Well, I would have written sooner but I couldn’t stop laughing long enough to type more than a sentence or two. Oh my goodness but did any of you see the incident with the Iraqi journalist, Muntathar al Zaidi, throwing his shoes at Georgie Boy? I gotta believe there are millions of us who have wanted to do that very same thing. It’s too bad Zaidi didn’t hit his intended target because he just might have knocked some sense into that thick Bush skull. Not to mention the lucrative Nike contract that surely would have followed.
Eventually I did stop laughing, however, because after the initial reaction wore off, I started paying attention to the gravity of the situation. In truth, it is not funny at all. Offering someone the “sole of your shoe” is considered a grave insult in the Arab world.
But even more sobering is what Zaidi said as he threw the shoes: “This is a farewell kiss, you dog. This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq.” And after he was knocked to the ground he continued saying, “Killer of Iraqis, killer of children.”
OK. I am not thinking it is all that funny anymore. How about you?
But the way Bush reacted is probably the best example of why our 43rd President should be run out of town on a rail. After the shoe incident, Bush tried to laugh it all off by saying, “It didn’t bother me, and if you want the facts it was a size 10 shoe he threw at me.”
Well it should bother him, at least a little bit. He is indeed responsible for thousands of widows and orphans. His orders to war did indeed result in the deaths of children. Now look. I understand that war is hell and unintended casualties are going to happen no matter how hard we try to avoid them. But this isn’t the first time Bush has displayed an apparent “carefree” attitude towards his presidency.
Three months after the World Trade Center went down, Bush was quoted as saying, “It’s been a fabulous year for Laura and me.” And in a more recent interview last month, he summed up his entire presidency as “a fabulous experience”.
Fabulous? Really? Not so much for the rest of us.
Maybe it’s just me, but when you are President during war time, you probably shouldn’t act like you are enjoying it quite so much. Maybe more time pondering the consequences of your actions and less time feeling fabulous…
Folks, let me apologize in advance because I feel a big rant coming on. I can’t contain myself any longer. This moron of a soon to be past-President is a disgrace and a stain on the reputation of the United States of America. No that’s not good enough yet. I’m feeling like one of those Dixie Chicks and I think I need to say some more. George Bush is an asshole and a real son of a bitch. And yes, I did meet Barbara Bush once and I am not taking that statement back.
I am making a request of future generations: The next time a village loses its idiot, please don’t elect him or her President. Thank you.
There, I feel a better… but only slightly.
My apologies to all you good people out there who stopped by to read what I have to say. You probably deserved better than that last little rant. But I am glad you stopped by and I do hope you will again. I mean it. Really.
Amen Greytdog and Alaska Pi!! You two are great Americans, thoughtful and intelligent and know what the heck is going on. No robotic neo-con bus supporter can stand a chance against you! It’s so funny how nut cases like Nunya swallow all of Bush’s lies and go along with all his failed policies and then accuse OTHERS of drinking the Kool Aid. Quite silly. But only goes to show what I’ve suspected all along. Anyone who still supports Bush after all this is crazy and/or mentally deficient in some way.
By: HoneyJoRumples on January 18, 2009
at 6:56 PM
Nunya said-
“If any of you had any idea of the total picture, you would shut you mouths and thank your lucky stars that we have been safe since 2001. ”
———————
Hon- Greytdog is kinder than I am.
If you mean by a total-picture the narrow fear-based cowering-in-the-corner our outgoing President and his cronies have hoped to put and keep us in , the good and great work your father and mine did in WWII becomes a waste. They fought for a broader cause.
If you feel safe-since-2001 because all the blood shed has been off American soil ,you have missed the importance of the loss of respect we have suffered all across the globe and the anger we have fired up towards us- worldwide. Being alive within our shores does not equate as safety…
Respect for the Office ( the work and duty of…) of the President resounds throughout this blog .Read carefully here before you shoot your mouth off again…
Specific holders of that Office have met all expectations we can humanly hold of another human. Mr Bush has not. He has debased the Office and as such commands no respect as a holder of that Office.
My father struggled mightily with the notion that our governmant and, particularly, the President could lie to us – as the years in Viet Nam and Cambodia unfolded.
He is , to this day, the ONLY person I know who publicly announced his own shame for voting for Mr Nixon.
