Anna Leonowens and Maha Mongkut

[This classic T N McCoy blog was originally published March, 2005]

Released by Fox in 1999, Jodie Foster’s movie Anna and the King is a re-telling of the teaching-adventure story of Anna Leonowens. The story, by now a familiar one, is about a 19^th century English woman traveling to Siam to teach the monarch’s children.

The storyline is based on the 1946 movie Anna and the King of Siam, starring Irene Dunne and Rex Harrison (where Anna was presented as Anna L. Owens,) and 1956 movie musical, The King of I, starring Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner. The latter was based on the successful 1951 Broadway musical of the same name.

The Broadway Musical was based on the 1946 movie, Anna and the King of Siam, which in turn was based on the book ANNA AND THE KING OF SIAM (1944) by Margaret Landon, who wrote it as a modern update of Mrs. Leonowens’ full story from the 19^th century.  [As an interesting sidenote, Mrs. Leonowens was the maternal aunt of Boris Karloff.]

The basis for Miss Langdon’s work was published in 1870: THE ENGLISH GOVERNESS AT THE SIAMESE COURT… And in 1872: THE ROMANCE OF THE HAREM. Both were written by Anna H. Leonowens. The illustrations were based on photographs given to Mrs. Leonowens by the King of Siam, His Majesty Somdetch P’hra Paramendr Maha Mongkut---imagine having to say that ten or twelve times a day.

Yes, a bit confusing. Well, just think of the story in chronological order: in 1862, Mrs. Anna Crawford Leonowens (1834-1914) was hired to teach the King’s children in Siam; then her book THE ENGLISH GOVERNESS…” (1870); her book THE ROMANCE OF THE HAREM (1872); Margaret Langdon’s book ANNA AND THE KING OF SIAM (1944); the movie Anna and the King of Siam (1946); the Broadway play The King and I (1951); the movie, The King and I (1956); and now the movie Anna and the King (1999.)

Going back again, Mrs. Leonowens (who had already decided to accept) was officially invited by a letter from the King, February 26, 1862:

“Madam: We are in good pleasure, and satisfaction in heart, that you are in willingness to undertake the education of our beloved royal children. And we hope that in doing your education on us and on our children (whom English call inhabitants of benighted land) you will do your best endeavor for knowledge of English language, science, and literature, and for conversion to Christianity; as the followers of Buddha are mostly aware of the powerfulness of truth and virtue, as well as the followers of Christ, and are desirous to have facility of English language and literature, more than new religions.

“We beg to invite you to our royal palace to do your best endeavorment upon us and our children. We shall expect to see you here on return of Siamese steamer Chow Phya.

“We have written to Mr. William Adamson, and to our consul at Singapore, to authorize to do best arrangement for you and ourselves.

“Believe me

“Your faithfully,

(Signed) “S.S.P.P. Maha Mongkut”

Somehow, my mind hears these words in the voice and style of Yul Brynner. Indeed, it is a puzzlement.

Diametrically Opposed??

A short while ago, an old and dear friend of mine offered the opinion that he and I are 'politically diametrically opposed?'  He's a liberal/democrat, and I'm a Conservative/Republican.

My friend as you know, words have meanings.  'Diametrically opposed' indicates we are at extreme ends away from each other.  You can refer to yourself however you want, but please don't refer to me as extreme.  I am not---though I know that liberals/democrats usually refer to people who disagree with them as 'extreme' and 'dangerous.'

Case in point:  I don't support abortion in any way.  I don't believe people---good or not---can just up and slap God's face [putting another thorn in His crown] in their support of baby murder.  After all, that's what it is.  And it's especially barbaric when it's done near the end of a pregnancy or in partial live-birth.  A doctor or abortionist and a woman have no right to play God and determine life and death for an innocent baby---whatever the reason.  It particularly irks me when I see the liberals/democrats in Facebook post remarks that they depend on God in good and bad times---but they slap Him in the face when they abort their babies for personal or political reasons or vocally support those who do---using their wimpy and spurious revelation of 'a woman's right to choose' [aka murder.]

BTW ---> [Impressive pro-abortion activity, n'est pas?]
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/07/02/watch-abortion-supporters-chant-hail-satan-while-pro-life-activists-sing-amazing-grace-outside-texas-capitol/

What if you and your wife had decided parenthood was too much for you lo those many years ago and aborted your two children?  They and their successes wouldn't exist.  Would that have improved your life?  Would you not have had pain for these many years for not knowing who they might have been or shared love with them? 

So, does that mean that you support 'marriage' between two perverts or murder and death of innocent babies---both slaps in the face of God?  Or that abortion is wrong for you but okay for others?  Or are we not diametrically opposed after all? 

Please read the next link which shows the summary of the Pope's first Encyclical.

http://www.lifesitenews.com/marriage-one-man-and-one-woman-for-nurturing-children-pope-francis-first-en.html

I support the Constitution of the United States.  I don't stomp on it for political gain.  I believe in free speech; the right to bear arms; the concept that 'Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted [especially against the kids you read about every day in relation to the gun hysteria]; and the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.  And not to obama.

I believe and agree with the abolition of slavery and in the suffrage of women, and the restriction to two terms for the President.  But, I must confess to disagreeing with the age 18 right to vote.  It's too young, especially in light of the poor education provided by public school and the liberal slant on all teaching.  [You can't be 'free' or 'responsible' if you're brainwashed.]  And so many people between 18-21 have proven me right.  Our 18 and the modern 18 are years apart.  Most importantly, I believe in God, and I have faith in the majority of the American citizens to wade through liberal/democrat crapola and returning to the course originally set by the Founding Fathers.  We cannot exist or move forward in Civilization as we are constituted now.  The current and recent politicians and political parties no longer represent Americans.  They should be replaced, and Education returned to the home and local areas to insure we teach our youngsters instead of just spending $billions and moving them along.

So, are you opposed to all this?  Your friend obama and his cohorts are opposed to most of what I believe in.  They stomp on rights every day.  With the present administration, our economy is gone, our healthcare system is in the process of being destroyed, incompetence in the Administration [top to bottom] is daily more and more apparent, public debt is sky high, spending is sky high, spying on citizens runs rampant, the IRS is used to help squash Conservatives at every opportunity and Senate democrats are loading pork expenditures on every bill in sight---including the anti-American amnesty bill.

And now obama, unconstitutionally delays implementation of a particularly heinous provision of obamacare [the American healthcare system and economy destroyer] so that it doesn't take effect and destroy too many companies and thousands of more jobs before the 2014 elections.  Afterwards is okay by him.

And you support this administration?  We're diametrically opposed, remember.  You don't mind arresting little kids for having a Lego gun [about an inch long] or a pastry that appears to be the shape of a gun?  Or others for wearing t-shirts or mentioning God or displaying a cross symbol?  You think expulsion or jail for these kids is the right thing to do?  It's not the Conservatives doing these things.

Many hundreds of thousands of men and women died to create and preserve this country called America.  Their willingness to give their blood for our future can't be denied.  Abortion, stomping on the Constitution, crooked politicians, uneducated and unaware voters ['I'm voting for obama; he gave me a free cell phone; I'm voting for the free things'<---actual voters---="">or "I'm voting for obama because he's black], faulty foreign policy, communism, outrageous spending, bloated government lying, corrupt politicians at all levels, voting more than once, dead people voting, spying on our citizens---these are not what our fathers and grandfathers gave their lives for.

Do you think that granting asylum to a family that just wants to home school their kids is wrong as well?  Germany believes that only government-run schools are permissible for children.  Holder and obama [and Hitler and Stalin] believe[d] the same thing [public school education: teens can't speak or read; schoolchildren don't know anything about their representation or government in any way; can't learn about or see a picture of God or the Commandments or anything on morality; sex between students and teachers has often led to pregnancy; rampant gangs and racism; the students and teachers spend time patting each other on the back; Ayres and Alinsky 101], and obama opposes the asylum for parents who want to control their kids' education.  The DOJ advocates treating home schoolers and truants in the same criminal way.

Too many random interviews of the products of our public schools show profound ignorance of our Country and its history.  We declared Independence from China!  Mexico!  The date? November 2; 1842; 1978; 1974; 1874; 1914.  Signers include Jack Lemmon and Jesse Ventura.  Why do we celebrate July 4?  Blank stares; independence from China or Mexico, et al?  But such educational results are more important for 'diversity' than having kids actually learning something at home.  Really?

