TT-Blog

It kinda pisses me off...

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 00:10:00 +0000

I mean, the recent death of Whitney Houston. It’s not like I was a fan, or have ever listened to her genre, but I, of course, would have had to have been living in a Himalayan Hut to have never heard her music.

The woman had it all…amazing voice, amazing face, amazing body, excellent connections, all the ingredients one would need to cook up a successful life.

So what went wrong?

You know, I find myself thinking, if only I had had ALL those opportunities, ALL that Good Fortune, ALL that Potential…who knows what I might have accomplished!

Granted, many people “make it” in music without having all of the advantages that Whitney had, but it still seems disappointing that she, who had so much MORE of those ingredients than most people, failed so abysmally, in the final years of her life, at taking care of herself enough to be able to give her gift to the world.

But who knows, maybe we ALL do have opportunities — in our own ways, in our own fields, with our own “God-given” talents…

It’s just that her path was such a public one that one couldn’t help but notice it (you don’t hear about wildly successful doctors the same way you do about wildly successful Pop Stars).

I’m just pissed at her. There I’ve said it. What a waste! Was it a lack of self control? Was it selfish and disrespectful of her towards her talent, to let herself sink into using drugs? Or was it the fault of those who originally introduced her to prescription and non-prescription “substances” which eventually led to her death?

When you have a gift like hers, you have a great responsibility. You are the caretaker for your vessel. It is your JOB to keep that vessel healthy. It is your job to keep that vessel pure. It is your job to maintain your body. It is your job to remain strong, and not be swayed by worldly temptations. Maintaining yourself IS your day job.

Yes, what a “tragic loss” her death was. However, is nobody mentioning that she might have had a hand in causing it?

Look, I have my share of addictions…so I forgive her for not being able to get her addictions under control, however, I also have had long periods of my life when I knowingly chose to “fast” from ingesting any poisons of any kind. It was really hard, at first, but after a while I got used to going without those harmful substances. It can be done. I wonder how hard she tried, how difficult it was for her, and if she knew that she did have the power within her to overcome those demons. Or maybe she didn’t. I don’t know. I’m just pissed. Am I being too harsh? I don’t know..Fame and Success do not buy happiness. Drugs don’t always make it better, or even ease the pain all that much. I think that’s the lesson to learn.

It’s just sad. I feel sorry for her, her family, and her fans.

I am still having a hard time giving up my HOPE for CHANGE

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Mon, 16 May 2011 12:06:00 +0000

...but all evidence points to the fact that we cannot rely on Obama to uphold any kind of Liberal agenda when it comes to our Foreign Policy and Treatment of Detainees (especially Bradley Manning - I can’t imagine what they would do if they had custody of Julian Assange, even though he is not a citizen).

Obama has proven to be WORSE than Bush when it comes to attacking and maintaining a presence in foreign countries, however the Left is paralyzed, and doesn’t know how to react to Obama’s numerous surprise policy reversals.

I am appalled at so much that he has done, and yet I keep running into Obama-bots, who think I am either making shit up, or am a looney. I post the links to the facts, and get told by these Obama-bots that I am a liar, and they will never read that crap. Open your eyes, people, Obama is not the President you thought you were electing!

One Love Peace Concert 4/22/1978

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sat, 14 May 2011 04:58:00 +0000

The One Love Peace Concert was a large concert held on April 22, 1978 at The National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica.

This concert was held during a political civil war in Jamaica between opposing parties Jamaican Labour Party and the People’s National Party. The concert came to its peak during Bob Marley & The Wailers’ performance of “Jammin’”, when Marley joined the hands of political rivals Michael Manley (PNP) and Edward Seaga (JLP).

(This past May 11, was the 30th Anniversary of Bob Marley's Death, R.I.P.)

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sat, 14 May 2011 04:21:00 +0000

The following might be funny, if it weren't so true... Please be sure to read to the end...

Tax his land, Tax his bed, Tax the table, At which he’s fed.

Tax his tractor, Tax his mule, Teach him taxes Are the rule.

Tax his work, Tax his pay, He works for peanuts, anyway!

Tax his cow, Tax his goat, Tax his pants,Tax his coat.

Tax his ties, Tax his shirt, Tax his work, Tax his dirt.

Tax his tobacco, Tax his drink, Tax him if he Tries to think.

Tax his cigars, Tax his beers, If he cries Tax his tears.

Tax his car, Tax his gas, Find other ways To tax his ass.

Tax all he has. Then let him know you won’t be done Till he has no dough.

When he screams and hollers, Tax him some more, Tax him till He’s good and sore.

Then tax his coffin, Tax his grave, Tax the sod in Which he’s laid.

Put these words Upon his tomb, Taxes drove me To my doom.

When he’s gone, Do not relax, It’s time to apply the inheritance tax.

Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL License Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting
License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges, IRS penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service Charge Tax
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
Sales Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?

Not ONE of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely NO national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

WHAT happened?

Can you spell P-0-L-I-T-I-C-I-A-N-S ?

by Charlie Reese, Orlando Sentinel Newspaper journalist in his final column…

HELLO-O-O again.

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sat, 14 May 2011 04:11:00 +0000

Okay, so I haven't posted here for months and months. I'm sorry! I've been blogging over on Tumblr these days.

BUT, I am getting too many followers over there, to feel comfortable with posting all of my posts. Some are too long, some are too boring, some are too radical, or some just never are right to use. When I go through my queue of possible posts, I always pass over them.

So, I'm going to start posting my overflow posts, that have been gathering dust in my Tumblr queue, over here.

I've got lots to say...

George Carlin' s Best Rant - Who Owns this Country?

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 23:01:00 +0000

This is a full transcript of George Carlin's take on "The Owners" of our country...unedited, untouched, pure Carlin at his very best...

"There's a reason…There’s a reason education sucks, and it's the same reason that it will never, ever, ever be fixed.

It’s never gonna get any better, don’t look for it, be happy with what you got, because the owners of this country don’t want that, I'm talking about the real owners now, the REAL OWNERS, the big wealthy business interests that control things & make all the important decisions.

Forget the politicians, Politicians are put there to give you the idea that you have freedom of choice. You don’t. You have no choice, you have owners, they own you.

They own everything, they own all the important land, they own & control the corporations, they've long since bought & paid for the Senate, the Congress, the State Houses, the City Halls, they’ve got the judges in their back pockets, & they own all of the big media companies so they control just about all the information you get to hear.

They’ve got you by the balls. They spend billions of dollars every year lobbying to get what they want. Well we know what they want - they want more 4 themselves & less for everybody else.

But I’ll tell you what they don’t want...they don’t want a population of citizens capable of critical thinking..they don’t want well-informed, well-educated people, capable of critical thinking, they’re not interested in that, that doesn’t help them, that’s against their interests, that’s right. They don’t want people who are smart enough to sit around a kitchen table figuring out how badly they’re getting fucked by a system that threw them overboard 30 fucking years ago. They don't want that.

You know what they want? They want obedient workers, obedient workers, people who are just smart enough to run the machines and do the paperwork, and just dumb enough to passively accept all these increasingly shittier jobs, with the lower pay, the longer hours, the reduced benefits, the end of overtime, and the vanishing pension that disappears the minute you go to collect it.

And now they’re coming for your Social Security money. They want your fucking retirement money, they want it back, so they can give it to their criminal friends on Wall St, and you know something? They’ll get it. They’ll get it all from you sooner or later. Cause they own this fucking place..it’s a big club, and you ain’t in it. You & I are not in the Big Club..and btw it’s the same big club they use to beat you over the head with all day long when they tell you what to believe, all day long beating you over the head in their media, telling you what to believe, what to think, & what to buy.

