I say yes, you say no, OR People are Strange

IllinoisLady

lassie11

Great news Glenna!

Linda, I think that the middle or near end of second year is time for a meltdown at university. To the student, it seems like they have been there forever and will need to be there for another forever to finish. By the next year, the end is in sight and things look better. Being ill makes it feel that much more impossible. I'm impressed by the fact that she called you and talked to you - says all sorts of good things about your relationship. Well done you!

I watch a little bit of all the news channels and find it calming to go back to the Canadian channels where there is much less yelling. The American ones clearly have more slanted news and one of them that slants to the right seems to have much less of a hold on facts. 

Bad back is my current reality and while it is improving with physio and daily exercises, I am getting quite annoyed with it all. Spring should bring sunshine, flowers and increased agility.

gardengumby

notself - the surgery your brother had sounds horrible.  I hope he is doing well. 

I tried smoking twice - each time I puffed about 2 puffs and went - this is AWFUL - and put it down.  I am so thankful that I never picked it up again.  I haven't treated my body terribly badly - other than being overweight for the last 20 years - but still managed to get cancer.  I don't eat junk food, or fast food, but I don't get enough exercise these days and haven't had enough sleep for it seems like forever.  I'll be glad to retire and get out of this stressful job, though!!

We watched the Ed Show last night.  I was so proud of the gentleman (I think his name is Scott Prouty) who filmed the 47% Romney comments.  Daylight needs to be shown (on both sides) to the differences between what is said in the public realm and what is said where they think they can safely make derisive comments about segments of the American public.

Gun Control.... I've thought about this and what I'd like to see is this:  background checks for anyone who purchases any kind of gun - no guns permitted for those who have violent offenses or specific mental health issues such as paranoid schizophrenia.  Nationwide gun laws, so that people who do have guns do not need to worry that they are breaking the law when traveling from one locale to another.  A ban of all high capacity (more than 6-10 shots) clips.  A ban of all assault weapons.  A requirement that anyone over the age of 10 who lives in a household where guns are owned must take a gun safety course with a requirement to renew the course at least once every five years.  A requirement that guns be stored in a secure manner that requires at least a combination, but preferably a biometric lock.  There were some other thoughts I had, but they seem to have fallen out of my brain at the moment.

The house is supposed to close on Monday, we've got an 8 month lease on a townhouse and probably about month 7 I'll finally have us organized....  then it'll be time to pack again.    I had a mini-meltdown yesterday when my hubby started talking about buying a townhouse in Tacoma.  Much of the time lately I just feel like I'm going nuts.  Hopefully it's just the letrozole taking its toll....

crazy4carrots

GG -- How about including the requirement to have insurance when purchasing a gun?  After all, a gun really only has one purpose, and that purpose is to kill.  No, not defend, not wound, not protect, but to KILL.  You need insurance to drive a car, and while careless/reckless driving can turn that car into a killing machine, its primary purpose to to deliver you from A to B and back again.

gardengumby

Hmmm - That's not a bad idea, but exactly what kind of insurance would you propose?  Liability???  Would that be so that if you shot someone that they (if they survived) could get insurance money? or if someone stole your gun and shot someone they couldn't come back on you?  Please explain, as I can see that I'm confused as to what good insurance would do.

Not to be difficult, but I would argue with you that a gun has only one purpose - to kill.  I have been a gun owner for many years, and I've never killed anything.  I like target practice.  Just like the primary purpose of a car is to move you from one place to another, yet there are cars that are never used for anything but driving around in a circle really fast....  As for defense - I know that my husband would argue that a gun is for defense - I personally would not, as I know that if I attempted to use a gun for defense that someone would take it away from me and shoot me with it.  I sincerely doubt that I could shoot a person - I can't shoot an animal (even though I like meat).

Oh yes - another thing that is IMO a mandatory portion of the law would be regular inventories by gun vendors, and a requirement to report any losses.  The only problem with that is that it would require periodic verification by the government (ATF), which is, of course more BIG GOVERNMENT  (yes, I'm being sarcastic).  Also, get teeth back into the ATF for the "F" part.

crazy4carrots

I would think liability insurance would be the right kind to have. And your insurance premium would be dependent on you, alone, using the gun.  This would be an extra step in insuring that the gun was under lock and key.  There are several arguments I've read for the inclusion of insurance -- but just can't think of them all now!