But asylum for the invasion of lawbreakers from the south?---you know, the people who sneak in our Country to collect welfare and laze about without learning English or obeying laws---is supported with no question by our President---mostly for the democrat voters he expects from among them.

You have different beliefs about these situations?  Please explain with details.

What about the IRS disaster?  Or the NSA?  You still believe obama knew nothing and there was no 'policy' of intimidation?  Is he like Sgt Schultz?  And Benghazi, and the travesty in Egyptian policy?  You actually believe obama, Hillary and Kerry and Holder and Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi and Sebelius and Big Sis and Debbie Wasserman Schultz and the numerous other liars and socialists in Washington now?  In fact, IRS Lois Lerner [with her big ego and arrogance] is ready to name names---if she's given immunity.  And those saps in the House will probably give it to her instead of throwing her butt in jail.  I'm not a big fan of deals like this.  Especially in this case, the case of the most corrupt, lying, anti-American, socialist spendthrift, tyrannical, Constitution-stomping Presidential Administration we've ever suffered under.  The proof is all around you.

But, if we're diametrically opposed, then none of this is true.  I must be making it all up because the economy is booming, unemployment is low, public debt is decreasing, personal freedom has never been stronger, and I don't like our savior, obama?

C'mon my friend.  I don't think you've reached the level of a Doctorate by knowingly soaking up all this crapola from obama and the democrats---all while obama hides his past and lies about what has been uncovered.  I have two WH released pictures [below] of obama or obama and family that have been obviously photo-shopped for his advantage---just like his supposed birth certificate.  One was on his FB website.  When the photo-shopping was discovered and aired, the photo was removed from his page.

So, please, tell me what you do believe in about the above?  How does demonstrable truth make me an extremist?  And, in light of recent liberal/democrat excesses and crime, how is it you're still a liberal/democrat 

[I have two photos of obama and obama and family obviously photo-shopped for the White House benefit.  But, Blogger won't let me post the pictures.  Why?  I don't know.]

1] obama's mother, Stanley, showing her black hand and wrist around her son.  Speculation is that the picture actually showed Frank Marshall, the communist-obama mentor, who was removed and replaced by a picture of Stanley.  Yet another great White House photo-shop.

2] The obamas exiting Air Force One showing Michelle's three hands.  Thanks White House for protecting the President---who probably isn't getting along with Michelle.  Another great White House photo-shop.

Mary White 1904-21

This 1921 essay/obituary of Mary White, written by her father, was required reading when I was in school.  It wasn't only for the grammar and writing style, but for the topic as well.  It was a unique look at the life of a young girl so many years ago.  I'm glad I had the chance to read it, and I want to offer that opportunity to my readers as well.

Mary White
June 18, 1904 - May 17, 1921

by William Allen White
Emporia Gazette, Kansas, May 17, 1921
The Associated Press reports carrying the news of Mary White's death declared that it came as the result of a fall from a horse. How she would have hooted at that! She never fell from a horse in her life. Horses have fallen on her and with her—"I'm always trying to hold 'em in my lap," she used to say. But she was proud of few things, and one of them was that she could ride anything that had four legs and hair. Her death resulted not from a fall but from a blow on the head which fractured her skull, and the blow came from the limb of an overhanging tree on the parking.

The last hour of her life was typical of its happiness. She came home from a day's work at school, topped off by a hard grind with the copy on the High School Annual, and felt that a ride would refresh her. She climbed into her khakis, chattering to her mother about the work she was doing, and hurried to get her horse and be out on the dirt roads for the country air and the radiant green fields of spring. As she rode through the town on an easy gallop, she kept waving at passers-by. She knew everyone in town. For a decade the little figure in the long pigtail and the red hair ribbon has been familiar on the streets of Emporia, and she got in the way of speaking to those who nodded at her. She passed the Kerrs, walking the horse in front of the Normal Library, and waved at them; passed another friend a few hundred feet farther on, and waved at her.

The horse was walking, and as she turned into North Merchant Street she took off her cowboy hat, and the horse swung into a lope. She passed the Tripletts and waved her cowboy hat at them, still moving gayly north on Merchant Street. A Gazette carrier passed—a High School boy friend—and she waved at him, but with her bridle hand; the horse veered quickly, plunged into the parking where the low-hanging limb faced her and, while she still looked back waving, the blow came. But she did not fall from the horse; she slipped off, dazed a bit, staggered, and fell in a faint. She never quite recovered consciousness.

But she did not fall from the horse, neither was she riding fast. A year or so ago she used to go like the wind. But that habit was broken, and she used the horse to get into the open, to get fresh, hard exercise, and to work off a certain surplus energy that welled up in her and needed a physical outlet. The need has been in her heart for years. It was back of the impulse that kept the dauntless little brown-clad figure on the streets and country roads of the community and built into a strong, muscular body what had been a frail and sickly frame during the first years of her life. But the riding gave her more than a body. It released a gay and hardy soul. She was the happiest thing in the world. And she was happy because she was enlarging her horizon. She came to know all sorts and conditions of men; Charley O'Brien, the traffic cop, was one of her best friends. W. L. Holtz, the Latin teacher, was another. Tom O'Connor, farmer-politician, and the Rev. J. H. Rice, preacher and police judge, and Frank Beach, music master, were her special friends; and all the girls, black and white, above the track and below the track, in Pepville and Stringtown, were among her acquaintances. And she brought home riotous stories of her adventures. She loved to rollick; persiflage was her natural expression at home. Her humor was a continual bubble of joy. She seemed to think in hyperbole and metaphor. She was mischievous without malice, as full of faults as an old shoe. No angel was Mary White, but an easy girl to live with for she never nursed a grouch five minutes in her life.

With all her eagerness for the out-of-doors, she loved books. On her table when she left her room were a book by Conrad, one by Galsworthy, "Creative Chemistry" by E. E. Slosson, and a Kipling book. She read Mark Twain, Dickens, and Kipling before she was ten—all of their writings. Wells and Arnold Bennett particularly amused and diverted her. She was entered as a student in Wellesley for 1922; was assistant editor of the High School Annual this year, and in line for election to the editorship next year. She was a member of the executive committee of the High School Y.W.C.A.

Within the last two years she had begun to be moved by an ambition to draw. She began as most children do by scribbling in her school books, funny pictures. She bought cartoon magazines and took a course—rather casually, naturally, for she was, after all, a child with no strong purposes—and this year she tasted the first fruits of success by having her pictures accepted by the High School Annual. But the thrill of delight she got when Mr. Ecord, of the Normal Annual, asked her to do the cartooning for that book this spring, was too beautiful for words. She fell to her work with all her enthusiastic heart. Her drawings were accepted, and her pride--always repressed by a lively sense of the ridiculous figure she was cutting--was a really gorgeous thing to see. No successful artist every drank a deeper draft of satisfaction than she took from the little fame her work was getting among her schoolfellows. In her glory, she almost forgot her horse—but never her car.

For she used the car as a jitney bus. It was her social life. She never had a "party" in all her nearly seventeen years—wouldn't have one; but she never drove a block in her life that she didn't begin to fill the car with pick-ups! Everybody rode with Mary White—white and black, old and young, rich and poor, men and women. She like nothing better than to fill the car with long- legged High School boys and an occasional girl, and parade the town. She never had a "date," nor went to a dance, except once with her brother Bill, and the "boy proposition" didn't interest her—yet. But young people—great spring-breaking, varnish-cracking, fender-bending, door-sagging carloads of "kids"—gave her great pleasure. Her zests were keen. But the most fun she ever had in her life was acting as chairman of the committee that got up the big turkey dinner for the poor folks at the county home; scores of pies, gallons of slaw, jam, cakes, preserves, oranges, and a wilderness of turkey were loaded into the car and taken to the county home. And, being of a practical turn of mind, she risked her own Christmas dinner to see that the poor folks actually got it all. Not that she was a cynic; she just disliked to tempt folks. While there, she found a blind colored uncle, very old, who could do nothing but make rag rugs, and she rustled up from her school friends rags enough to keep him busy for a season. The last engagement she tried to make was to take the guests at the county home out for a car ride. And the last endeavor of her life was to try to get a rest room for colored girls in the High School. She found one girl reading in the toilet, because there was no better place for a colored girl to loaf, and it inflamed her sense of injustice and she became a nagging harpy to those who she thought could remedy the evil. The poor she always had with her and was glad of it. She hungered and thirsted for righteousness; and was the most impious creature in the world. She joined the church without consulting her parents, not particularly for her soul's good. She never had a thrill of piety in her life, and would have hooted at a "testimony." But even as a little child, she felt the church was an agency for helping people to more of life's abundance, and she wanted to help. She never wanted help for herself. Clothes meant little to her. It was a fight to get a new rig on her; but eventually a harder fight to get it off. She never wore a jewel and had no ring but her High School class ring and never asked for anything but a wrist watch. She refused to have her hair up, though she was nearly seventeen. "Mother," she protested," you don't know how much I get by with, in my braided pigtails, that I could not with my hair up." Above every other passion of her life was her passion not to grow up, to be a child. The tomboy in her, which was big, seemed loath to be put away forever in skirts. She was a Peter Pan who refused to grow up.