The table is tilted, folks, the game is rigged, and nobody seems 2 notice, nobody seems to care. Good honest hard-working people, white collar, blue collar, doessn’t matter what color shirt you have on, good honest hard-working people, these are people of modest means, continue to elect these rich cock-suckers who don’t give a fuck about they…they don’t give a fuck about you, they don’t GIVE a fuck about you, they don’t CARE about you, at all, at all, at all...and nobody seems to notice, nobody seems to care.

That’s what the owners count on, the fact that Americans will probably remain willfully ignorant of the big red white & blue dick that’s being jammed up their assholes every day. Because the owners of this country know the truth…It’s called the American Dream, because you have to be asleep to believe it.” ~ George Carlin

George Carlin

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 23:00:00 +0000

Speaking of dogs and open windows...

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 09:13:00 +0000

Indian Summer weather reminds me of a hot day many years ago...we once had a Samoyed puppy, Baba, that was about a year old, when we had to leave him inside our VW Bus, while we grabbed a quick lunch in LA.

We left those little side "vent" windows cracked open, but they really were not adequate, but we didn't know what else to do, and thought we'd check on him every few minutes.

We had just gotten our food, and were peacefully starting to eat with our friends, when before we'd even been there long enough to need to check on Baba once, (or so we thought) suddenly we heard a "group gasp" as all the patrons who had window seats along La Cienega Blvd, where our van was parked, stood up en masse, hollering and running toward the window, pointing, and exhibiting minor states of hysteria.

We went to the front of the restaurant, to see what the commotion was all about, having a hunch we maybe knew, and sure enough, there was Baba, our fluffy white Samoyed, who had obviously had it with baking in a hot car, parked on a hot street in LA. He had worked himself into quite a pickle, in his effort to get out, and was now stuck...trying desperately to get out of his embarrassing predicament.

While everyone was watching, he was floundering about, with half his body in, and half of it out, wedged in the tiny slit of an opening of the little mini vertical side window. It didn't seem possible that he could have even fit in that tiny opening, yet there he was.

In retrospect, we laughed and laughed when we retold this story, but at the time it was terrifying. As we watched from across the street (the moment is frozen in time) Baba's rump did a huge "pop" and he was ejected out of the VW Van in one giant swoop, and somehow, miraculously landed, on his feet, in the street, while cars went careening past him!! The restaurant onlookers shrieked in unison as he hit the pavement, and were beside themselves all hollering and waving their arms about, with their eyes glued to the scene.

Luckily, at this moment, my ex-husband was now racing towards Baba, who stood, bewildered, in the middle of the busy street, cars honking on every side of him. Chris, my ex, was nimbly dodging traffic, and flagging down cars as he raced across the street. He quickly corralled the confused Baba off the street, and back to the van, just long enough to grab his leash, slap it on him, and walk him back across the street, where the owners of the restaurant happily let our overheated pup sit in the shade, on the sidewalk, outside their establishment, until we were done eating.

They even brought him a bowl of cold water! Baba was quite proud of himself, and regally accepted the patrons' adoration (he was a beautiful all-white puppy), as they all felt compelled to pet him on their way out the door! Whew! What a comical memory!!

Republicans are still to blame...

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 19:03:00 +0000

I just don't get it. The Dems really need to explain to the voters that the reason that this congress hasn't been able to make any major changes is STILL the fault of Republicans! The public has been misled into thinking that the Dems are now in control, and this is just not true. We've never had a solid 60 vote, on any issue, it seems.

Usually, in previous sessions of Congress, there would always be a few reps from the other side that would vote for a bill, regardless of party. Nowadays, that is not a reality. Every Republican will block every bill they can this session. They vote in a block, now, without exception. So, if there is any Democrat that has any reservations about any bill, there is no chance of it passing.

And over, and over, that has been the case. Dems need to explain that in order to get good legislation passed, there needs to be a surplus of Democratic votes, not just barely 60. If more Democrats, not less, were elected in the fall, it would be much easier to get the good bills passed. This session has been plagued with errant Dems. First there was Liebermann, blocking something, then Ben Nelson, then Blanche Lincoln...if we had say, 65 Dems in the Senate, then those pesky nay-saying right-leaning democrats wouldn't be able to stop bills from getting passed.

Republicans are still blocking legislation, and I don't think the voters realize that, many times, it hasn't been the Dems fault. If people are dissatisfied with Congress, they need to understand who is keeping Congress from passing good bills.

Also, WAKE UP, Dems. The Republicans have pulled the same nasty trick on the last three major bills that have been "passed."
They select one of their number to PRETEND that, with just a few small changes, they will be on board to vote for a bill. The Dems then bend over backward, removing ALL the teeth from the bill, and then the lone Republican changes his/her mind, and decides not to vote for it after all. Why don't the Dems put the provisions back in that they took out for that lone deceitful Republican before passing it? They just continue on, and end up passing watered down, crappy versions of the bills over and over again. Can't they back up ever? Can't they put the good stuff back in the bill again?

And how come Bush managed to get ALL kinds of bad bills passed without the magic 60? Why does Obama have to adhere to this policy when the Bush administration never did?

I'm starting to think that EVERYONE in Congress is on the dole. And we are getting the exact bills that the corporations ordered Congress to pass. The Dems like having Republicans blocking parts of bills for them, so the Dems can look like they care, and it's just not their fault, when in truth, neither party wants what's good for the American people, they just all want to keep the money flowing into their coffers, so they have enough money to buy the ads that help them keep their jobs, come next election.

Every bill has to be considered in terms of the next election, and where it fits into the Presidential schedule, and things that NEED to be addressed often aren't, because it just doesn't fit into the needs of the congress or President's reelection plans. How is that serving the people?

After thinking it all through, it seems to me that the major thing needed is Election Reform, however, how is that ever going to happen, when we are asking the reps to vote against their own best interest?

One would have to be truly altruistic to vote to improve our election process, and there are only a handful of reps in either house of congress that are in that mindset!

We should 1) Eliminate the electoral college 2) do major campaign finance reform 3) have a MUCH SHORTER run-up to the election.

And is it REALLY election time again, so soon? I have to say, I was really not ready for "Election 2010" to be the daily news story...didn't we just go through Election 2008, so very recently? I'm not ready for this again, so soon! Who but the pundits really is?

No work for teens...wonder why?

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 21:50:00 +0000

The experts are mystified by the fact that teenage unemployment is at 25% nationwide, 30% in California? They are also surprised that unemployment, in general, is higher in California. As a resident of the state of CA, I am not at all surprised. I have seen the trend happen over the last 30 years or so. We also have the largest number of illegal immigrants in our state. That is why, hearing the teenage unemployment statistics today did not come as a surprise, or seem like a coincidence to me. I'd already noticed the trend a while ago.

Employers hire the cheapest labor they can find. A few years ago I asked my friend, while we were out shopping, if she had noticed that all the jobs where you used to see teenagers, now there were Mexicans. She noticed it, too. It's frustrating, because, when you go into a department store nowadays, you can expect to receive no service, because the employees that work there these days don't know the stock, or the lingo, and can't really answer any questions...in all fairness, in the past, teenagers weren't much better, but at least sometimes they could answer a question, or might know what you were talking about, when you were trying to describe what you were looking for. Now, it's just accepted as a given, that when you go into a store (unless it's a mom and pop establishment that has been around for years, and is actually manned by the owners), you can expect to be on your own, because nobody is capable of helping you, except to take your money at the cash register.