My dad is an everyday hero – he has worked hard all his life to learn and grow and never swept unpleasant facts under the rug… he has always made himself put that which hurt or disgusted him on on the “to-be-repaired” shelf of his heart. He gets round to facing more “total” pictures than most folks ever do…
He’s frail and cranky sometimes now but I hear that old and clear voice of his everytime he gets off on the damage Mr Bush has done to America and Americans…
Dad lost his blind patriotism years and years ago…
What supplanted it is a deep, rich love and appreciation of what the best we can be is…
It is NOT Mr Bush’s phony and dangerous Bush Doctrine!
By: Alaska Pi Δ on January 1, 2009
at 11:24 PM
Nunya
Thank you for coming and playing. You misunderstand something about the comments made here – WE respect the office the President of the United States. We abhor the fact that George W Bush DOES NOT respect the Office which he holds nor does he respect this great nation, the citizens thereof, or have any regard for the place of respect this country once held throughout the world. For the last 8 years, we have watched with disbelief, dismay, and disgust as the Bush Administration, and his embedded cronies (have you ever heard of “burrowing”? – it’s when nonqualified political appointees are given lifelong jobs in our government – appointees with no interest in, understanding of, or belief in what makes this a great country) have eviscerated the Constitution of the United States (a most important document by the way – it’s the LAW of the Land – the country your father valiantly defended in WWII), used terrorist tactics (not all terrorist activity is bombing or military attacks – there is such a thing called mental terrorism – it’s the ongoing psychological warfare of this administration) against its own citizens – illegal and warrantless wiretapping, blatant disregard of civil rights, the use and acceptance of torture, loss of habeus corpus, and so on. (try reading a book on Constitutional Law – you’ll be amazed at what this Bush Administration did to destroy our Constitution). And speaking of 2001, please don’t gloss over the fact that the Clinton administration briefed the Bushies including a memo that read “Bin Laden to Attack US” and the Bushies ignored it completely. This man and his administration did not make this country safer – he just sent over 4000 easy targets to Afghanistan and Iraq. Don’t agree? Then go read Joe Galloway – about whom it has been written:General H. Norman Schwarzkopf has called Joseph L. Galloway, a military columnist for McClatchy Newspapers, “The finest combat correspondent of our generation — a soldier’s reporter and a soldier’s friend.” (ever hear of the boy “We Were Soldiers Once.. . and Young” – he co-wrote that) Joe’s commentaries on the squandering of lives and resources by this Bush Administration is nothing less than an indictment of the thoughtless and blind patriotism that you so proudly display. Go get educated on the real values this country stands for – then come back and we’ll talk.
By: Greytdog Δ on January 1, 2009
at 9:58 PM
My father was a WWII vet and though we disagreed from time to time on political issues, he taught me one thing – to respect the President of this great country. I just wonder how many of you really have facts and research to back your comments. Or did you simply listen to the main stream media and drink the kool-aid. If any of you had any idea of the total picture, you would shut you mouths and thank your lucky stars that we have been safe since 2001. The next 4 years will be very interesting as his holiness gives away our country and your freedom. Hang on to your butts – it might just be all you have left when he and his cronies are done. Good luck and shame on all of you!
By: Nunya on January 1, 2009
at 9:33 PM
“I understand that war is hell and unintended casualties are going to happen no matter how hard we try to avoid them. But this isn’t the first time Bush has displayed an apparent “carefree” attitude towards his presidency”
You will never understand war is hell till you experience it.
This dog /mongrel / muslim puke blames President Bush for the deaths of women and children but turns his face away in the name of a cowardly god to the thousands of murders every year in its name.
They blow up innocent people thinking they go to heaven and screw 70 virgins, wow that’s some reason isnt’t it? Moral too right? I mean what other reason is their to live or die but sex right? And you think they have the right to disgrace your president which has put an end to 99% of the killings in that country. Just where are your values? Should we just sit on our laurels and let the genocide continue ? People blame Bush for everything even the weather! When was the last time you prayed to our God to give strength and wisdom to our president? Never? Nah its too easy to let him fall down then we christians can kick him and spit on him and when no one is looking take a giant shit on him too.
Grow up! you bleed for the enemy
and curse your own. Shame be on you.
By: Dono on December 30, 2008
at 1:37 PM
Amen sister, you said it best! This is the best blog post I have read.
By: Martha on December 29, 2008
at 6:21 PM
Scientists believe they have isolated the cause of Christianity.
The Christian Gene
Δ
By: Whirled Peas Δ on December 26, 2008
at 11:07 AM
Troutay:
You are right.
After mentioning our parish troubles, I made the mistake of searching the Strib news site for community comments on them. I was sure I’d find salve for my soul, and found only salt for my wounds.