Her funeral yesterday at the Congregational Church was as she would have wished it; no singing, no flowers except the big bunch of red roses from her brother Bill's Harvard classmen—heavens, how proud that would have made her!—and the red roses from the Gazette forces, in vases, at her head and feet. A short prayer: Paul's beautiful essay on "Love" from the Thirteenth Chapter of First Corinthians; some remarks about her democratic spirit by her friend, John H. J. Rice, pastor and police judge, which she would have deprecated if she could; a prayer sent down for her by her friend Carl Nau; and, opening the service, the slow, poignant movement from Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, which she loved; and closing the service a cutting from the joyously melancholy first movement of Tchaikovsky's Pathetique Symphony, which she liked to hear, in certain moods, on the phonograph, then the Lord's Prayer by her friends in High School.

That was all.

For her pallbearers only her friends were chosen: her Latin teacher, W. L. Holtz; her High School principal, Rice Brown; her doctor, Frank Foncannon; her friend, W. W. Finney; her pal at the Gazette office, Walter Hughes; and her brother Bill. It would have made her smile to know that her friend, Charley O'Brien, the traffic cop had been transferred from Sixth and Commercial to the corner near the church to direct her friends who came to bid her good-by.

A rift in the clouds in a gray day threw a shaft of sunlight upon her coffin as her nervous, energetic little body sank to its last sleep. But the soul of her, the glowing, gorgeous, fervent soul of her, surely was flaming in eager joy upon some other dawn.
**

NB Folks, I tried to post a photo, but the system won't let me.  Just put her name in a Google search and you'll find her.

Danny Explains Him to Us

I received an email from my cousin that included this.  I don't know who wrote it ,or if assigning the authorship to an 8-year old is accurate.  But I think it's a good idea to repeat it here.  If only our Liberal friends had such an understanding, we'd have less strife in our lives.  Enjoy and Think!

It was written by an 8-year-old named Danny Dutton, who lives in Chula Vista, CA. He wrote it for his third grade homework assignment, to 'explain God.' I wonder if any of us could have done as well?
(And he had such an assignment, in California, and someone published it...
I guess miracles do happen!)

EXPLANATION OF GOD: 'One of God's main jobs is making people. He makes them to replace the ones that die, so there will be enough people to take care of things on earth. He doesn't make grownups, just babies. I think because they are smaller and easier to make. That way he doesn't have to take up his valuable time teaching them to talk and walk. He can just leave that to mothers and fathers.'

'God's second most important job is listening to prayers. An awful lot of this goes on, since some people, like preachers and things, pray at times beside bedtime. God doesn't have time to listen to the radio or TV because of this. Because he hears everything, there must be a terrible lot of noise in his ears, unless he has thought of a way to turn it off.'

'God sees everything and hears everything and is everywhere which keeps Him pretty busy. So you shouldn't go wasting his time by going over your mom and dad's head asking for something they said you couldn't have.'

'Atheists are people who don't believe in God. I don't think there are any in Chula Vista . At least there aren't any who come to our church.'

'Jesus is God's Son. He used to do all the hard work, like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn't want to learn about God. They finally got tired of him preaching to them and they crucified him. But he was good and kind, like his father, and he told his father that they didn't know what they were doing and to forgive them and God said O.K.'

'His dad (God) appreciated everything that he had done and all his hard work on earth so he told him he didn't have to go out on the road anymore. He could stay in heaven. So he did. And now he helps his dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones he can take care of himself without having to bother God. Like a secretary, only more important.'

'You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to help you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time.'

'You should always go to church on Sunday because it makes God happy, and if there's anybody you want to make happy, it's God!

Don't skip church to do something you think will be more fun like going to the beach. This is wrong. And besides the sun doesn't come out at the beach until noon anyway.'

'If you don't believe in God, besides being an atheist, you will be very lonely, because your parents can't go everywhere with you, like to camp, but God can. It is good to know He's around you when you're scared, in the dark or when you can't swim and you get thrown into real deep water by big kids.'

'But...you shouldn't just always think of what God can do for you. I figure God put me here and he can take me back anytime he pleases.
And...that's why I believe in God.'

(If you believe in God, please pass this on, and may God bless you too.) Have an awesome day, and know that someone has thought about you!

NCAA Can Dare to Be Great!

In watching the NCAA basketball tournament games on Television, I'm confused and disconcerted about a couple of things. 

The leftist teaching in many of our schools bends over backwards to skew the truth in forcing 'fairness.'  They do this by helping only specific 'minorities' to a what is thought to be an equal level with the successful [but it's only temporary until they fall back to their own levels.  The best way to treat a minority is the same as the majority: no more, no less.] as the only ways for making good citizens.  Well, their confused and biased teaching doesn't help anyone in particular except those with their hands out.  And even then, only for a short time.  But apparently, this type of confusion is a bit different with NCAA sports.

I've watched unnecessary and uninteresting blowout games with the condescending announcers insulting the smaller teams.  The Connecticut women blew out their opponent by 68 points!  Baylor won by 42; Purdue by 34; Notre Dame by 33; and Penn State by 30.  In the men's brackets, Louisville won by 31, Ohio State by 25, VCU by 42, Florida by 32, and Syracuse by 47, Michigan by 25 over VCU which had won by 42.  These aren't basketball games, these are western duels with a six-gun against a pea shooter.  And the winners don't impress me as much as then could when they get assigned sweetheart games.

The NCAA must make the necessary changes to create more parity and more opportunity.  Expanding the brackets, especially with play-in games [and stop calling the first round the second round; we viewers all know you're full of it], won't solve the problem.  Getting down to Earth about who plays whom to determine the Best IS a solution.

So change the brackets to reflect more parity through the early rounds.  If you're destined to win it all, you shouldn't fear playing against anyone early.  And you must play your best in all games because one slip sends you packing.  Remember, this is a win-or-out tournament.

My suggestions will make for more evenly matched games among the teams playing through the first and second rounds.  That gives EVERY team a chance to win one or two games, pleasing their fans, and making Television viewing more interesting.  And the announcers can stop siding with the higher ranked team---something done on a regular basis.  In many cases they insult the efforts of the lower ranked teams and their programs.  Many of these lower ranks are drawing from a student population of 2000-5000, and not 30,000-50,000 like some of the big name colleges and universities---mostly government supported.  And those number differentials add up to a big recruiting and alumni difference---though there are more smaller colleges with alumni more spread out around the Country.

Washington's Obama hates the rich and successful, and he wants to tax, tax, tax them and reduce their footprints no matter what it does to the success and security of out Country.  But, he supports the NCAA and the unfair practices in the annual Basketball Tournament.  He even uses 'filling-out-the-brackets' as an excuse to not do his job.

The first suggestion is to stop stuffing the ballot box by playing a major team near it's hometown and making the smaller colleges travel farther than their following can reasonably go.  Support is good, but overwhelming support for major teams is an unfair practice.  And you Liberals, Socialists, and Communists out there should understand it.  One of the announcers even said that the NCAA was 'in parity.'  What World does he live in?  In the second round, Ohio State met Iowa State in Dayton Ohio.  The local support for Ohio State was unfair and so loud as to make the Iowa team deaf.  I'm all for home support, but the NCAA has stacked the odds for the bigger name schools.  In that game, there were plenty of Iowa State supporters, but Ohio State was still overwhelmingly favored by the home court advantage.

Number two is to teach announcers their jobs anew; and this time include English Grammar.  They aren't hired to be cheering sections for their favorite teams---or are they?.  They should announce fairly and give the information necessary to know and understand the game and both teams on the court.  I'm not interested in the kid spending most of his life in a mascot uniform or a plethora of mothers or ex-NCAA players or interrupting the game with continual updates---when you have the score bar at the top of the screen.  Stick to the game and the players---on both sides, and make the calling of it interesting.  And the announcers should stop interviewing coaches and players until they say something that isn't hackneyed, nonsensical, or shows their lack of a grasp of English.