Blame it on the greedy employers/corporations. In order to save some money, and make even bigger profits, they're hiring illegals instead of resident teenage citizens, because the employers can pay the illegals less, and give them less (or no) benefits, as well. It's a win-win for employers who have no scruples (which here, in California, seems to be just about everybody - even organic farmers hire illegals to work the fields).

So, I don't see why the experts are surprised, except that they are unwilling to face what is really happening in this country. We have more illegals than we can comfortably handle. Experts might not want to face the fact that, actually, illegals have a great deal to do with the country's unemployment problems. My ex-husband was forced out of a job by illegals, and had to find a whole new occupation, when all his clients started hiring illegals for $2 less per hour. They truly are taking away jobs from citizens, including teenagers, as now reported, and the situation has become really bad, because employers have gotten used to paying unfair, lower wages, and not reporting to the government, and not offering benefits, and basically making out like bandits, while screwing both the legal citizens who they are no longer hiring, as well as the illegals they now do hire.

It's sad that nobody wants to make the connection between unemployment and illegal immigrants. And nobody wants to address the issue of why they are coming here in the first place - why can't they make a living in their own country? And nobody really wants to enact legislation that would stop this practice, because nobody wants to go up against the employers who are only concerned about their bottom line, and illegal workers cost them way less than Americans, even than American teenagers, apparently.

If illegals could not find work here, they would not be coming here. If they couldn't find housing, they couldn't stay here. There should be laws, with serious penalties, enacted, against employers and landlords that perpetuate this detrimental cycle.

I kinda miss the ditzy teenagers.

WH Faux Pas - Rehire Sherrod already!

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 21:55:00 +0000

Andrew Brietbart & Fox News started it, but the White House most definitely had a huge part in continuing it. They reacted in an amateurish fashion, to this whole falsely reported news story. First off, they should know better than to believe anything that Fox News reports.

I saw Sherrod say that she was not even given the opportunity to tell them her side of the story. She was driving at the time, and was ordered to pull over immediately, and call in her resignation, from the side of the road, on her Blackberry. Apparently she tried to tell her bosses the whole story, but they wouldn't listen.

Our guys took Fox's word for it over their own employee, who had a stellar record, and had even received an award as the "FLAG Family Farm Champion" (pictured above), and then they got their heads handed to them, as well they should have. Fox has us on the run, and this proves it.

They say jump, we say, how high?

What Vilsack and the administration did to Sherrod was uncalled for and outrageous, no matter what Fox's part in it was....we need to think for ourselves, and pick our battles wisely - not let Fox dictate the battles, and how and where and who they will be about. There was no reason to react that quickly, the WH just didn't want another bad news day, and they got thrown off balance, and responded to the situation in a completely amateurish, irrational and paranoid fashion. They were thinking only of their own reputations - which wasn't a fair thing to do to Sherrod.

This story would have been much stronger, for our side, if Vilsack and the WH had just given Sherrod time to explain herself, and then they would have learned all of the facts, and she could have kept her job. Then, the Administration's part in it would have been untainted. They could have caught Breitbart and Fox in a big fat lie, without getting any egg on their own faces.

I don't tune in to Fox, so I wouldn't know what's going on over there, but I'm sure they are milking this WH faux pas for all that they can get out of it.

At any rate, Sherrod should sue Breitbart for Defamation of Character, and if they offer her job back to her, she should demand a raise, as well as a public, Presidential apology.

Please don't think I'm against the President. I'm not. Not at all. There's nothing I want more than to see candidate Obama again. This post is just "constructive criticism". Dissent is a Patriot's Duty. But know that I want Obama to succeed, and be the best man that he can be. I campaigned like crazy for him. I went to many phone calling parties, made calls from home, sent emails, made contributions, donated 100s of buttons to Obama fund-raisers, so please don't think that I'm against him or the dems - truth is I'm left of liberal, and I vote Democratic, because a Liberal could never get in, and it would be a wasted vote. In fact, I could stand for Obama to swing way further to the left.

At any rate, and at all times, I want to see the President and his administration be strong and wise enough to admit their mistakes. That is the mature thing to do.

In this situation, I would just like to see them own up to their error. I notice that Sherrod was forced to "resign" instantaneously, but Vilsack has to "study" the situation, and has not yet made any announcement as to her status. I, myself, would like to see Sherrod re-hired as quickly as she was fired, with a raise, and a full WH apology, to boot.

The Link between Immigration and Unemployment

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 19:59:00 +0000

I am a member of the Facebook Group, "Rethink Afghanistan". Today, I made a somewhat off-topic comment when one of our members made the following post:

George:

"Pull all our forces out of the mideast and restation them to PROTECT our borders to the north and south. This way we wont lay anyone off and its got to be cheaper to keep them on OUR SOIL. And we wont read about our men and women dieing anymore for a LOST WAR."

3 people liked this.

Here is my response:

Tara Thralls

George, I'm not sure that our borders need protection as much as employers need to not hire illegals. If there was no work here for them, illegals would not risk coming over the border. Employers hire illegals because it is cheaper, and there are no regulations they have to follow, because nobody will be reporting them. Unemployment most certainly has a great deal to do with Illegal Immigration. If employers could not find illegals to work for them, for a pittance, they might have to cut their profits a bit, and hire legal workers at a decent salary.

California has both the highest unemployment rates AND the highest amount of illegal workers. There is most definitely a correlation between the two statistics.

Sorry, I know this is a post about Afghanistan, but I felt compelled to mention that I don't think bringing the soldiers who are now serving in Afghanistan back here to patrol the borders would be a real solution for either problem...but we definitely should get our soldiers out of Afghanistan, and what to do with them then? Hmm, maybe, oh, I don't know, give them an education (which is why they probably joined up in the first place)....

Home Cough & Cold Remedies by Tara

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 13:09:00 +0000

This was originally posted to my friend Lori's Facebook wall. She then posted it as a note. This is an edited and updated version of that note:
***********************************************
Here's a list of cold remedies from simple ones (if the sneezing hasn't started yet), to pretty radical cures for more advanced colds, coughs, wheezing or laryngitis.

1) If you feel that first tickle in the back of your throat, don't be lazy!! Get up and immediately gargle with some salt water (I have seen measurements ranging from 1/8 tsp up to one whole tsp of salt dissolved in a cup of water, as hot as you can take - the greater the concentration of salt, the more it will burn, but consequently the better it will work)…if you live near the ocean, gargle with ocean water, that's even better, provided the ocean is clean where you live.

2) Here's another good one for when you feel that first tickle in the back of your throat, but you REALLY CAN'T AFFORD TO GET A COLD RIGHT NOW…This is a pretty radical cure , but it REALLY DOES WORK
a) Get a cup with a long spout (a small teapot, or you can buy a "nose buddy" at a yoga store).
b) Mix up a batch of salt water (I have seen measurements ranging from 1/8 tsp up to one whole tsp of salt in a cup of water, as hot as you can take - the greater the concentration of salt, the more it will burn, but consequently the better it will work) - you might want to dissolve the salt in hot water, and then let it cool to lukewarm.
b) Close off one nostril with one finger, and tilt your head so you are able to "pour" the salt water up your other nostril. Inhale the salt water, but be sure to close off your throat so you DO NOT SWALLOW IT!! Open the closed nostril, and exhale it through that one...so it's going in one nostril, and out the other....Switch sides. And repeat....It's nasty, but it WILL work, but only at the very beginning stages of a cold...

