did do the crime, but the prosecution did not prove the case. Therefore we must acquit, which we did. Made me and at least half of the rest of the jurors sick to our stomachs, but it was what we had to do. That is the system and having been on several juries, it’s the system I’d want if I were ever accused of a crime.
Much as we may not like it, I do believe justice was done in this case. Ms. Anthony had a trial by jury, sat before a jury of her peers, and had adequate defense. As Mike pointed out earlier, the prosecution may have over-reached, and ultimately could not prove what was alleged beyond a reasonable doubt. If nothing else, we learned more about Ms. Anthony’s character, and she will receive much more scrutiny for the rest of her life. We may not always like the results of our trial system, but it’s the best we have. Though I don’t believe in a conventional “god”, I do believe that the universe has its own laws of cause and effect. Karma, or the Fates, or the Hand of the Almighty, however people may define it, will catch up to Ms. Anthony eventually, as it will with all of us. I believe it was a Greek philosopher who wrote “The mills of the gods grind slowly, but they grind exceptionally fine.”
Carol:
You make good points, but I’m not sure that compelling the accused to answer a few questions necessarily would violate the 5th as long as that person could take the 5th on any given question. In a sense the defense team otherwise is acting as the defendant’s voice.
Carol – I might be as innocent as the day is long, but if I get up on the stand and my voice starts to shake from nervousness, or if I mispronounce a word, or if I use “ain’t” a lot, or if I sweat a lot when people focus their attention on me, or, or, or…there are many reasons why a defendant might not want to take the stand. Can you imagine if you’re sitting on the jury and you have a defendant with a voice as unmodulated and as grating as, say, $Ps? Would your inclination be to pay attention to what they are saying or to tune them out with prejudice? beth.
ooops – that response was for London Bridges…not Carol. Although Carol is certainly welcomed to read it and…
(See what you started, here, Mike from Iowa? You old sweetie, you!) beth.
To London Bridges-I don’t think you can start to dissemble the fifth amendment-it either means what it says as written,or it is worthless as a protection from an over-reaching government. Some parties in this country are trying to strip Miranda rights from defendants to make prosecution easier.A person has the right to remain silent,but some want law enforcement to be able to ask questions and make the defendant specifically say they wish to remain silent. In my opinion,if you have to ask for your rights,it can and will be seen as a person giving up their right to remain silent. That is a genie that needs to remain locked up. As for Nancy Grace,I gave up listening to her way back when. As a former prosecutor,she doesn’t sound like a very knowledgeable lawyer on tv.
Even more than the 5th ammendment is that the accused is presumed innocent until the prosecution proves he/she is guilty. So then it really isn’t in the best interest of a person who is accused to take the stand. As someone pointed out, if he/she is not a good speaker or good at fielding questions, the jury could make a decision on how much they like or dislike the person accused.
I think it’s going to be very hard for Casey Anthony to have any sort of normal life unless she changes her name and appearance and moves far away from Florida. I don’t live close, but I think I would even recognize her and at the very least, I consider her to be one of the worst mothers ever and a liar. Even worse is her complete disregard for her child, if she really didn’t have anything to do with the child’s death. What kind of mother acts like that.
My daughter, at age 3, went missing once when we were in a store. I nearly had a stroke until I found her. It was just a few minutes before I found her hiding in the clothes racks and she didn’t answer when I called. But there is no way I would have left without finding her or alerting the authorities and I certainly wouldn’t have carried on like nothing was wrong for a month.
It’s unfortunate that there isn’t some sort of test out there for would-be parents to have to pass, but there just isn’t. Being a parent is defintely a learn-as-you-go job and some learn faster and better than others. I don’t think that some care and that seems to be the case with Ms. Anthony.
But, really what would it look like if we had to pass a test before becoming parents? Some of the best parents I’ve seen didn’t seem particularly qualified and some who seemed like they’d be great turn out to be mediocre or not at all good. And what kind of country would we live in if we had that sort of test. I wouldn’t want to live there. Societies that have tried that sort of control, no matter what the reason, haven’t fared well in history.
The jury came back with the verdict they thought was right, even if the rest of us disagree. There is someone who knows what happened to Kaylee but the rest of us might never know. If Casey was guilty of her death or of covering it up, she won’t serve time in jail, but I do believe that she will answer for it in the end.
What I found disturbing was the obsession that some had in following the case, showing up to be in the court room or traveling across the country or from Europe. Who does that? And I heard at least one woman who was very upset by the verdict nearly threatening Anthony’s life. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that the woman claims to be a Christian from the things that she said. That’s almost as disturbing as the thought that horrible mother Casey Anthony is now free to go out and possibly have another child. But that’s not our choice either.
We would do much better to educate young women about birth control so they don’t get pregnant when they don’t want to or for the wrong reasons (thinking that a baby will fix what is wrong with their lives).