Thirdly, change the brackets.  Currently, the NCAA has matches of: 1-16; 2-15; 3-14; 5-12; 6-11; 7-10; and 8-9, the latter generally being the only real competitive game in the group.  I suggest: 1-8; 2-7; 3-6; 4-5; 9-13; 11-16; 12-15; 10-14.  This bracketing provides more competitive games all through the brackets and rounds [there are only four Mr Announcer] and a fairer chance for the smaller schools.  As it is now, too many games are like a 6' 10" center playing one-on-one with me, at 5'5".  Let me play against shorter guys first.  If you're going to 'have to' the smaller, weaker teams in the Tournament, let them play each other first.  Give them a taste of victory in the first round before they're eliminated.  And make sure the Women's games and those from the NIT listen to same criticism and suggestions.

Instead of the second round, Louisville would meet Colorado State in the first.  Duke would meet Creighton.  Kansas would meet North Carolina.  Indiana would meet North Carolina State.  Gonzaga would meet Pittsburgh.  Miami would meet Illinois.  Ohio State would meet Notre Dame.

The smaller schools would have a better chance in the first round by playing closer teams.  The second and third round will winnow out the weaker teams.

Thus, Belmont would play Iona.  Ole Miss would play Southern.  California would play James Madison.  Akron would play Western Kentucky.  Minnesota would play Florida Gulf State.  Bucknell would play Pacific.  And Oregon would play North Carolina A & T.

And these major teams shouldn't worry about being upset.  If you can't beat every comer, then they can't make a believable Champion.  The advertisers should love these more competitive games, and the networks should love the ad revenue.  And the fans would champion the games as well.  After all, there are more small colleges that major ones.

In the Honesty-is-the-Best-Policy corner, I acknowledge that I am an Iona graduate.  But, even if the Gaels had beaten Ohio State [a minor miracle], I'd have the same thoughts about the fairness of the brackets and calling of the games.

Bond, Vladimir Bond

* Does anyone but me think Daniel Craig looks like Vladimir Putin?

He's not a good choice for 007 at all.

* I can't use Cialis.  I won't dance around at the beach, walk in the rain, sit in bathtubs on the beach, or watch my wife dance on one foot in the kitchen.  Besides, the name reminds me of my childhood and my friend Alice.......

* A while ago I wrote a piece about Progressive Insurance Company, and how it and it's CEO, Peter Lamb, are die-hard Liberal proponents.  Lamb is good friend of George Soros's and  his type of  Liberalism.

Update:
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/b-s-of-a-s-matt-fisher-details-insurance-nightmare-the-guy-who-killed-my-sister-was-defended-by-progressives-legal-team/

* http://www.usdebtclock.org/

US Debt Clock:

$16,732,242,000,000

This is an estimate of the National Debt as of 3/20/13.  The clock is constantly in motion and updating the figures.

Also includes: Fed spending; fed budget deficit; fed tax revenue; state revenue; state spending; state debt; Interest; monetary base; us population; official unemployed; actual unemployed; us workforce; fed employees; state employees; unfunded us liabilities; etc.

US Gross Domestic Product for the same date and time:

$15,656,499,000,000

And Obama this very week said we have no debt crisis!  Very frightening display of anti-Americanism and stupidity!


* These insurance companies advertising policies for funeral expenses continue to put out the myth of Government benefits.  Social Security only pays a benefit of $255 to a widow with children under 18.  If you're a growing-older codger like me with grown children, there's nothing to receive. Even so, I still recommend an insurance policy to cover related death expenses.  Just understand going in that answering those three or four health questions truthfully can easily make you ineligible for the insurance except at very high rates.  And lying in the answer can invalidate the policy---and don't you think the insurance company won't do just that!

* [Late 1950s or early 1960s] Does anyone out there remember turning on WALL [local radio station] and hearing the story of 'Rindercella,' the pransome hince, the micked wepstother, two sisty step uglers, and the gary modfother?  And a few years later, we were treated by Archie Campbell [Hee Haw] to the 'Christ Before Nightmas' and the 'Pee Little Thrigs?'  I think Rindercella's fame and popularity lasted a month or so.  Yet, I still remember that day, what the kitchen looked like, and where I was standing.  I can't remember things like that today in my own apartment a few days ago!

* There's a product called 'No No' being advertised on television.  It's supposed to remove unwanted face and body hair and keep it away.  All the excess of words are there to convince you it'll work and solve all your problems---effortlessly and completely.   BUT!  And this is my big 'but.'  What about those with true 'hair problems' and not the vain and fashion conscious among us?  Will 'No No' help those poor souls suffering from hypertrichosis or hirsutism?  These poor souls go about their lives with dark hair all over their bodies to varying degrees.  Does 'No No' meet the expectations of 'diathermy' or 'thermolysis?'  Combined with weekly shaving, can 'No No' treat these conditions with some expectation of social acceptance for removing body hair?  That's an important application that the 'No No' advertising and website do not address.  I think the people affected with hypertrichosis or hirsutism deserve to know whether or not 'No No' is going to free them from their condition---even if it isn't permanent.

* Most of us don't realize that our public officials are required to take an oath of office.  Shown below are the major ones.  Makes you wonder why the President, Senators, Representatives, and administration employees aren't being automatically ousted for their un-Constitutional activities.

President's Oath:

    “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”


Vice President's and U S Senator and Representative and other U S Officials Oath:
   
    I, +++++, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

U S Supreme Court Justice and other Federal Judges:

    "I, +++++ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me as +++++ under the Constitution and laws of the United States. So help me God."

U S Military Officer:

    I, +++++ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

U S Military Enlisted:

    "I, +++++ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."

Can you remember the last time one of the above really supported the U S Constitution against all attacks---and wasn't punished by the President and his lackeys?

* I'm continuing with my research on a very interesting subject that will provide fodder for many different posts---though not consecutively.  I apologize for being so late with my blogs.  I get immersed in my research sometimes and sense nothing else.  And now with March Madness in my blood-----well.  I'll try to do better.  Thanks friends.

In Which I Eulogize My Brother

"Death is the golden key that opens the palace of eternity.”  – John Milton


Christmas Eve 2012. 

Ed Turi, 73, was found in his apartment that morning and pronounced dead at 11:45 am.  He was found by his friend Scott.  The Death Certificate states he died of cardio-pulmonary arrest, congestive heart failure, and long term coronary artery disease.  The doctor thinks he died quickly enough to feel little or no pain.  These problems were far more extensive than he let on to me previously.  I also think he died because of extreme stress and a sense of giving up.  His problems caught up with him, and he couldn't handle them.

I'm writing this as his brother and executor.  We lived many miles apart and rarely saw each other---but we did spend time on the telephone.

When Ed spoke to me of his health difficulties, he implied they were of relatively minor importance---despite the pain and breathing difficulties he told me he suffered.  That was like him.  Ed was very private and kept much to himself.  Too much it seems.  I think, to a certain extent, Ed was embarrassed by his ill health and other problems, and he didn’t want to talk about them.

He apologized to me as a brother and as a Turi for his legal difficulties last year.

I have many good memories of Ed.  And I'd rather dwell on them than any of his problems.  In the 1950s, Ed used to take us siblings to the Orange County Fair during an afternoon when kids were admitted free.  Ed would keep us occupied until after five when Dad and Mom would arrive and we’d have dinner at one of the Italian food tents and visit the exhibits and ride the rides.

Dad, who was a member of a local baseball team in the 1930s [the Hubbies], taught baseball to Ed.  Ed taught me.  And he taught me our sibling mainstay: flies and grounders.  [One hitter and two fielders; first fielder to get three flies or five grounders changed places with the hitter.]  We three boys played that on the St Joseph’s field---which was across the street---night after night, even to the darkness.  Ed was a Yankee fan, but I forgave him and played ball anyway.

Complicating matters were the baseballs.  Having little money to spend on such things, we made them last---wrapping the damaged and unraveling hulks with Dad’s sticky black, double-sided tape from his tool box.  So, you can imagine our difficulty with a black ball in the dark sticking to our hands all the time---but we plodded through these problems over the years with no serious injuries. 

Ed didn’t mind it, either.  He kept hitting balls over the fence into the back yards of Eldred Street homes---and then Jack and I sat and talked while Ed walked around the block to the back yard to recover the ball.  Occasionaly, he took so long we believed he had a girl friend there.

Sometimes he climbed the fence.  It just depended on his store of energy at the time.  If we absolutely needed a new ball, we searched the grass in the right field area [a steep decline] for a few days and would often find a newer one someone else lost.  Then the cycle to black-taped-remnant would start anew.