3) Here's another cure that works really well, if you are having trouble sleeping because of troublesome coughing, or wheezing.
a) Get a vaporizer (under $20 at most pharmacies).
b) Buy some Eucalyptus, Peppermint or Spearmint Oil (any health food store should have one of them).
c) Fill it half full with water...the first time add some non-iodized salt to the water.
d) Put a drop or two of the aromatic oil in the little indentation on top.
e) Close the doors and windows to your bedroom, to keep all the steamy moisture in the room.
f) Plug it in, and sleep with it on...you will feel it clearing out your nose and throat while you sleep.
WARNING: The moisture might make papers curl, or tape come off your walls!

4. Another thing you can do to clear a froggy throat is crush up a handful of fresh mint leaves, while bringing some water to a boil. Once boiled, turn the water off, and sprinkle the crushed mint leaves on top (most health food stores sell fresh herbs). Stir with a wooden spoon. While the mint water is still very hot, take a big towel, and place it over your head, while inhaling the tea, so that you and the tea are in your own little world under the towel. Inhale deeply, and it will clear the sinuses nicely. If you don't have Fresh Mint, you can use tea bags of Mint Tea instead.

5. Another good way to clear a froggy throat, or laryngitis is to make this concoction:
a) Juice of one lemon
b) Mix in 1/8 tsp cayenne
c) Add 1-2 T honey (or to taste)
d) Mix into a cup of extremely hot water, as hot as you can take over it, and drink…it clears and coats the throat and gets your immune system going, too...you can even crush up some garlic into it, too...as long as nobody cares how your breath smells, of course!!

6. And for laryngitis - this one really works well, and it's yummy, too! Everything does something in this cure.
a) Grate one apple into a bowl.
b) Add the juice of one lemon.
c) Add 1 TBSP of Honey.
d) Stir it well.
e) Add a handful of raisins.
f) Add a handful of chopped walnuts
g) Add 1 TBSP of Wheat Germ (Make sure it's fresh, as it will go rancid over time).
h) Stir well again.

Eat this for breakfast or as a snack in between meals. It's actually pretty tasty, but I usually lose interest about 3/4 of the way through…you'll know when you've eaten enough.

7. Now, if your cold is more advanced, and has settled into your chest, this is the most radical cure I know of…and you don't want to do this unless you are really, really miserable, because it is difficult, and can be really unpleasant if not done exactly correctly…

Please Follow the Instructions Carefully, because if you mess up, it can be pretty painful.

a) You want to do this right before going to sleep, when you are completely ready to lay down, and don't plan to get up again, as you don't want to walk on your feet once you've done this.
b) Bring the following things to your bedside, so they will be there in the morning: A big dishpan size tub of water, filled about half full, and a bath towel. Place the tub on the floor by your bedside.
c) You will also need a pair of socks, some wet and some dry paper towels, and some Cayenne Pepper powder.
d) You are going to put Cayenne Pepper, very carefully, on all the "tougher parts" of your feet - basically, the ball and the heel of the foot. Moisten only those areas, and sprinkle the cayenne pepper on them, smooth it out with your hand, and then wipe your hand down with the wet and dry paper towels (cayenne can be a serious skin irritant)..
e) Carefully put on the socks, so as not to loosen any of the caked on Cayenne Pepper. Go to sleep.
f) You will feel the heat traveling up your legs, from your feet, towards your head, as you sleep. Your congestion should be greatly improved upon arising.

IMPORTANT: YOU DO NOT WANT TO WALK ON YOUR FEET WHILE YOU STILL HAVE CAYENNE PEPPER ON THEM.

g) Before getting out of bed, and walking anywhere, you want to MAKE SURE to rinse your feet in the tub of water and dry them off. You do NOT want to walk on the cayenne pepper, because it will burn.

IMPORTANT CAUTIONS:
i) Do not let even one grain of cayenne pepper get between your toes, or on your instep - it will burn like mad.
ii) Make sure not to walk on your feet while the Cayenne is still on them.
iii) If you have sensitive skin, you might want to have two tubs of standing water, and do a double rinse before walking around.

I know it's radical, but it really does work wonders!!
***********************************************
Well, that's all I can think of right now….I'll append this post if I think of some others.

Hope some of that helped….your feedback is welcome.

: )

***********************************************
P.S. Here's some great reference pages with more cold remedies:

a) Home Remedies using salt water.

Or try it with a few drops of Eucalyptus Oil as described in the Yoga Journal.

Or read about some more remedies, including some homeopathic ones from eatrundoyoga.com.

Is Are Obama and BP REALLY doi""Fa"Fhitheverything they c"n"" a viable option??

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 17:25:00 +0000

(This was originally posted in a thread on my Facebook page, that got a lot of comments. It was discussing whether it might be time to enlist God's help, and whether Group Prayer might help the situation in the Gulf, here's a link to that thread: http://bit.ly/groupprayer)

I was raised by atheists. Angry atheists. I remember when I was in 5th grade, and they added "under God" to the pledge. It was a big, big deal at the time. I would mouth the words, so I wouldn't get caught by my teacher, but not say them out loud, in solidarity with my parents.

I never thought much about whether God existed until my teenage years, which were filled with angst. The first time I every prayed was when I found myself arrested for vagrancy, while trying to hitchhike to California with my 16 yr old boyfriend. We had gotten a ride with a trucker, who started putting his hand up my leg, while my boyfriend slept...this was after the trucker had had us wait in the truck, while he took a short detour at a whore house (he had originally picked us up because my boyfriend had long hair, and he thought we were 2 girls)...I woke my boyfriend up, and got the trucker to let us out at a bus station in Columbus, Ohio. We planned to wait until daylight to get back out on the road.

It was the middle of the night, and cops came 'round ever few hours, to make sure there weren't any homeless vagrants, and after seeing us there for so long, asked for our ID. We were arrested because we only had $15 between us, and well, let's be honest, we were hippies, before there were hippies (we were "bohemians")..and they took us in.

We had several nickel-bags of weed...this was in 1964...the cops in Ohio didn't know what it was (there were no buds back in those days)…I told them we had been hitchhiking for a while, and had colllected "soil" from the different states (the weed was all powder)…they didn't believe me - they weren't sure what it was, but they were pretty sure it wasn't soil (props to me for my creativity, though). I prayed to God for the first time, but, needless to say, God didn't help me. My parents were called, I was released into their custody, with the promise that I would be institutionalized by June 15th...I was in and out of the mental institution by June 15th, because I wasn't "crazy", I was just a pothead….but I will leave the story of my time in the crazy house for another day…

My first real experience with "God" came when I was at a LSD party a few years later. I had a friend who was very funny, but got people to laugh by making fun of other people. This guy, Dutch, had been on a roll, getting everyone in the room to laugh...then he suddenly turned to me, and (I'll never forget), said, "What are you laughing at? You look like a pig with an apple in its mouth."...everyone laughed...but me. I wanted to die (remember I was tripping on acid at the time)...I went out in the back yard, all the way in the corner, as far away as I could get from anyone else, and started weeping (I was a little overweight, but nobody would have called me fat, so it wasn't that - but I'm not very pretty)...suddenly a thought formed in my head....

"Next time I'll choose a prettier body."

Next time? Next time? Next time?

So began my spiritual journey. I began to read books about reincarnation, and started exploring what was out there. A year or two later I had an enlightenment experience, while on a mescaline trip…after which it all became clear. I "saw the clear light", and everything about life made sense to me.

Shortly after this, I gave up psychedelics. That was the experience I had been looking for. I surmised that my experience had opened a door into a whole other realm for me, and that although I had had this experience, now I wanted to be in that state all the time. I began practicing Yoga, and meditating, and became a more introspective person.