Must remember that What’s-His-Name & Co. are narrow-minded pharisees. And nut jobs. Thanks for the reminder. It helped me lower my blood pressure.
By: Δ Tine on December 22, 2008
at 10:19 PM
Greytdog:
In my book, the word “catholic” still means “universal.” We’re the original Big Tent. And you are welcome in it — you and your doggies and your bleeding heart AND the rabble you’ve roused.
By: Δ Tine on December 22, 2008
at 10:15 PM
Welllll, actually I’m not Catholic – considering BOTH parents were ordained ministers. But being raised overseas, the best schools were the Catholic or Anglican schools. So elementary/middle school was Catholic, first three years of HS were Anglican, senior year Catholic. (I know both styles of the Nicene Creed) – then off to a church-affiliated private liberal arts college where 99% of the faculty knew my folks and family (talk about pressure – still surprised I wasn’t accidentally ordained) thus dooming me to a life as an unchurched, left-progressive, bleeding heart, rabble rouser (and canine physical therapist). I can discourse on Descartes while rehabbing doggies with dysplasia. bwahahaha.
By: Greytdog Δ on December 22, 2008
at 6:51 PM
My undergraduate degree is from DePaul U. I was raised Catholic by a spiritual rebel and a heirarchical belieiver. I no longer consider myself spiritually a Catholic, just culturally.
One thing both the High school I attended for 2 yearsand as well as DePaul did well was treating religions as a social and historical subject open to rational study. I learned to respect not only christianity, but other religions as well.
By: jackie on December 22, 2008
at 6:25 PM
Tine:
You are actually asking “why” about a priest?
A male priest?
Nuff said. He is a nut job.
By: troutay on December 22, 2008
at 1:07 PM
Troutay: Thanks for the vote of confidence. The community is trying to hold itself together and continue its work in a new location, but that stick of dynamite did some damage. A lot of folks are spiritually homeless now; that big old church is nearly empty on Sundays; and the human services programs have suffered.
It makes one wonder what the h*ll What’s-His-Name was hoping to accomplish besides a show of power. I fear he will have to answer for it someday…in this life or the next.
As for the snow…I don’t mind it, since I telecommute. My 2 little kids love it too. But I do feel for all the folks who have to brave the elements. It sure is North-Pole-ish around here right now!
By: Δ Tine on December 22, 2008
at 11:14 AM
Tine:
I know what and who you mean. “Naughty” parrish indeed! Good for you guys!
35W Southbound was a disaster this a.m. I think I was crawling at 5 miles an hour.
And Tine? We are supposed to get more snow!!!
By: troutay on December 22, 2008
at 10:54 AM
Troutay: A couple of days ago you asked, “How many old catholics post here anyway? Greydog,
Pi, me, charles, who else??”
Me. (*raises hand*) I don’t comment as often as the rest of you, but I’m here every day, reading and learning. 8 years of Catholic gradeschool, right here in MN, + 4 years of Catholic university. The latter was at Notre Dame, the only Catholic school I know of that takes the Catholic tradition of intellectual freedom seriously. My time there turned me into the bleeding-heart hippie-Catholic liberal-democrat I am today. I’m still a card-carrying member of a “naughty” local parish under which Bishop What’s-His-Name just exploded a stick of dynamite.
Yes, black ice! It’s treacherous. I nearly spun out on Crosstown yesterday morning.
Keep safe and warm, all!
By: Δ Tine on December 22, 2008
at 10:39 AM
Elsie:
Whats a “washer tournament”?
We do alot of that here, except that it is always during the winter. Ice fishing contests are popular.
By: troutay on December 22, 2008
at 10:21 AM
Troutay,
Texans honor their mosquitoes with a festival every year in the town of Clute, TX. In 2009, the “Great Texas Mosquito Festival” will be held on July 23-25. It features a carnival, cook-off, arts & crafts, contests, food vendors, Texas country music concerts, senior bingo, dodge ball tournament, horseshoe tournament, washer tournament, exhibits, local entertainment, Radio Disney entertainment and much more. http://www.mosquitofestival.com
That’s gettin’ kinda ridiculous, but it just goes to show that Texans will use just about any kind of excuse to have a good time.
By: Elsie on December 22, 2008
at 10:19 AM
Jean:
Mosquitos up here have been known to carry whole children off in one fell swoop.
We have special Mosquito units that carry swatters like police do nightsticks. And yes, some have West “Vile” Virus.
By: troutay on December 22, 2008
at 9:44 AM
I give up…. Jean. Just remember that to turn OFF the tagging of the text, use the same letter, preceded by a backslash.