Sometimes, Ed and Jack played with Paul Cartman and Mickey Kravack.  Once it got dark, they’d congregate right across the street at the fire hydrant.

Ed had a habit of picking up little stones and hitting them in the air with a bat.  The main result was pitting marks all over the meat of the bat to go with the marks from the black tape.  But on one night, the bat missed the stone and connected with Mickey’s head.  And Ed had a Babe Ruth 33oz bat!  Mom fixed Mickey up, and the stone hitting stopped---at least at the fire hydrant talks.

During my high school years, Ed once volunteered to act as a chaperone for one of my class trips---this one to Rye Playland.  Although he was friendly with all of us on the bus ride, we didn’t see him at all during the day, which suited him and was our idea of a good chaperoning.

I knew more about Ed in those days.  He was a big fan of Brenda Lee and Doris Day, which didn’t exactly match the aloof aura he wished to project.  In recent years he added Hollie Steel, Jackie Evancho, and Celine Dione to his likes.

On the political front, he indicated he was an Independent with common sense.  And he counted among his favorite pundits and politicians: Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, Sean Hannity, Michele Bachman, John Boehner and Martha MacCallum.  He was a patriotic soul who supported our troops, Fox News, and Arizona in every way.  That sound more like a Conservative.

Ed’s favorite quote was:  “I limit myself to 1 drink a day. Right now I am 5 months ahead.”  He thought it was hilarious.  His second favorite was:  "I'm going nucking futs!"  He used both as sign-offs on his emails.

He was a good poker player in our penny ante games with Vince Smith and our Uncle Bill Stevens.  And he was a worthy Pinochle opponent.  The two of us played plenty of that as well as another card game, Casino.
He taught me hearts as well. 

In recent years, Ed played poker online, usually winning.  But the stakes were more akin to penny-ante based on the winnings he told me about.

We played chess by mail when he was in the Air Force, but we never finished a game.  Procrastination on both our sides usually destroyed the games in progress.

After retiring, Ed spent a great deal of time with his son, Kevin.  They both favored baseball and NASCAR, and they traveled to many places across the Country and attended [and Kevin participated successfully in] the local Special Olympics.

Ed’s at peace now, and all his problems are behind him.  He was something of a worry wart in his later years, but he refused to follow instructions from his doctors and lawyers.  He just wouldn’t give up smoking or drinking---or anything else, though he did it mostly at home. 

We talked a lot, and he listened to my suggestions---and then often went out and did pretty much what he was going to do anyway.  I did my best, though I knew he’d possibly ignore me---in most cases, that is.  I did succeed in a few.

I think I know about how all this fits in together.  You see, Ed very much hated having to live in Middletown [NY].  The only thing keeping him here was the nearness of his son, Kevin.  Ed had a great love for his son, and Kevin returned it fivefold.  They had a strong relationship.  And I think having Ed as his father, gave Kevin more strength to deal with his personal difficulties more easily.

Ed never explained his desire to leave Middletown, but I think he wanted his last days to be somewhere not Middletown---where he grew up.  He spent so much time in Europe and other American States while in the Air Force, perhaps he just wanted to be somewhere like that again.  He also wanted more friends to be near.

As noted above, Ed and Kevin traveled to numerous places around the Country during their vacations.  Between the two, they took numerous pictures, and Ed uploaded many of them to various sites for everyone to see.

Ed rarely talked about his military career, but he did go back to the Air Force after a one-year civilian layoff, and he retired after twenty years total service between 1959 and 1980.  He served at Lackland AFB; Keesler AFB; Travis AFB; Sembach AB in Germany; Johnson Island in the Pacific; I think the Kaiserslautern Army Unit in Germany as well; and others.  He retired as a Top Sergeant, after serving as an Automatic Tracking Radar Technician and a Morse Systems Operator over the years.

I discovered Ed had earned a number of medals and honors over his 20 years:  Air Force Good Conduct Medal with 4 bronze loops; Small Arms Expert Marksmanship ribbon; Air Force Longevity Service Ribbon with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters; Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with 2 Devices; Army Occupational Medal; and of course the National Defense Service Medal.

Considering I know he used to raise hell when out on passes to the local towns, I’m a little surprised at the Good Conduct longevity.  But, perhaps the stories I heard were wrong or exaggerated.  If Ed was honored, then Ed deserved the recognition.

When I was first ill in the 1990s, my parents helped me survive with moral and financial support.  Ed---without being asked---sent me money as well.  He helped me get through the worst time of my life, a time when my illness led to the loss of all my assets and resources.  I can thank Ed for his help in my surviving until I could start turning things around.

Ed left a modest estate because of his one mistake, albeit a major one.  And he had to sell everything of value to pay for his health and legal expenses.  But don’t count Ed out.  He left his mark by serving honorably in the United States Air Force, being a good brother, and assisting his parents and his youngest brother in their times of need. This and his help for his son all combine to make him a hero in my eyes.  He has a major place in my heart [despite his failings] along with Mom and Dad.


"His wings are gray and trailing, Azrael, Angel of Death;
And yet the souls that Azrael brings Across the dark and cold,
Look up beneath those folded wings,
And find them lined with gold.”
       
- Robert Gilbert Welsh


Ed will be missed very much.  And he’ll remain in the memories of many for a long time.  Good-bye Ed.  I love you.

Stan and Ollie for Christmas

I watched Laurel & Hardy's 'March of the Wooden Soldiers' today for about the millionth time since I was a toddler.

Per Wikipedia [mainly correct]:  "Babes in Toyland is a Laurel and Hardy musical film released on March 10, 1934. The film is also known by its alternate titles 'Laurel and Hardy in Toyland,' 'Revenge Is Sweet' (the 1948 European reissue title), 'March of the Wooden Soldiers' and 'Wooden Soldiers' (in the United States).

"Based on Victor Herbert's popular 1903 operetta 'Babes in Toyland,' the film was produced by Hal Roach, directed by Charles Rogers and Gus Meins, and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Originally filmed in black-and-white, the film is also shown in two computer colorized versions.   [I also enjoy the colorized version.  Stan always said that of all the L&H movies, he wished 'Babes' had been made in color.]

"Although the 1934 film makes use of many of the characters in the original play, as well as several of the songs, the plot is almost completely unlike that of the original stage production. In contrast to the stage version, the film's story takes place entirely in Toyland, which is inhabited by Mother Goose (Virginia Karns) and other well known fairy tale characters."

When I was a kid, the B&W movie was shown every Thanksgiving morning at 11am on local WPIX.  It became a tradition for me to watch it.  Dad was reading the print off the paper.  Mom was preparing dinner.  Ed and Jack were off to the annual football game of Middletown v Port Jervis [all NY.]  Little Mary Anne was helping Mom.  So, the television was mine.

We had one of the first televisions in our neighborhood, so this movie and the daily Junior Frolics [Farmer Gray and other cartoons] were my staples on TV.  Also: Kukla, Fran and Ollie; Captain Video and His Video Rangers; Captain Midnight; Roy Rogers and Dale Evans; the Lone Ranger; etc.

And I watched with my disabled grandmother Hopalong Cassidy, Kate Smith, and Liberace---all on in the mid to late afternoon.  She lived alternately with us and her son and other daughter.

But my greatest memory, of course, was enjoying 'The March of the Wooden Soldiers' with my favorite comedy team.  And I thank Stan and Ollie for destroying the fearful concept of the 'boogeyman' for me.  In seeing the movie, I could recognize how phoney the 'boogeymen' were and how ridiculous Stan and Ollie were in fighting them, thus reducing any fright I might have had for the term or threat.  Any future reference to 'boogeymen', then, had no real scare value against me---even when my parents used the term in an attempt to keep me in line.

So, the 'boogeymen' are gone, the Mayan scare is gone, and I'm preparing to watch the Midnight Mass from the Vatican on Christmas Eve/Christmas morning.

My best wishes to all of you out there in cyber-land for a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  And may you have many more.

Vote Twice, Nobody'll Notice

A Democrat victory in the elections doesn't suddenly make them smart and sane.  Democrats/Liberals are still insane by definition.  They act that way.  As they say, the inmates are running the institution.  And President Obama won re-election yesterday---sort of.  It's hard to acknowledge or congratulate any Democrat for winning because of the way they usually do it: lying; vicious advertising; misrepresenting the opponent; racism [voting for Obama because he's black]; intimidation [Black Panthers]; fraud; voting dead people; voting multiple times; hats and murals of Obama in the polling rooms.  These types of voting fraud have been the hallmark of Democrats for decades.  It's a reason why they keep attacking voter ID laws.  No state with voter ID laws went to the Democrat side.  They had honest results there.  The Democrats just worry about having a cheating door closed on them. 