I have had no experience that has shaken my beliefs since that time. I KNOW from personal experience that there is a God…but "religion" is another whole ballgame. I am violently against anybody laying down the rules for anyone else. I despise organized religion. I think it is a "fiddle" for the priests, who take people's money, while making promises that they do not have the authority to keep. I think confession is a bunch of bull shit. Nobody can forgive you for your sins but God and yourself. No middle man is needed, or should be used. It's a travesty. If people get comfort from religion, they're bullshitting themselves. That how I see it.

Life does not come with an instruction manual. Nobody really can tell what's right for anyone else...and nobody has come back to tell us what happens after we die. Pretty much it's a guessing game...but I do know what I experienced with my own eyes, and that's the only experience I will ever trust…one that I had myself.

I feel sorry for anyone who has never actually had a life-changing religious experience and is running strictly on the "faith", which they learned from their parents. Better to have a real experience...Faith is not nearly as airtight as an actual experience, in my opinion.

I still think that "Faith" has a fairy tale quality to it, and if that's the most you have, you might want to do what you can to have an actual, life-validating experience, so you will KNOW, instead of merely having faith...

Just my opinion....

Is Are Obama and BP REALLY doi""Fa"Fhitheverything they c"n"" a viable option??

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 19:44:00 +0000

I think Obama (and the government) were initially really slow on the uptake. I just wish he had been responsive immediately after the disaster, I mean, like immediately. He did not make a statement, visit the Gulf, or even weigh in for far too long. He should have issued an immediate statement, and been fully engaged from Day One.

Did he learn nothing from Bush's PR catastrophe that was Hurricane Katrina? I don't understand his reticence to get involved. Plus he gave the righties ammunition by doing a whole bunch of things that weren't related to the Gulf disaster, or foreign policy, and could easily be painted as partisan or selfish acts. I'm often surprised at how much more clever the blogosphere is than Obama's advisors, who seem to get things so far wrong, so very often.

I saw a commentator the other day saying that in Australia, when they had a similar disaster, they had back up people there within minutes, 100s of helicopters, boats on the surface, workers, everything needed to deal with it immediately...

Our country's response was a disgrace. I was disgusted to learn that BP shipped 300 workers in, for a single day, to the beach where President Obama was going to visit, so that it would appear that BP had it together, and were involved with a sincere and serious clean-up effort. In fact, the workers did not even put in a full day…they left shortly after Obama did.

What is really disturbing about that fact is that BP KNOWS what responsibility looks like. They KNOW what they SHOULD be doing, and they choose not to. This is maddening to me. Why is it acceptable behavior for corporate executives to be heartless, environmentally irresponsible, and only looking out for their company's bottom line? In the corporate world, greed and deviousness are accepted, in fact, revered behaviors. Don't these people have a little Jiminy Crickett inside their heads, too? How can they allow themselves to behave so heedlessly, selfishly, badly??

BP may be the only one that can stop the leak, but the government should have had people there, on the spot, immediately, whether BP liked it or not. This blaming BP for nobody else being able to get close to it, has been way too convenient, and makes me question why the govt would want to do that, instead of just getting in there and dealing with all the many facets of it, as quickly as possible…

Anyone who wanted to should have been able to help, in some capacity, from the very beginning. People have good ideas, want to volunteer, have boats they could volunteer, but are having difficulty getting anything implemented, or even being able to reach anyone with any kind of ability to pass their ideas on to the decision-makers.

Willing volunteers & scientists have been rebuffed, even though they got phone numbers to call, as when they called them they could not get through to a human, and just got an answering machine, requesting a call-back number, but then nobody ever called them back…

That's B.S. Why would they want to do that?

I hear that the people that make the oil dispersant are making a killing, though…and their stock rose 18% when it was announced that BP had chosen this highly toxic chemical, produced by Nalco, that is banned in Europe, and was one of the most toxic choices, and not recommended by the EPA. In fact, when the government ORDERED BP to stop using Nalco's product, and to choose a more environmentally-friendly dispersant, BP flat out refused…and there was nothing (allegedly) our government could (or would) do about it.

If you dig a little deeper you will find that NALCO is associated with Warren Buffett, Maurice Strong, Al Gore, Soros, Apollo, Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, Hathaway Berkshire. These facts (with footnotes, source materials and extensive documentation) were brought to light in the recently published post by Joann Mor, "Bombshell Exposé: The real reason the oil still flows into the Gulf of Mexico", a most disturbing read.

And why wasn't a commission set up right there, right away, immediately, with phone numbers to call, places to make donations (why is there no public effort, either in our country or around the world, to help out the people in the Gulf)?

BP has not been forthcoming, or generous, I'm sure those folks could stand some extra help…money might be hard to dole out, but how about foodstuffs…everyone has to eat…and some basic household items that everyone always keeps in stock, and periodically needs to restock, like sponges, paper towels, toilet paper, Band-Aids, various over-the-counter pharmaceuticals like sunscreen, aspirin, you know, those kinds of things. I'm sure supplying those items would help… any little expense, that they don't have to make themselves, would have to lessen their strain.

The Govt could organize a movement to get the big corporations that make that sort of stuff, to donate their goods to help out the people in the Gulf who are not getting all their needs met by BP. There's been no public constant broadcasting of numbers to call, or ways to help out until recently, and I don't see the government (i.e. Obama) doing all that it can to get help to those that need it.

Also, those big corporations could be making a good name for themselves by donating things that are needed for the clean-up efforts - Dawn detergent for the birds, gloves, boots, slickers, masks, those kinds of items. If we keep waiting around for BP to do something, the situation will only worsen. The sooner we can nip this, the better.

However, not only can volunteers not find out where they can go to clean up the beaches, Public Beaches are actually being patrolled by private cops, hired by BP, chasing the public OFF their beaches, so there will be no evidence of the havoc this is causing. That is ridiculous.

Also, there could have been a massive effort on the part of the govt to get burms built everywhere, so that no oil EVER washed up on any state's beaches. If the Govt could spend (ie borrow from China) vast quantities of money that we don't actually have, to bail out big banks, we should also be able to borrow money to keep the oil off our coasts.

There are also people with machines already built that skim the ocean, and separate the oil from the water, and others with machines that are like curtains, and way taller than the barriers that BP has intermittently provided, that are already built, and "waiting for approval" from the govt - which could take 6 months, because first the Govt will have to do a study, and a cost analysis...I mean, it could take a month just to assign a project manager!

I think Obama could have been way more engaged when it comes to the top side of the ocean...he couldn't do much about the underwater situation (even a superman like him can't get down to 5000 ft below!!)...but he could have help speed up permitting processes, created a bureau to handle volunteers & scientific submission ideas and machinery suggestions, and assigned many, many more people to work on the beaches, and with the Coast Guard...I mean, there are fishermen out there with boats who need work, but they have been unable to connect with whomever is coordinating the hiring for this mess.

Who decides how many workers and what equipment gets dispatched, and to where? That person should lose their job. It's a disheveled mess, in my opinion, and it's all due to faulty management, on the parts of many people, both in the Govt and the private sector.

There are many ready & willing people whose talents and strengths are not being utilized for this effort. This should be treated like what it is, a National Emergency, and we need to implement an "All Hands on Deck" response as soon as possible, and demand that BP just not be allowed to continue in the same vein, and NO, we will not accept this polluting dispersant, goddammit, you spend the money & buy the RIGHT dispersant…and NO, we're not gonna sit by and watch as BP does a lame, half-hearted attempt at keeping the oil off the beaches, and an even lamer clean-up attempt, where it has already reached the beaches.

