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The Vanity of Charity
Author: BobR    Date: 12/06/2013 16:00:18

It's that time of the year when people think about giving unto others. We can thank the fabled wise men from the Bible story for that (and consider how badly it's gotten corrupted via commercialism). Giving to strangers less fortunate, or for a cause that works for the betterment of all is the basis of charity. Different charities have their seasons. This time of year we see the Salvation Army pots and bell ringers. It's the epitome of what most people think of when they consider charity - anonymous giving, done out of a selfless moment of empathy.

Unfortunately, that is not enough to satisfy some who give. Consider groups like the Sierra Club or Greenpeace that rely on "memberships" and donations. Every week I am getting junk mail where they are asking me to send a contribution which will secure me a tote bag with their logo emblazoned on it. I get to show the world that I am "giving back", while also becoming a walking billboard.
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69 comments (Latest Comment: 12/06/2013 23:15:55 by Raine)

SUNNY GATE!
Author: Raine    Date: 12/05/2013 14:06:35

She's a beast I tell you, a beast.
The 1-year-old puppy tried to escape her handler, knocking down 2-year-old Ashtyn Gardner in the process.

The little girl got up quickly, and her dad, John, said she was fine.

Michelle Obama was present and helped Ashytn to her feet. The first lady later checked on the little girl again and gave her a hug.

Obama was unveiling the 2013 holiday decorations and had invited military families and their children to see them.

John Gardner, a member of the Navy from Mobile, Ala., was there with his wife and three kids.

The children were decorating ornaments, making Rudolf reindeers out of lunch bags and fashioning paper poinsettias when the incident occurred.

Both dogs stayed in the room and there were no further accidents.

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81 comments (Latest Comment: 12/05/2013 22:40:12 by livingonli)

The War on Good Cheer
Author: BobR    Date: 2013-12-04 12:05:04

Last week on Thanksgiving day, I wrote about the impending "holiday" season, and how Black Friday shopping had slipped into Thanksgiving day. It's December and we are now officially in it, for better and for worse. The dichotomy between the purported message and the reality of how Christmas is treated never ceases to jar me with cognitive dissonance.

As always, Black Friday set the ugly tone early on. It used to be just rudeness. Now, there are fistfights, stabbings, shootings... How long before someone is killed trying to save a few bucks on a video game machine?
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66 comments (Latest Comment: 12/05/2013 03:44:33 by Will in Chicago)

Ask a Vet
Author: TriSec    Date: 12/03/2013 11:21:48

Good Morning.

Today is our 4,440th day in Afghanistan.

We'll start this morning as we always do; with the latest casualty figures from our ongoing war, courtesy of antiwar.com:

US Military Deaths - Afghanistan: 2,290
Other Military Deaths - Afghanistan: 1,105

We find this morning's cost of war passing through:

$ 1, 493, 921, 700, 000 .00


Let's compare and contrast today. As we all know, there has been an epidemic of petty crime, sexual assault, and other such things among the general services. Whether or not this is a result of recruiting pressures due to war, and the overall lowering of standards to make up the quotas is a discussion for another day.
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87 comments (Latest Comment: 12/04/2013 02:07:49 by TriSec)

Dripping with Concern.
Author: Raine    Date: 12/02/2013 17:16:26

Now that the Obama Administration met its self-imposed deadline to fix the problems with the HealthCare.gov website, the GOP will move onto other pressing concerns. Yes, it's far easier to type with a straight face than to say it out loud.

Let's talk about the website. As I said above, the deadline to get the website problems resolved were self-imposed.
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21 comments (Latest Comment: 12/03/2013 05:07:21 by Will in Chicago)

Revolutionary Monday
Author: Raine    Date: 12/02/2013 14:01:41

Good morning! I hope that everyone enjoyed the weekend. Our was filled with friends and museums and football and brewing.

Now Monday is upon us and we slowly are getting back to the business of getting back to business.

When I say slowly, I mean it. Last week there was an article over at Politico that has caused quite a stir. Today, A column from WaPo's She The People rebuts it quite nicely and adds a perspective to our first family that I believe many people miss.
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34 comments (Latest Comment: 12/02/2013 19:08:03 by Mondobubba)

Remembering
Author: velveeta jones    Date: 12/01/2013 15:01:48

For me it seems like yesterday that it was happening all around me. Every day I would wake up to another death; like being in a war zone - but without the sounds of bombs making it much more eerie.
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8 comments (Latest Comment: 12/02/2013 04:12:04 by Raine)

Snippets of the weekend
Author: TriSec    Date: 11/30/2013 14:01:33

Good Morning.

It's sure been a whirlwind few days around these parts. I was particularly busy in the days leading up to Thanksgiving, and then all hell broke loose yesterday; it feels like I missed everything going on. So in no particular order, just some observations.

Today I'm looking forward to leading a walk on my childhood stomping grounds. Remember that I get paid to do this - I have (allegedly) 7 participants signed up to join me on a walk through Breakheart Reservation, about a half-mile from my mother's house. Alas, I've got to run straight to the store after that, but I think I have time to hit Kane's on the way by.
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4 comments (Latest Comment: 12/01/2013 04:45:52 by Will in Chicago)

Burp!
Author: Raine    Date: 11/29/2013 13:57:58

Still digesting yesterday.

How are things in your part of the world? For your post Tday sleepiness, I give to you, this:





Happy Friday!
and
Raine
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16 comments (Latest Comment: 11/30/2013 01:09:09 by TriSec)

Start Your Engines
Author: BobR    Date: 11/28/2013 13:55:13

Gentlemen - start your engines. It's the official start of the holiday season. From now until New Years Day, we will be inundated with Christmas music, ads for Christmas sales, decorations everywhere, and FOX "News" once again declaring a War on Christmas because someone somewhere had the audacity to say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas".

That's why today is so special. It's the calm before the storm. It's the day when family and gratitude and reverence are embraced. Tomorrow is a selfish feeding-frenzy at the mall, but today is a quiet moment at home.
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11 comments (Latest Comment: 11/29/2013 02:59:30 by Raine)

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