Now, don't take these just for sour grapes.  These comments are based in reality---provable if Obama voters had taken the time to understand them.  America is at a crossroads, and it took the wrong turn.  I worry that our economy society, and yes our very survival is not guaranteed or protected anymore.  The public deficit and debt is beyond our ability to pay, and Obama has no ideas other than to increase both, spend money, raise taxes, go on vacation, and play golf.  Get ready for Sandy every day in many parts of the Country.  Those strange pc items you see in the news periodically detailing ridiculous activities will soon become the norm.

Our Country has shot itself in the foot.  The work of the Founding Fathers, and the lives lost over the years protecting our society, our god-given rights, and our lives and liberty have all gone for naught.  We've thrown it all away for cell phones and other free stuff from that guy in the White House.  Is this why I spent five years in the Navy helping to protect our collective America?  I didn't think so then and I don't think so now.

As one pundit has said, America is dark on election night.  I agree.  The chance of saving the Country is now so slim as to be disregarded.  With Obama the incompetent socialist/Muslim leading the charge, the economy will continue to deteriorate, our military will continue to be cut, our freedoms will erode, and Big Sis and her cohorts will come knocking on more and more doors, the takers in the Country will continue to multiply with welfare programs unending, unemployment will rise, abortions will continue with abandon, Obama will force the taxpayers to supply the Sandra Fluke's of the Country with free birth control, Social Security and Medicare will continue to deteriorate as the Liberals raise the payments regularly, Obamacare will ruin our Medical System.  the Muslim influence will increase, the southern invasion will continue, the UN will become more and more involved in our daily lives, and the Supreme Court will have more little Obamas to further destroy the Constitution.  I hope I'm wrong.  But, I don't think so.

Application Form for Candidates for the Offices of Representative, Senator and President of the USA

[If you don't have time to require a candidate to fill this out, or if the candidate continues to stonewall, then ask yourself these questions about your candidate.]

This test must be completed by the candidate [not a staff member] at one time, at a controlled location, without staff around, and with independent proctors.  Answer the questions without evasion. Time limit is two hours.  The candidate must go through an airport-type full body scan before answering the essay questions.  Appropriate official documents must be included with each test.  The test will be signed at the end to indicate the candidate's true beliefs are presented within, and he/she will not be permitted crib notes, televisors, or other assistance in answering.  All cell phones will be confiscated for the duration of the exam.  The answers and documents will be reviewed by an independent group.  All answers and copies of documents will be released to the public.  Proctors must be vetted by the FBI and CIA prior to form completion time.

1.    Where were you born?  Under what circumstances?  Who were your parents and grandparents?  Answer in detail.  Did you go to high school?  Where?  Who paid the tuition?  How?  Did you go to college?  Where and for how long?  How did you pay the tuition?  Did you graduate?  [submit a transcript and copy of your diploma; submit an official Birth Certificate, and not a certificate of birth that doesn't mean anything.]  Did you go to graduate school?  How long?  Did you receive a diploma?  How was the tuition paid?

2.    What is your view on abortion?  Do you believe in infant life or death?  Do you blame an innocent child for the circumstances surrounding its conception?  Expand your answer and give details.  How would you respond to the following?:  Abortion is not the murder of a human being.  Abortion is the murder of a human being.  Euthanasia and assisted suicide are viable actions for a modern society.  Answer in some detail.

3.    What is your view on the size and scope of the Federal Government?  Give details.  Do you believe in unlimited taxes on Americans [especially the wealthy] to finance Congressional or Presidential mandates? How much is enough for a Federal Debt?  Where do you draw the line? How can we best reduce the debt and annual deficit and should we?  How do you view pork and earmarks?  What is the relationship between the States and the Federal Government?

4.    Are you a Socialist or Communist or Liberal or Progressive or Conservative or Libertarian or other term?  Give examples of your political experience that shows what your ideology really is and why you believe in it.  Provide examples of political positions you have held.  What is your political history?

5.    What are your qualifications for this office?  Be specific in your giving of details.  What is your prior political or management experience?  How does this qualify you for this new elected office you want?    Do you believe that judicious bribery is needed to complete political ends?  Where would you be comfortable with such an action.

6.     Do you take an oath to protect the Constitution as it is written or as you want it to be?  Please be specific and expand on your answer.  What are your views on Constitutional amendments?

7.    Do you support all parts of the Constitution---including the amendments---as written?  What part[s] of the Constitution are you against and not likely to protect?  And how is that affected by your oath?  Please expand your answer and give examples.  For example, the second Amendment to the Constitution reads: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."  How do you understand and support this?

8.    What is your position on welfare?  Will you help rein in the costs?  Will you hold fathers responsible for providing support and not disappearing into the sunset?  Will you deny persons the collecting welfare when they don't need it?  What is your position on ILLEGAL immigration?  [Don't confuse it with legal immigration.]  Will you support the necessary protection of our borders and reduce illegal immigration logically?  What will you do to build and expand the economy to get people OFF welfare programs?

9.    Do you support our troops in all ways at all times?  [Disregard what their civilian orders are.]  How have you shown your support in the past?  What is your total view on the military?  Please expand your answers with specific examples.  In what branch of the military have you served?  If not, why not?  Don't you see it as an obligation to protect our Country and our freedoms?

10.    Our founding fathers were religious, and they included God in their writings and documents.  They only guaranteed rights in the Constitution.  They didn't create them.  Do you support God or Atheism in government? The 1st [read: predominate concern] Amendment to the Constitution reads:  "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."  Provide explanations of your beliefs in regard to this Amendment.  How does removing crosses from public places, prohibiting school prayer, or banning the use of the word 'God' in political discourse mesh with this 1st Amendment?  How do actions such as reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or singing the National Anthem in schools bother you or the children's education?  How do such banning actions not run afoul of of the First Amendment?

I _________________________ declare that the above answers are true to my beliefs and ideology and make no excuses for them.  I have not equivocated or evaded any answer, and I have not simply answered them to best serve my purposes in the upcoming election.  And I promise to resign any office I might be in if I ever deviate from this philosophy.

_______________________________________        The signature must be notarized.



Please Note for the Journalists:
    The Attitude of candidate when completing the essay questions.
    The Length of time taken to complete the essay questions.
    The Amount of sweat dripping from the face and forehead of each candidate.

From Community Organizer in Corrupt Illinois to President of the United States

These excerpts are from ''The Roots of Obama's Rage'' by Dinesh D'Souza, 2010, a NY Times bestseller.  They summarize quite well, what point we have reached in America and how.  Please read and understand before you vote.

*

p 128: ...begin...Obama is a miracle story in American politics.  How do you go from local politics in Illinois in 2004 to being a United States Senator from that state and a national celebrity at the Democratic Convention that same year, and President of the United States four years later?  Not only did Obama impress by winning; it was the way he did it.  in a sense, he rose above the field.  He became a genuine National and indeed a Global celebrity, a status that very few men---Gandhi and Mandela come to mind---have achieved on the World stage.  He flummoxed his critics, who flailed against him, and he stirred powerful emotions in his supporters, emotions that even they could not fully account for.  He inspired giddy excitement in the mainstream media; much of the coverage of his campaign read like press releases issued by his campaign.  It is Obama who is responsible for creating the Obama Choir, those hypnotized followers who routinely suspend their rationality when it comes to this political rock star.  Somehow the man consumed by the wars and hatreds of the World far away became, in a very different context, the embodioment of hope and aspiration for tens of millions of people who cheered for him and voted for him...

*

pp198-9: ...But the real situation is actually more incredible than Clinton ever imagined.  We are today living out the script for America and the World that was dreamt up not by Obama but by Obama's father.  how do I know this?  Because Obama says so himself.  Reflect for a moment on the title of his book: it's not ''Dreams of My Father'' but rather ''Dreams From My Father.''  In other words, Obama is not writing a book about his father's dreams; he is writing a book about the dreams that he got from his father...