BP is good at a few things: Spending useless money on ads to build up their public image, hiring endless lobbyists to buy off Congress members, lying to the public about the extent of the damage and velocity of the leak, dodging paying the meager $69 million bill the Govt assessed them (while spending $50 mill in advertising, and billions in dividends checks to its stockholders), refusing to go on any News Talks Shows and answering any questions, hiring private agents with uniformed security guards to act as pretend cops and scare the Public off Public beaches, so no photos of the damage will surface.

Don't get me started on listing what BP is bad at...

Looking back over the past few years, I have to say that IMO Obama got just what he wanted (or what his overlords wanted) in both the do-nothing health care bill (which doesn't even kick in until 2014, and ended up just forcing people who can't afford health care to have to buy it), and the financial non-reform bill. Both of these bills were skillfully crafted by career politicians who make the bulk of their salaries from the Lobbyists, not the American people. They are bought by the lobbyists and corporations…so they have to make it look like the "fought really hard" for stuff, but there was always another senator that would vote down any good suggestion…they count on each other to vote the good stuff out of every bill…because that's what they've been ordered to do.

When Obama was running against Clinton & Edwards, way back in the beginning of the campaign, I happened to be watching Morning Joe (this was before I stopped watching him a few months later), and I must admit, that on that day, Joe did actually enlighten me, when he said that the media would choose Obama, because they liked his "story" best, and they wanted to cover it more than either the Clintons or Edwards (this was when everyone inside the beltway knew about the Edwards affair, but nobody was mentioning it)…Joe also said that Washington, and the "powers-that-be" would be "just fine" with Obama…he did not threaten the modus operandi at all…and that he was a clever man, good at misleading the public into thinking he was not part of the Washington machine, but in actuality, all the big corporations would not suffer at all if Obama was elected, and they'd be thrilled if he were elected.

In hindsight, they have gotten a better deal from him, than the lefties have received. I do not like most of Obama's appointees, or Supreme Court choices. I do not like that he kept ANY of Bush's people in power. I do not like that the administration has no intention of going after the Bush/Cheney regime for any of their massive list of crimes. I do not like how long it is taking to get out of Iraq. I do not like his escalating the pointless war in Afghanistan. I do not like the secret drone war in Pakistan. I do not like his stance on DADT, or DOMA, and I think he is playing everyone, trying not to offend anyone, in hopes of getting reelected, and he has lost touch with the ideals that are natural for any leftie to embrace. He has been a disappointment on many levels.

I campaigned tirelessly for Obama. I donated 100s of buttons, to various groups who had fund-raising events for him. I went to many calling parties. I called voters from my home. I sent tons of emails…I was REALLY into wanting to believe that things would be different if he was elected. I felt a level of elation on Election Night that I can only compare to being at the Woodstock Festival in 1969, or at the anti-war rallies in 2003. I hadn't felt "HOPE" like that in close to 40 years…so it pains me greatly to say this.

I am tired of pretending that President Obama is the same man as Candidate Obama. He ain't. I'm fed up. Is it time to march?

(This was originally a post about Obama, and BP, and whether they have really been "doing all they could" in the Gulf disaster. After examining all the facts, I would have to conclude, "NO", they haven't. It's time to step up. Let's see a bit more Candidate Obama, and a lot less Corporate Obama, thanks.)

Wondering how to help? Here's 10 Ways...

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 22:52:00 +0000

This is a reprint of an article, by Beth Buczynski I found on Care2. PLEASE SHARE this info freely - we need to spread the word on ways that we can help, and also, what is actually happening down there that the media is not telling us about.

It's been over seven weeks, and residents of the Gulf Coast are struggling to survive as crude oil washes up on their beaches, killing birds and marine life, and filling the air with toxic fumes.

Reports of media blackouts, and less-than-accurate estimates about spill size and impact continue; just listen to this interview with documentary film maker James Fox:

Even if you can't physically make it to the Gulf to lend a hand, here are 10 important ways you can make a difference to those who are on the ground fighting to keep up with this tragedy:

1. Boycott BP

Yes, this catastrophe could have happened to any petroleum company, but no matter which corporation is ultimately at fault, consumers MUST communicate their disapproval with the most powerful weapon they have: their pocketbooks. BP brands to avoid include Castrol, Arco, Aral, am/pm, Amoco, Wild Bean Cafe, and Safeway gas. For more news on the boycott already in progress, visit the Boycott BP page on Facebook.

2. Tell the Government, "Enough is enough!"

The only way to help prevent future disasters it to let our politicians know that off-shore oil drilling is dangerous, and we want it to stop. Sign the Care2 petition telling President Obama to reconsider his plan to expand offshore drilling and invest in clean energy resources instead. It's always powerful to contact your representatives directly, too. Help Oceana reach its goal to gather 500,000 names on a petition to stop offshore drilling permanently.

3. Shave Your Head

Ok, maybe just trimming off a few inches is enough. Matter of Trust, an ecological charity based in San Francisco, has a hair mat, oil-spill program that uses human hair to produce super-absorbent mats that can be used to clean up messes including oil spills (pet hair works too!).

Since putting out the call for hair to help soak up the BP oil spill, Matter of Trust has collected 400,000 pounds of hair and sent it to addresses along the Gulf Coast, but more is always needed.

4. Purchase Dawn Dishwashing Detergent

If you remember the tragic 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill of 1989 you likely remember that the chemical composition of Dawn detergent makes it perfect for animal rescue. Purchasing a bottle or two of Dawn dishwashing liquid at your local grocery store gives you two ways to help: a) you can enter the bottle's activation code at Dawn-Dish.com triggering a $1 donation to wildlife conservation efforts from the Marine Mammal Center and the International Bird Rescue Research Center, and b) you can donate your bottle of Dawn directly to the Gulf clean-up efforts through the Facebook page Help Us Help the Gulf Wildlife.

5. Donate Essential Supplies For Volunteers

Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary, which was a significant workforce in the disastrous Tampa Bay 1993 oil spill and has experienced avian care professionals on-staff desperately needs donations of kennels, towels, gas gift cards, paper towels, and bottled water to assist their avian hospital in treating and rehabilitating wildlife that has been affected by the oil spill.

6. Support Those Saving The Wildlife

The National Wildlife Federation has set up mobile giving services to support their work in the Gulf Coast. Donors can send a text message with the code "WILDLIFE" to 20222 to automatically give a $10 donation to help wildlife affected by the oil spill.

The International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC) lets you support the 16 members of their Oil Spill Response Team, as well as other non-profit organizations working in the region, by "donating, becoming a member or adopting a bird."

7. Become A Hero

Volunteer with Global Green, an organization that plans to spend the coming months working to protect injured wildlife and lobbying Congress to enforce tougher regulations on the oil and coal industries.

8. Save A Fisherman

The mission of the Gulf Relief Foundation is to provide relief to the fishing community of the Gulf Coast and their families, and to address the long-term challenge of restoring and protecting America's coastal wetlands.

Text "GULFAID 10" to 27138 to donate $10 to Gulf Aid. Replace "10" with the number of US dollars (no $ sign) you'd like to pledge, donate as little or as much as you like. You can also visit Faux Pas Prints for the latest official GulfAid.org merchandise. Portions of the proceeds go to the Gulf Relief Foundation.

9. Join Hands

Begun in Florida, Hands Across the Sand is an international movement concerned with protection of our coastal economies, oceans, marine wildlife, fishing industry and coastal military missions. Cities all across the world are pledging to stage peaceful demonstrations on June 26th during which thousands of people will join hands to convey a simple, yet powerful message: NO to Offshore Oil Drilling, YES to Clean Energy. Learn more about how to organize or join an event in your area.