/b within angle brackets
By: Maven Δ on December 22, 2008
at 9:04 AM
Jean, thanks for the info on Mohammed. I truly wish that IF religion is ever to be taught in the schools, our students will study ALL the major religions of the world, not just the Bible. Texas allows study of the Bible upon request of a certain number of high school students. Overall, I enthusiastically support separation of church and state.
Troutay–glad you are safe. Bad news for Houston is that it usually takes my husband an hour to get to work just because of traffic itself. But the streets are rarely frozen, much less covered in black ice.
So, let’s see….beautiful Minnesota and winter blizzards? Or, swampy humid Houston in the summer, mild winters, and year-round traffic issues?!
I used to think that our Texas mosquitoes were something special until I was tormented by Indiana mosquitoes up in Goshen, IN. Truly, the Land o’Goshen squeeters are something to behold!
By: Elsie on December 22, 2008
at 9:03 AM
third time’s a charm?
* text text text *
(Omitting the asterisks and spaces)
By: Maven Δ on December 22, 2008
at 9:00 AM
trying again here Jean….. (It read my tags):
Text text text text
(Omit the spaces though.)
By: Maven Δ on December 22, 2008
at 8:59 AM
Jean:
Tags surrounding text must have a beginning and an ending. So, if you start text as bold, you *turn off* the bold at a point. Like this:
This would be bold text.
The turn OFF tag is the same as the turn on, but with a backslash ( / ).
Hope this helps. You are now learning basic hyptertext mark-up language (HTML)!
Δ Maven
By: Maven Δ on December 22, 2008
at 8:57 AM
I envy you your weather Greydog and TampaBill.
It took over an hour to get to work. 10 accidents on 3 major roads. Black ice is evil.
By: troutay on December 22, 2008
at 7:33 AM
I think your comment about Bush was mean spirited and callous. More to the point – you could not have been more correct.
By: TampaBill on December 22, 2008
at 7:02 AM
Jean- Thanks for the history. I enjoyed the typeface too even though it was not the way you wish. Aloha back to you… Ann
By: AnnΔ on December 22, 2008
at 6:43 AM
Morning fellow wedgies! To those in the frozen lands up North and West, my warmest greetings to y’all. here in balmy FL, we are being warned of a cold wave heading this way. . .temps are expected to dip into the high 40s for one night before shooting back up into the 80s for Christmas Day. And Alaska Pi, the weatherman here told us to bundle up in light jackets for Christmas Eve cuz the temps may get as low as 70 that night. bwahahaha. What a jerk. Most folks will be breaking out their turtlenecks and longjohns for those temps. I do miss that crisp, cold air of winter though – despite having lived in this semi-tropical land of Mickey for over a decade, I miss my change of seasons. Here we have three – Flu, Mosquito, Hurricane. People tell me that FL gets winter too – but I just don’t think one week of weather in the 60s counts as a season. Take care everyone! Be safe out there if you have to drive ~ stay warm!
By: Greytdog Δ on December 22, 2008
at 6:35 AM
Minnesota: home of the second tundra and the frozen chosen.
Its cold outside but baby, I’m having a tropical heat wave. Yeah, getting older does have some advantages, especially this time of year.
I do not want to go outside though. But I have to start the car and its a work day after all.
Good morning to you all. Stay warm, drive safely, and watch out for those crazies on the freeways.
Dress warm, bring your cell phone, and don’t grip the steering wheel too hard or you will stick that way.
By: troutay on December 22, 2008
at 5:09 AM
Dear Whirled Peas,
I checked out the link you gave me for italics and bold and tried it. As you can see, it only worked for me in turning ON the italics, and then it wouldn’t turn OFF! Same with bold.
Ah well, back to the drawing board. Like me, this computer stuff is a work in progress.
Thank you all the same.
Aloha1
Jeam
By: Jean on December 22, 2008
at 1:05 AM
Dear Helen and Margaret,
Gee, all this crowd here is keeping you so busy baking pies and cakes, brewing tea and coffee, that perhaps you haven’t had time to post! (Like me with my family, maybe. But I need to take a break from time to time to get off my feet!) We are all grown-ups here. What say we bring our own pies and cakes to share?
Continuing my little saga about the biography of Mohammed:
The descendants of the Quarish tribe in Mecca, Saudi Arabia were the priests in Mohammed’s time. The aristocratic members of that tribe managed the civil affairs of Mecca. This was the exact same social structure as the Zoroastrians of Persia had. Two warring factions divided the Quarish tribe at the beginning of the sixth century AD.