...Think about what this means.  The most powerful country in the World is being governed according to the dreams of a Luo tribesman of the 1950s---a polygamist who abandoned his wives, drank himself into stupors, and bounced around on two iron legs (after his real legs had to be amputated because of a car crash), raging against the World for denying him the realization of his anti-colonial ambitions.  This philandering, inebriated African Socialist is now setting the Nation's agenda through the incarnation of his dreams in his son.  The son is the one who is making it happen, but the son is, as he candidly admits, only living out his father's dream.  The invisible father provides the inspiration, and the son dutifully gets the job done.  America today is being governed by a ghost...

...Now we can understand why President Obama seems so distant, detached, and even bored.  This is not merely a matter of ''acting white.''  It is also the result of Obama living in his time machine.  Obama inhabits a World of memories that harken back to continents far away and wars long ago.  It is a World of marauding colonial armies and guerillas hiding in the Aberdare mountains.  It is a World of pageantry and broken dreams...end

*

It is a World in which we Americans are becoming Third World Countries at the mercy of our former adversaries.  Where we, the former strongest Economy and greatest Democracy in the World are being led to play second fiddle to practically everyone as Socialism, Communism and Islam take over and fight for the World.  It is a scary future!

Democrat/Republican Differences Corrections

As the quadrennial Presidential elections race to meet us, I thought some random coverage of political thoughts about what is at stake would be appropriate.  And please don't even think the tired, old Democrat lie that the Republicans want 'tax cuts for the rich at the expense of the poor.'  This year the Democrats are even making it more scary with their 'raising the taxes on the middle class to fund tax cuts for the rich.'  As a matter of fact [and something very apparent to President Kennedy], across-the-board tax cuts ALWAYS increase tax revenue, so paying for tax cuts is a phony mantra.

***
Just to set the record straight because these comments are always being quoted out of context, this is an exact quote of the infamous "47%" comments of Mitt Romney, and you should understand it in context:

"Audience member: For the last three years, all everybody's been told is, "Don't worry, we'll take care of you." How are you going to do it, in two months before the elections, to convince everybody you've got to take care of yourself?

"Romney: There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. And I mean, the president starts off with 48, 49, 48—he starts off with a huge number.

These are people who pay no income tax. Forty-seven percent of Americans pay no income tax. So our message of low taxes doesn't connect. And he'll be out there talking about tax cuts for the rich. I mean that's what they sell every four years. And so my job is not to worry about those people—I'll never convince them that they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives. What I have to do is convince the 5 to 10 percent in the center that are independents that are thoughtful, that look at voting one way or the other depending upon in some cases emotion, whether they like the guy or not, what it looks like. I mean, when you ask those people…we do all these polls—I find it amazing—we poll all these people, see where you stand on the polls, but 45 percent of the people will go with a Republican, and 48 or 4…"
*
Note well that Romney does not mention Social Security and Medicare.  Those are not "entitlements" in the same vein as the welfare programs.  We already paid-in all our work lives for both of these.  And though many Social Security recipients don't pay income tax, they are not what Romney was talking about above.  There is a large 40s' percentage who will vote for Obama no matter what. 

Check out the You Tube video of the woman who will vote for Obama for more free things, like the telephone 'he' gave her.  So there are: those who want free things; those who don't want to work and will live on the taxpayer dime; black and white racists who will vote for him because he's black; those communists and socialists out there who recognize what Obama's ideology really is; those who vote Democrat no matter what; union members, whether their unions are communist led or not; those working in companies who were given largesse from the Federal Treasury---oh wait!  $Billions were sent to green companies, most of whom have gone bankrupt or are on the edge of oblivion.  So these are the people in the Obama camp: once again---the non-thinkers, the takers, the money wasters, the racists, the union members, the die-hard Democrats, the believers of the Democrat spin and lies put out by the campaigns.

My old friend Dave wrote to me in part:  "...Final point…I truly resent Romney’s comment on the fundraising tape about individuals “not willing to take responsibility for their lives.”  Does the fact that I receive Social Security and Medicare make me irresponsible?  Do you feel that way?  All things being equal, I do not wish to elect a man President who might potentially see me and millions of other individuals in such a light..."

So, once Dave understands the context of the Romney comments, and the fact that he wasn't talking about Social Security and Medicare recipients, he might see Mitt Romney in a better light. 

***
As transcribed and analyzed in Real Clear Politics:

Pat Caddell [Democrat public opinion pollster and a political film consultant.  In the past, he has worked with George McGovern; Jimmy Carter; Gary Hart; Joe Biden; Jerry Brown.  After an acrimonious lawsuit with a Democrat consulting firm, Caddell left the Democrat Party] recently gave a speech in an 'Accuracy In Media' conference.

'...I think we’re at the most dangerous time in our political history in terms of the balance of power in the role that the media plays in whether or not we maintain a free democracy or not...'

[re the Benghazi terrorist attack:]  'We've had nine days of lies over what happened because they [the White House] can't dare say it's a terrorist attack, and the press won't push this,' said Caddell. 'Yesterday there was not a single piece in The New York Times over the question of Libya. Twenty American embassies, yesterday, are under attack. None of that is on the national news. None of it is being pressed in the papers.'

"Caddell added that it is one thing for the news to have a biased view, but 'It is another thing to specifically decide that you will not tell the American people information they have a right to know.'

*
[a question from my Liberal friend in a recent email.  My comments are in the brackets:]

"I listened to the Caddell speech. I agree that the objective truth in reporting has been lost. *[Absolutely.]* There is a definite bias, but it cuts both ways."  [I don't think so.  The mainstream media is totally far left, and common sense and truth take a beating.  Anything not pro Obama doesn't always get covered.  As you say, objective reporting has
been lost.  It's been replaced with leftist ideology.  American listeners and viewers don't have a chance when they only hear one side of a problem or event, aren't told the truth or are misled, and generally are treated like lemmings.]

*
Peter Ferrara [Director of Entitlement and Budget Policy for the Heartland Institute; Senior Adviser for Entitlement Reform and Budget Policy at the National Tax Limitation Foundation; General Counsel for the American Civil Rights Union; and Senior Fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis; and he served in the White House under President Reagan.]  in Forbes during June 2012, noted that:  "...President Obama has led America into an accelerating downward spiral.  Destination: Argentina.  Last Friday’s calamitous jobs report was just a signpost on the way...

"...Argentina enjoyed the world’s fourth highest per capita GDP in 1929, on par with the U.S. at the time.  But then the nation lost its way through its embrace of a leftist, union allied government, which took control of the economy and imposed wildly irresponsible taxes, spending, deficits and debt.  After World War II, the hugely popular Juan Peron came to power and institutionalized the madness.  It has been all downhill for Argentina ever since.  Sound familiar?.."

***
John Hawkins is a Conservative columnist for 'Townhall', 'Linkiest', 'Pica Quote', and he has accounts with Facebook, Twitter, G+, Pinterest, and at Pajamas' Media.  His excellent articles on 25 examples of both situations indicated were posted on Townhall in August of this year.  25 Examples of life if Everyone were Liberal; and 25 Examples of life if Everyone were Conservative.

Examples of life if Everyone were Liberal:

3) Gas would cost $9 a gallon. Liberals would consider this a plus because it would cause more people to get tax credits to buy government subsidized $40,000 electric cars.

5) The corporate tax rate would be 15 percent higher, most American workers would be unionized and tax rates would soar. As a result, our economy would be stagnant and our unemployment rate would permanently be in the 10-20% range.

7) There would be price controls on electricity, gasoline, and most household goods. Of course, there would also be regular shortages of electricity, gasoline, and most household goods.

9) Conservatism would be considered hate speech that could draw a massive fine or even jail time for repeat offenders.

11) Wearing a cross, mentioning the Bible, or advocating Christian beliefs anywhere outside of a church would be illegal because it might "offend people."

13) America's military would be so weak we'd have to rely on Mexico and Canada to defend us from potential threats.

14) The Israelis would be driven into the sea, Taiwan would be swallowed by China, and Russia would begin to gobble up the countries that broke free after the Soviet Union fell[---because Obama had more flexibility after the election.]

17) Activists would be able to sue on behalf of individual plants and animals in court.

18) The government would control health care top-to-bottom. It would take six months to get an operation, which would be considered a feature, not a bug because a lot of old people would die in the interim and save the government money.

22) We'd have open borders and so many illegal aliens in the southern United States that California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas would end up being ceded back to Mexico.

Examples of life if Everyone were Conservative:

1) …There would be fewer regulations, lower taxes, a business-friendly environment, and a much smaller government that would lead to considerably stronger economic growth and job creation. In fact, we'd probably have to dramatically increase the number of work permits we hand out to foreign workers, not because there are "jobs Americans won't do" (which don't actually exist), but because so many Americans would be employed that we'd have to bring in more people to do all of the available work.