10. Get Connected and Inspired

Join the Facebook group 1 Million Strong Against Offshore Drilling. Check out the action page for more suggestions of how to lend your voice to the anti-drilling movement.

Find full Care2 Coverage of the Spill here.

Like this story? Please follow me...and/or the original author: Beth on Twitter or Stumble!

BP's draggin' their wagon...wonder why?

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 21:35:00 +0000

I have come to the sad conclusion that BP has paid off Thad Allen and a whole lot of people in the government so that they will keep refusing to try solutions that the public is offering, and will take their sweet time in cleaning up the oil, in hopes of less gallons being collected, and less fines for BP to pay...let's not forget even Obama is on the dole...BP donated close to $1 million to his campaign...10x what he earns as President...

Politicians are excellent at making it look like they're really working hard at something, and somehow, in the end, all their work comes down to not managing to do very much to help the American people at all (HCR, Financial Reform...now this)...

Just sayin'...

Might as well laugh about it....

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 20:31:00 +0000

Upset about the B P mess, too? This should perk you right up...

Upright Citizens Brigade finds a way to laugh at it all...

as seen on The Rachel Maddow Show ~ 6/10/10

Carly Fiorina - don't go there...

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 20:31:00 +0000

I just had to make a comment about Carly Fiorina being unwittingly caught on an open mic, insulting (of all things) Barbara Boxer's hair...

1) Carly, you really don't want to go there - insulting a person's looks? It does, however, show other racists, that you most likely are a racist bigot, too. If you stoop to insulting a person's hair...you most likely have feelings about a person's skin color, too.

2) EXCUSE ME? Carly, you Flathead...you really think your hair is in a position to take on Boxer's? Get a grip, your hair looks greased and plastered (unflatteringly - is that a word?) to your extremely tiny, and empty pinhead! I didn't want to sink to the level of insulting someone for their looks, like you did, Carly...but really, you brought it on yourself...and it was just too easy....If you are running for office, you need to remember that if you mess with the bull, you get the horns...

3) To the "pundits" that consider this newsworthy - I thank you for even bringing it up, as it makes Carly look bad, and Barbara (one of my heroes) look good, as she is being abused by her Republican opponent, however, how about some coverage on where they stand on the issues, rather than more of that same old b.s. that is called "reporting the political news" these days? Can't we stick to the important issues at hand, rather than going straight to sensationalistic mud-slinging?

4) More substance, less glitz, please.

BP Boycott vs Receivership what'll get the job done?

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 01:39:00 +0000

I've been thinking about the outcome of a BP boycott, & I'm not sure it would be the right action, because, if we boycott BP, then they may go bankrupt, and/or might claim that they no longer have the money to completely pay everyone off.

Alternately, however, if we demand that BP go into Receivership, then the profits will go towards fixing the mess in the Gulf, & everyone will WANT to buy gas at the NEW BP, & be happy for the opportunity to help to pay for the spill.

I mean, would you trust this man?

I don't follow baseball, but...

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 12:02:00 +0000

even I heard about this ridiculous fiasco!

We all saw the footage, the guy was out!! Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig won't overturn it, because WHY?

Okay, here's what I heard - it's all about this opening up a can of worms...not this game, but other games from the past would be contested, and it could become a nightmare, if they overturn one, they might have to go back and look at a lot of other bad calls made over the years. Where would it end?

Nobody disputes that the guy was out. Even Jim Joyce, the umpire, admitted that he made a bad call! Selig had 24 hours to reverse it, but it doesn't look likely.

Baseball needs to get with the program, take a leap into the 21st century...baseball needs instant replays. For sure. The old timers insist, "We've always done it this way…we don't need those new fangled devices…what worked in 1960, still works today…", but the truth is, there were many bad calls back then, when they didn't have the luxury of instant replay…but now we do, people. Why continue to live in the Dark Ages, when there are electric lights?

It's like insisting that coffee is just as good as espresso! Or typewriters are just as good as computers.

They're not.

Come on, Bud, give Galarraga the Perfect Game!!

(is there a Facebook Group about this yet?)

Gores no More?

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 21:05:00 +0000

Hmm...could that uncomfortable kiss, all those years ago, have been the Gores doing their best at faking real affection?

Or, maybe, they got as uncomfortable as the rest of us, with the footage of their totally off the wall & over-the-top smooch, and were finally big enough to admit that it was all for show?

Or, my actual hunch is that there's a third party involved...although it's hard to picture which one of those two would have been able to find a willing extra-marital partner.

Or am I not even allowed to voice that opinion?

Don't Mess With Textbooks

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 10:30:00 +0000

Okay, we can't let this go down. Texas has voted to change what is taught in textbooks, eliminating references to "The Age of Enlightenment" and Thomas Jefferson, and replacing them with the teachings of Thomas Aquinas and Creationism. They also plan to add discussions of the validity of separation of Church & State.

If the Texans were just going to be printing textbooks with omitted facts & false information so they could teach the schoolchildren of Texas a false version of history, that would be one thing, but many, many states buy their textbooks from Texas, and these Texan textbooks will effect large parts of the nation, if We, the People, don't step in and insist that they be boycotted.

Citizens will need to mobilize, to band together with other people in local communities, and research the names & contact information of the bursars on the local School Board who control the purse-strings for School Budgets, and let them know that this is unacceptable. It would be good to publicize the contact information for these Bursars, including the Names, Mailing Addresses (not Street Addresses), Phone Numbers, and Email Addresses of the Bursars, in each district's local papers, so all citizens have easy access to the information.

Letters to the Editor of your local paper are also an excellent idea. Include the address and email of the Texas Board that is making these decisions, and encourage everyone you know who might care about this issue to get involved.

Here's how to contact them:
Barbara Cargill (R)
61 W. Wedgemere Circle
The Woodlands, TX 77381
(281) 465-8095
sboesupport@tea.state.tx.us

Write to them, email them, call them and let them know that we do not support their version of history.

And there's also a Facebook Page you can Join called, "Boycott Texas Until They Correct Their Textbooks".

Here's the email that I sent to the Texas Board (I was going to start it "Dear Texas", but I'm not feeling very "endeared" towards Texas, at the moment):

SUBJECT: I am boycotting Texas, and all things that come from Texas

To Whom It May Concern ~

I will not visit your state, nor support anyone or buy anything that comes from your state, until you correct the Textbooks & put the facts that you've omitted back in, where they belong.

How dare you impose your religious beliefs on innocent schoolchildren, in a country that purports to believe in separation of Church & State? To remove that information from your future textbooks is extremely UNPATRIOTIC & UNAMERICAN. We, as Americans, believe in and stand for the ideals that you have so callously eliminated from future textbooks...the ideals that inspire our citizens to acts of greatness, selflessness, and patriotism.

We insist that you take these falsehoods, & one-sided ideologies out of your textbooks, or you can expect a massive campaign to be mounted against this move, and encouraging every single text book buyer in every single school district in every single state in our entire nation to buy their textbooks elsewhere, from companies that do not distort the truth for their own political and religious agendas.

There will be huge negative financial repercussions, & you will lose more & more contracts, if you continue down this misguided path.

Sincerely,

Tara Thralls

A Lover of Truth, & the Ideals of Democracy,
especially The Separation of Church & State

David Shuster: MSNBC Boss refuses Fans' Petition

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Fri, 28 May 2010 03:47:00 +0000

The movement to silence David Shuster by MSNBC's temperamental boss, Phil Griffin, is apparently still very much alive and well. Griffin has gone out of his way to avoid dealing with this issue, and in a last-ditch attempt to save MSNBC's failing daytime ratings, has been frantically hiring and scheduling a series of forgettable daytime News Anchors, in an effort to get a substitute for David Shuster on the airwaves who MSNBC's viewers will accept, and are willing to watch.