We may be talking semantics here  but I still hold that the primary (and yes, sole) purpose of a gun is to kill.  Skeet involves "killing" a make-believe bird, and Target involves killing a make-believe target.  Don't get me wrong -- I have no bones to pick with either skeet or target shooting!  I have shot both a rifle and a pistol (once each) at a target.

I've been reading about how many states are loosening their gun laws to make it so easy for people to walk around with a gun.  Some states are calling it "constitutional carry" laws.  To me, that's totally sick.  No way would I ever visit a state where that is allowed.  But I'm sure they don't care about tourist dollars.......their so-called "freedom" is all that's important to them, even though they don't have a clue about what real freedom is.

bluedahlia

I agree.  Was thinking about going down south but I think I'll go to the Dominican!

bluedahlia

bluedahlia

bluedahlia

For E!

bluedahlia

crazy4carrots

Gorgeous!

gardengumby

linda - I would again have to disagree about use of the gun.  If only the insured person could use the gun, that would mean (for example) in our household we would have to have MORE guns so that both hubby and I could shoot.  That doesn't make a bunch of sense to me.  Unless you mean the insurance would cover all the people in the household - which is probably what you meant.... 

But, the relaxation of the gun carry laws in many states is (IMO) borderline crazy.  It's too much of the wild west for my taste.  I don't go to bars, but isn't that just a dandy combination - guns and booze.  Road rage could take on an entire new life (or take away a few)... 

crazy4carrots

GG -- Interesting dialogue we're having!  Re insurance:  If you have two or more vehicles, you must have insurance for each of them.  The insurance policy you carry depends on whether or not you want each person able to drive the vehicle(s) under that policy, or only you.  Same with guns, I should think.  

Anyhow, it's a moot point, because it will never happen!

I saw a photo yesterday of a mother walking with her 3-yr-old, and a rife slung over her shoulder.  No, she wasn't walking in the woods, but on a town sidewalk.  Unbelievable!

suzieq60

Woke up pain free!!! so it's off to work today. TGIF!!!

Didn't end up going to bed as early as I wanted - another episode of Mad Men got in the way.

Wabbit

The thought that more and more people are out there carrying guns around makes me want to stay home.  Even normally rational people lose their tempers sometimes ... and a gun within easy reach is a recipe for disaster.

I totally expect a circle jerk shootout somewhere.  Guy 1 thinks Guy 2 is doing something so he fires at him ... Guy 3 sees Guy 1 shooting so he fires at him ... etc. etc. etc.  Maybe then all the would be Rambos will learn a lesson?  No ... probably not.

They are threatening us with an inch of so of mushy, messy rain/snow mix here.  And at the same time reminding us that this time last year it was 80 degrees outside.       

bluedahlia

Today is national Pi (∏) Day, commemorating the mathematical constant--3.14. We also acknowledge the birthday of Albert Einstein, a theoretical physicist who developed the general theory of relativity: E=MC². In addition to his work in physics, we celebrate Einstein's activism. As a member of the NAACP, he worked with other students at Princeton University to erase racism in America. In a letter to W.E.B. DuBois, he wrote "Race prejudice has unfortunately become an American tradition which is uncritically handed down from one generation to the next. The only remedies are enlightenment and education."

Enjoyful

One of the many problems with citizen gunslingers is that they're not trained to act as policemen, so my bet is they'll react emotionally and irrationally.  Take the theater shooting last year.  Some Republican politician said that if everyone else in the theater had been armed, less damage would have occurred.  Really?  Gunslingers are trained to assess a situation like that and react accordingly?  They wouldn't hit innocent bystanders or each other?  What if one of the gunslingers in the audience is an accomplice?  Then you have a free-for-all gunfight with NO winners. 

UGH.  This argument is oh so stupid.  

Enjoyful

Thank you for the horsey kisses, Blue!  Mwaaaah!