5) ...Welfare and food stamps would still exist, but there wouldn't be as much need for them, it would be considered shameful to take either, and you can be sure that people would have to work for every hand-out they receive.

8) ...We'd have the same sort of "loser pays" legal system that’s practiced in much of the rest of the civilized world. That would dramatically reduce the number of lawsuits and the cost of legal insurance.

11) ...The fence would be built, the border would be secure, anyone who overstayed his VISA would be tracked down and deported, and illegal aliens who did make it into the country would be forever barred from visiting here legally or becoming citizens.

12) ...Legal immigration would be faster, cheaper, and much more efficient. We'd also be selecting new American immigrants based on merit instead of rewarding people for breaking our laws or allowing them to come here because their son or cousin already managed to become a citizen.

13) ...English would be the national language.

17) ...All people would be welcome to practice their religious faith with no official state-run religion, just as the Founding Fathers intended. So, yes, you could have a manger in front of the town hall at Christmas and the Ten Commandments on a court house wall, and teachers in public school could teach from the Bible in class when it was appropriate.

20) ...Kids would start out school with the Pledge of Allegiance and a daily prayer.

22) ...You wouldn't have terrorists, communists, and people who hate America teaching at our universities.

24) ...We'd have safe water, safe food, clean air, and a clean environment, but we'd put an end to the years of legal challenges to new building projects and people having their land declared a "wetland" because the ground gets soggy for a few days a year.

25) ...There would be no public unions. Private unions would, of course, still exist, but no one would be forced to join and employers, if they so desire, would be able to fire everyone in the union and get a new work force.

***
Excerpts from the Voice of America News, we have a commentary of the differences between the Democrat and Republican Platforms.

Democratic, Republican Platforms Reveal Stark Policy Differences

"Here is a look at key provisions in both platforms...

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

Democrats:  Support "marriage equality" and efforts to secure equal legal treatment for same-sex couples;  Support full repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, a 1996 measure defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

Republicans  Support the Defense of Marriage Act;  Back the rights of states and federal governments NOT to recognize same-sex relationships licensed in other jurisdictions.

ABORTION

Democrats:  Support Roe versus Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.

Republicans:  Support a "human life amendment" to the Constitution;  Oppose use of public revenue to promote or perform abortion or fund organizations that do so.

HEALTHCARE

Democrats:  Oppose any efforts to privatize or set up a voucher program for Medicare, the U.S. healthcare program for the elderly;  Seek to expand health benefits and reduce fraud.

Republicans:  Vow to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the health reform legislation dubbed "Obamacare" by critics;  Seek to modernize Medicare and say the program, in its current form, is unsustainable.

IMMIGRATION

Democrats:  Want comprehensive immigration reform that would bring undocumented immigrants "out of the shadows," requiring them to "get right with the law, learn English and pay taxes" to be considered for citizenship.

Republicans:  Oppose any form of "amnesty" for those who "by intentionally violating the law" when entering the United States "disadvantage those who have obeyed it."

ECONOMY

Democrats:  Seek to extend tax cuts put in place under Republican President George W. Bush for Americans earning less than $250,000 a year;  Support the expiration of tax cuts imposed at the same time for those earning more than $250,000.

Republicans:  Seek to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for all Americans, pending reform of the federal tax code;  Want to rein in government spending and reduce regulations.

SMALL BUSINESSES

Democrats:  Call U.S. small businesses the 'engine of job growth in America.'  Support tax cuts for small businesses enacted by President Barack Obama.

Republicans:
-Call small businesses the 'backbone of the U.S. economy';  Seek to reform the tax code to allow businesses to "generate enough capital to grow and create jobs."

ENERGY

Democrats:  Seek to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign oil by developing domestic wind, solar, geothermal, nuclear and hydropower, biofuels, oil, clean coal and natural gas, as well as by increasing energy efficiency in buildings, industries and homes, and promoting "advanced" vehicles and fuel economy standards;  Want to protect "sensitive" public lands, including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, from exploration.

Republicans:
-Support opening the coastal plain of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for exploration.
-Seek allowances for more oil and natural gas exploration on federally owned and controlled land.

MIDDLE EAST HOT SPOTS

Democrats:  Iran: Support President Obama's commitment to 'using all instruments of national power' to keep Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Syria: Vow to work to end regime of President Bashar al-Assad and support a political transition.

Republicans:  Iran: Say the threat of a nuclear Iran has grown under President Obama because of a 'failed engagement policy';  Syria: Support a transition to a 'post-Assad Syrian government' that would be 'representative of its people.'

***
Film producer and marketing expert Mark Joseph, a self-proclaimed registered independent, says that despite more Republicans' increase ease expressing their political views, the majority of Tinseltown conservatives still prefer to keep their lips sealed.

“Liberals feel the freedom to be more outspoken about their beliefs whereas conservatives tend to keep their beliefs to themselves for fear of backlash," Joseph said. "My general rule in any election year is that I can tell who the conservatives are because they’re the ones who aren’t saying anything about either candidate. With each person who steps out for the GOP, whether it’s Clint Eastwood or Stacey Dash or Lindsay Lohan, whatever stigma there is, is lessened.”

***
"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."  - John Adams

"The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government."  - Patrick Henry

"Laws that forbid the carrying of arms... disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man.   - [Thomas Jefferson's 'Commonplace Book,' 1774-1776, quoting from 'On Crimes and Punishment,' by criminologist Cesare Beccaria, 1764.

"Americans [have] the right and advantage of being armed, unlike the citizens of other countries whose governments are afraid to trust their people with arms."  - James Madison

"The Constitution of most of our states (and of the United States) assert that all power is inherent in the people; that they may exercise it by themselves; that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed and that they are entitled to freedom of person, freedom of religion, freedom of property, and freedom of press."  - Thomas Jefferson

"We, the people are the rightful masters of both Congress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow men who pervert the Constitution."  - Abraham Lincoln

"I am for doing good to the poor, but I differ in opinion of the means. I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. In my youth I traveled much, and I observed in different countries, that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer."  - Benjamin Franklin, On the Price of Corn and Management of the Poor, November 1766

"Repeal that [welfare] law, and you will soon see a change in their manners...Six days shalt thou labor, though one of the old commandments long treated as out of date, will again be looked upon as a respectable precept; industry will increase, and with it plenty among the lower people; their circumstances will mend, and more will be done for their happiness by inuring them to provide for themselves, than could be done by dividing all your estates among them."  - Benjamin Franklin, letter to Collinson, May 9, 1753

Hail to Thee Oh Needashave!

Needashave is based on the bewhiskered old man with the green bike and saddlebags who often rode silently past my first, childhood home. It seemed he spray painted his entire bike green, including the wheels and saddlebags. We were across from the fenced-in O & W railway yards, and any traveler past our home was reason to run to the front and let fly our greetings. But, Needashave was a challenge. He never acknowledged the existence of anyone on our street that I ever saw. He patently ignored our waves of greeting, as he did any from other kids in the neighborhood. Actually, he ignored the adults as well. But we kept trying.

My home at 210 Cottage Street

And we never knew where he was going, though he rode his bike very smoothly and with a decided firmness of intention no matter the weather. No one I knew had ever seen him anyplace except our street, riding to or fro. From what Ed told me, Needashave was spending his last days living in a rock wall in the woods up the hilly street. And, of course, older brother Ed always told the truth to his much younger siblings [he saw it on the Internet?.]

Needashave's existence, albeit a harmless one, was used by Mom and Dad, jokingly, as the local bogeyman [we pronounced it boogeyman] when we needed chastisement for any wayward kid activities. But, knowing his aloofness as we did, we were far from terrified.

From what I could gather, this harmless soul lived alone somewhere up the hill, had only a bike for transportation, and was not interested in Middletown society, however modest. But, for me at least, he'll always be a childhood memory. "Hail to thee, oh Needashave!"

Hail to Thee Oh Needashave

Silent lane with breeze alive;
Powered chain and a one wheel drive;
Sun or rain---and that's no jive!
..........Rides along our Needashave.

Saddle bags with contents hid;
Passing crags with a no climb bid;
Zigs nor zags---but smoothly rid.
..........Rides along our Needashave.

Barber's bane, he'd use no blade;
Ragged mane of cut delayed;
Hirsute pain? Yet features staid.
..........Rides along our Needashave.

Railroad fence whizzing by;
Common sense tells you why:
“Riding hence, while always shy!”
..........Hail to thee oh Needashave!