So far, that's not happening, judging by the steady stream of new faces you can see almost daily on MSNBC's airwaves. Seems that David Shuster's shoes are mighty hard to fill.

What IS happening, however, is that MSNBC daytime ratings are failing, further evidence that Griffin was horribly wrong in his rash and abrupt decision to remove Shuster from the roster.

It doesn't look promising that Griffin will ever eat some crow, or that Shuster will ever grace MSNBC's airwaves again, judging by the news that has surfaced today, showing Griffin to be a vindictive and childish boss.

First a quick bit of background information:

In early April, David Shuster was abruptly removed from his duties as daytime MSNBC anchor, apparently for "hurting Phil Griffin's feelings". The eruption was precipitated when, without Griffin's knowledge, Shuster filmed a pilot for CNN, which never aired. This was not a breach of Shuster's contract, and, in fact, was actually understandable (considering the raw deal and disrespect with which MSNBC had always treated Shuster - he is a thorough and committed journalist and was severely overqualified to be reduced to reading the headlines during the afternoons with the female anchors).

CNN was actually responsible for inexplicably leaking the news about the pilot, and when Griffin found out, he totally lost his cool, and demanded Shuster be removed from the MSNBC airwaves immediately, and indefinitely.

As soon as Shuster's loyal fans were apprised of the situation, a petition was created, to Bring Back David Shuster. Fans were encouraged to leave comments (850 so far, and counting), which were all reviewed and edited, and the best submissions were selected to be included in a Certified Letter that was sent to Griffin, as well as a few other key players in the drama…(Note: MSNBC is about to be sold to Comcast, any day, and Griffin's job, itself, might be in jeopardy)…The other recipients were Jeffery Zucker, and Steve Capus of NBC Universal, Jon Klein of CNN, and Brian Roberts of Comcast.

The only executive that has accepted the letter so far is Klein of CNN. Today, the folks who originally sent the letters (and, btw, are also responsible for the hilarious web site "Punish David Shuster with his Own Show") received one of the packets back, stamped "Refused" - the one that was the most important, the one that was sent to Phil Griffin.

Phil Griffin "refused" to accept this communication, from a large group of very upset MSNBC viewers. This, once again, shows Griffin's incompetence, and inability to face problems squarely, and deal with them in a rational, mature way. It also illustrates Griffins supreme arrogance, in putting his own personal vendetta against Shuster (see previous articles) above the needs of his boss, and their network. This continued blackballing of Shuster can't possibly be good for business. To read the comments on the Petition to Bring Shuster back, it seems like viewers are jumping ship at an alarming rate. A network needs viewers if it wants to sell advertising, and from all accounts, MSNBC's numbers are dwindling.

Shuster's loyal fans remain puzzled and deflated by this latest occurrence, of Griffin refusing their heartfelt letter and comments. What more can they do, that they haven't already done? To date, they've stopped watching MSNBC, sent numerous emails to news media sites, bloggers, and execs at MSNBC, CNN, & Comcast, sent snail mail letters with 12 pages of testimonials from loyal, disgruntled fans, signed an online petition and spread the news through Twitter & Facebook of Shuster's unfair suspension.

When a news media executive takes none of their loyal fans into account, and remains taciturn and unwilling to back down from a ridiculous stance, we end up with an untenable situation such as this one.

MSNBC's premier daytime anchor, who was keeping the viewers engaged during the afternoons has been removed, and replaced by a series of weaker, incompetent, uninteresting, boring anchors, and MSNBC, as well as Shuster's loyal fans are all suffering.

Apparently, Griffin is not big enough to say "mea culpa", or even to accept a Certified Letter with a Petition from Shuster's loyal fans, which contained nothing more than a plea for Griffin to allow Shuster back on the air, so that he could bring his insight into today's current bombshell set of news stories, and thus help MSNBC gain back some much-needed ratings. The packet held nothing more than an assertion of how deeply a large number of Shuster's fans feel about him.

It's been almost two months now, and so far, Shuster has not re-surfaced, nor has his vanishing act been so much as mentioned or addressed by any of the on-air hosts at MSNBC. It is almost like he never existed. Only Joe Scarborough has had the guts to even give Shuster a shout-out, and that was not on air, but at an after-party the night of the WH Correspondents Dinner.

Seems that MSNBC has decided to pretend that David Shuster never existed, and they honestly thought that none of his fans would notice. That has certainly not been the case. His loyal fans are not willing to just let Griffin win, and so they keep on sending Press Releases and doing all that they can to keep this story alive, and hopefully get their hero back on the air.

At this point, it's a travesty…there are probably a greater number of people who have been following this story who feel that Griffin, not Shuster, is the one who deserves to be let go.

Petition to Bring Back David Shuster
Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Page
"TOP TEN THINGS David Shuster Can Do…Poll."
Photos from the Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Group
Letter sent out to Media Executives along with 12 pages worth of
Select Comments left by disgruntled MSNBC ex-viewers.

David Shuster: Off the Air, but not Forgotten!!

noreply@blogger.com (Tara Thralls) — Mon, 17 May 2010 11:26:00 +0000

A loyal group of David Shuster fans have very much noticed his absence of late on the MSNBC airwaves!! In fact, MSNBC's daytime ratings have noticeably taken a nose dive in the past few weeks (the lowest in 11 years), as more and more "Shustie Fans" have jumped ship, and abandoned MSNBC until Shuster is reinstated...or else, they will follow him to wherever he goes next.

So far, there's been The Bring Back David Shuster Petition (which includes a copy of the text of a Letter which was sent out last week to Phil Griffin, Steve Capus and Jeffery Zucker of NBC Universal, along with CNN President Jon Klein and Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, complete with signatures and heartfelt comments by a growing number of concerned, and disgruntled Shuster fans), a tongue-in-cheek Facebook Page, entitled "Punish David Shuster with his Own Show", as well as more and more articles being written about Shuster's unfair suspension. He had not breached his contract, (which is up at the end of the year), so he could only be rashly suspended by MSNBC's (very hurt) Phil Griffin for having filmed a pilot for CNN, which never aired.

Stories are surfacing by bloggers and journalists, including the original NY Observer piece that broke the story, and the follow-up article detailing his suspension a few days later. There was also a Washington Examiner piece about a Shuster-spotting at a company Softball Game, with some questionable "factual information" in it, followed by Shuster's Facebook Response, and a follow-up article in the Examiner, as well as a DailyKos Post in David's defense, by sgary and detailed descriptions of Shuster's situation by DailyKos Bloggers, Bob Amsel and Gary Stewart.

Considering how little quality air-time MSNBC has given to David over the years, and how he has never had his own branded show, he has an extremely loyal following, who are well aware of his journalistic style, the quality of his reporting, and his courageous interviewing technique. This group of David's fans has been coming up with new and creative ideas daily, to impress upon MSNBC how strongly they feel about this issue.

Their latest campaign, in which Shuster's fans were asked to cast their vote, was a Blog Post by Gary Stewart, along with a cheeky poll at the end, entitled:

"TOP TEN THINGS David Shuster Can Do...While Phil Griffin Leaves Him Twisting In The Wind."

Check out the Winning Poll Results here!!

And if you are so-inclined, you can sign the Petition - just click the link!!

Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Page
Sign the Petition (& Leave Your Comment) to Bring Back David Shuster
"TOP TEN THINGS David Shuster Can Do…Poll."
Photos from the Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Page
Letter sent out to Media Executives along with 12 pages worth of
Select Comments left by unhappy MSNBC ex-viewers.