Mike – I sort of see parallels between what Nancy Grace did with the case and with what many (if not all) the Baggers/GOP-extremers do with politics. Nancy glommed on to the story, created her narrative, and didn’t back down. She was bound and determined Casey murdered the child, and that was that. She created different scenarios on how it happened, and began to believe those creations were, in fact, what had actually happened. No matter that there was *no* evidence that *any* of the scenarios were the case, it was what Nancy had decided; she tried and convicted Casey of the crime. Nightly.
Here’s something of how it’d go down with Nancy Grace:
““““““““““““““““`
NG: Hello, caller, what do you have to say?
Caller #1: Oh, Nancy, your babies are so beautiful!
NG: (in a tear-filled voice) Thank you, dear; Lucy Elizabeth and John David are growing so big, so fast! They make me so proud to be their mother. Now what’s your question?
Caller #1: Could Casey have killed her daughter before she went to the club – you know, that night where she’s dancing with those women and wearing the blue top?
NG: Good question! Let’s ask our psychology expert, Tanya Smythe-Jones…Tanya has her degree in psychology from Upper Podunk U. So what do you think, Tanya, could Tot Mom have killed her precious child before she wore that blue top?
TS-J: It’s entirely possible…
NG: Thanks for that expert opinion, Tanya. We have another caller — go ahead, dear…
Caller #2: I love your show, Nancy! I never miss it! You are doing so much to uncover the truth about this horrible murder!
NG: (in a verklempt voice) Thank you, dear… (The pulling herself together) Did you have a question?
Caller #2: When did Casey buy the duct tape?
NG: Excellent question. Let’s ask our Consumer Expert, George Landos. George, since it’s been established, and verified by experts!, that Casey killed her child before she went out dancing with her girlfriends, when did she buy the duct tape?
GL: There’s no record of her having bought it any time near her daughter’s disappearance – it might have already been at her house.
NG: Well, there you have it. Tot Mom murdered her daughter just before she went dancing and it was a was premeditated murder — she already had the duct tape on hand so she could use it immediately. Any Court of Law and common sense will tell you she had planned to murder her daughter for a long, long time.
Tune in tomorrow when my guests will be Francis Franklin, a swimming pool safety specialist, and Jonas Ricks, our resident expert on pole danging, alcohol, and girls kissing girls.
[[Notice how the “it’s entirely possible” about the timeline in regards a blue top became ‘fact’ and how there not being a specific time of duct tape purchase made Casey’s actions, “pre-meditated’? NG did that e.v.e.r.y … s.i.n.g.l.e … n.i.g.h.t! Don’t believe me? Tune her in and watch her spin her ‘magic’ on the easily-duped — it’s fascinating.]]
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Death panels; trickle-down economy; LSM ‘picks on’ strong, conservative women [because the left is afraid of strong conservative women]; the rage against big government is a grassroot movement; etc. ad nauseum — the Baggers/GOP-extremers create these scenarios and, even when presented with overwhelming evidence to the contrary, keep right on a’pumping out the p00p. Constantly.
Why do I get the feeling that those hundreds and hundreds of thousands of viewers who hung/hang on Nancy Grace’s every word (including her tweets and Fb) also believe every single word coming from the Baggers/GOP-extremers…and, with their being unable (or unwilling) to follow what is *Actually* being said/done, why do I get the feeling they are all totally content being played like right, royal, fool fiddles. beth.
Beth-I is just a born troublemaker. Responses on here are definitely more civil than on Yahoo. Most everyone on here takes time to reason stuff out. There is hope for some of America. I am eternally grateful to you all.
Nancy Grace and Rita Skeeter have a lot in common. A little bit of truth is taken a long way to make a sensational story, and then the truth doesn’t matter anymore.
When the judge hands out her sentence, I hope he stipulates that she is not permitted to make ONE THIN DIME on books, magazine articles, movies, etc. off of this story. It’s been done in other cases. It definitely needs to be done in this one.
If the person who wrote America,the Beautiful used this photo for his/her inspiration,he/she would have really %$^&ed up the lyrics. Just saying. For one who has never seen a real mountain,purple majesty notwithstandig, seeing Alaska’s beauty and bounty through your eyes is a humbling experience’
In the mountainous area where I live, there used to be a 10 mile running race called the “Purple Valley Classic.” Every once in a while, but not often, at sunset, the hills are drop dead gorgeous with a purple tinge to them.
When I drove from Kansas to Lake Tahoe, once I was past the Rockies, the mountains looked more purple than anything else. It was only when they were in the distance. Perhaps that’s what the lyric writer saw that prompted those particular lyrics.
The lady who wrote the poem was referring to Pike’s Peak,as she rode a train through Colorado. Her name was or is Katherine something Bates. That is it in a nutshell. The whole story was interesting.