Enjoyful

Feh, what does Einstein know?  Just another scary smart person spouting sheeple kool-aid logic.

gardengumby

Linda - yes, interesting discussion, but as you say - most undoubtedly moot.  I sincerely hope, though that they will get at least SOME controls added to gun ownership during my lifetime. 

rifle+mother+child - some would practically think that was a picture of the Madonna!!!  (pointing no fingers...)

bluedahlia

I know E.  How dare that smartass mix logic with racism. Couldn't have been that smart.  Look how far we've come!  Wonder what he'd say about the guns!

pupmom

QuinnCat

Listening to Scott Prouty, again, on The Last Word.  This is an even better interview of the MVP of 2012.  So thoughtful, so smart about how he handled this video....  He saw right away the $50,000 a plate mentality Romney was spewing...expecting guests to gasp at Romney's words, but alas, THE BUBBLE, no gasps.   Like the girls in the Chinese factory, imprisoned, working long hours in horrible conditions, "saving for marriage", a situationRomney thought was a great idea, Romney had no awareness of the workers in the room that night while he spewed his vulture capitalism and disparaging all that in live in his class.....thankfully for the rest of "us schumucks" to hear.

Additionally, Scott Prouty saved a woman submerged in a car underwater.  I guess he is a hero in many ways.

1Athena1

'Morning, threademates.

Nice to see Krugman sounding hopeful - for once in a very long time. I include the beginning of his column, and the very end:

Way back in 2010, when everybody in Washington seemed determined to anoint Representative Paul Ryan as the ultimate Serious, Honest Conservative, I pronounced him a flimflam man. Even then, his proposals were obviously fraudulent: huge cuts in aid to the poor, but even bigger tax cuts for the rich, with all the assertions of fiscal responsibility resting on claims that he would raise trillions of dollars by closing tax loopholes (which he refused to specify) and cutting discretionary spending (in ways he refused to specify).

Since then, his budgets have gotten even flimflammier. For example, at this point, Mr. Ryan is claiming that he can slash the top tax rate from 39.6 percent to 25 percent, yet somehow raise 19.1 percent of G.D.P. in revenues — a number we haven’t come close to seeing since the dot-com bubble burst a dozen years ago.

The good news is that Mr. Ryan’s thoroughly unconvincing policy-wonk act seems, finally, to have worn out its welcome. In 2011, his budget was initially treated with worshipful respect, which faded only slightly as critics pointed out the document’s many absurdities. This time around, quite a few pundits and reporters have greeted his release with the derision it deserves.

.......

So where is this all going? Realistically, we aren’t likely to get a Grand Bargain any time soon. Nonetheless, my sense is that there is some real movement here, and it’s in a direction conservatives won’t like.

As I said, Mr. Ryan’s efforts are finally starting to get the derision they deserve, while progressives seem, at long last, to be finding their voice. Little by little, Washington’s fog of fiscal flimflam seems to be lifting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/15/opinion/krugman-after-the-flimflam.html?hp

Let's hope Krugman is right - he almost always is, after all!

1Athena1

And this is the type of president I am proud to have. Notice how the article says the proposal has bipartisan support, then goes on to say it may encounter opposition from congressional republicans - lol! Even the Grey Lady is apprearing to acknowledge that congressional republicans are out of the norm:

(Article in next post)

1Athena1

"WASHINGTON — With few options available for financing his clean-energy ambitions, President Obama on Friday will propose diverting $2 billion in revenue from federal oil and gas leases over the next decade to pay for research on advanced vehicles, White House officials said.

"Mr. Obama will visit the Argonne National Laboratory near Chicago to tour its state-of-the-art research facilities and to promote his idea, first proposed in last month’s State of the Union address, to use oil and gas money to find ways to replace hydrocarbons as the primary fuel for the nation’s cars, trucks and buses.

"The idea enjoys some bipartisan and business support, but is likely to encounter strong resistance from Congressional Republicans, who will portray it as a tax on energy producers. The White House says the money will come from growth in drilling revenue from leases on public lands and waters over the next decade and is not a new tax."

More here: http://www.nytimes.com

suzieq60

Just out of interest, how much does your health insurance cost? Got a letter this week, our private health insurance is going up $14 to $178 per fortnight. We can't give it up as we could never pay them back for what they have paid out on us, but it is getting really expensive. We can't do without it, I would hate to have to suffer the public hospital system here.

Good news, my back is still feeling good. Did my exercises this morning, but only put heat on it tonight - too much to do washing, changing sheets and cleaning our bathroom vanity.

1Athena1

Suzie, glad your back is better.

Enjoyful

Suzie - I pay about the same monthly but copays for prescriptions, doctor's visits, blood work and scans are additional.