Abdallah was the grandson or grandnephew of one of those factions. His wife, Amina, was also of Quarish descent. Abdallah went on a trading caravan and died in Medina.
Mohammed (c. 570-632 AD) was born in Mecca. His father was Abdallah and died before Mohammed was born. His mother Amina died when he was six. Although he had a distinguished lineage, his inheritance consisted of a house, one female slave, five camels and a flock of goats. Tradition says his grandfather and an uncle, Abu Talib, raised him. Certainly his early life was one of hardship. Literacy was not important in those days, so he was never taught to read and write.
At about age twelve, Abu Talib took Mohammed on a caravan to Syria. He mingled with many of the Jews and Christians in the population there. There was also a large contingent of Jews and Christians in Mecca and Medina. He was attracted to the monotheistic aspects of both religions and the moral convictions of Christians. He could see the merit of those religions as contained in their Holy Books. He was dismayed at the idolatry and tribal warfare that he felt contributed to the disunity of his people.
(I think it is interesting that this event occurred in Mohammed’s life at about age twelve.
Jesus’ parents had taken him at about age 12 with them to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. Didn’t Mary and Joseph ‘misplace’ Jesus for three days and then found him talking with the elders in the temple? Isn’t the age for Bar Mitzvah and Confirmation at about age 12? Isn’t that the usual age when young people start asking questions, examining the aspects of life and beginning to think for themselves?)
At age twenty-five, Mohammed married the matron, Khadija, a wealthy noble widow fifteen years his senior. He became involved in her merchant enterprises. It was apparently a happy marriage for the next twenty-six years. She bore him two sons who died in infancy and also his beloved daughter Fatima, who survived to adulthood. His marriage to Khadija was monogamous, a rarity in those times. Her wealth made it possible for him to have the leisure to contemplate the essence of man and his own destiny.
(Not much is known of Jesus’ life from about age twelve until thirty when he began his ministry. It is not known whether he was literate or not. He personally left no written documents.)
Mohammed and his family would spend time in a cave near Mecca in prayer, meditation and fasting during Ramadan, the holy month. He was alone in the cave when the angel Gabriel appeared to him in a vision informing him that he, Mohammed, was the messenger or messiah from Allah as foretold in scriptures. Further, Gabriel told him the Koran, or Qur’an, was the book of his people as it existed in heaven and the angel would dictate it to Mohammed.
He continued to have many such visions, often at unexpected times. He would go into a trance like state. There has been some speculation that he had epilepsy. A number of leaders in history have had epilepsy including Julius Caesar and possibly Napoleon. But there is no evidence that Mohammed had Grand Mal seizures. Recently there has been a report of a form of epilepsy in which the person slips into unconsciousness and experiences an intense spiritual state not unlike an ‘out of body or near death experience’. One can only speculate on how and why Mohammed had his visions.
When he awoke, he had an amanuensis (scribe) write down, word for word, what Gabriel had told him. Unlike the Jewish and Christian Bibles that are ascribed to many different prophets and disciples, the Koran is attributed to one man alone, Mohammed.
With Khadija’s encouragement, he began to publicly preach his message. The Quarish tribe tolerated him as demented. He gathered a modest following until he went to the Kaaba and railed against idolatry. He considered the Kaaba a form of fetishism and thoroughly condemned the followers of all the ancient paganism.
The pilgrims to the Kaaba were taken aback and the Quarish tribe was put off by the threat to the revenues brought in by the faithful. His conversion of slaves was especially offensive to the aristocratic Quarish. The struggle was on. Occasionally, the conflicts grew to be violent. Once, Mohammed was chased through the streets and stones thrown at him bloodied his legs.
(This is not unlike Jesus’ experience of going after the ‘money changers’ outside the Temple. Only Jesus was caught and severely punished! Today, than offense would probably be considered a minor misdemeanor and only warrant a slap on the wrist or a modest fine. But you know the story of the authority wielded by both the hierarchy of the Temple, the Scribes and Pharisees, and especially the occupying Romans. Thousands of Christians were either crucified or fed to the lions. I don’t know if they indulged in water boarding.)
People have been expounding on the history of both Jesus and Mohammed for centuries. I just did it again! The point here for me is that the great religions of the world have far more in common than the nit-picking silly little differences.
It all has to do with the various stages of development of individual human beings and the ongoing progression of civilization.
Aloha!
Jean
By: Jean on December 22, 2008
at 12:52 AM