Change For A Nickel

I don’t know about you but there are certain things that make me laugh no matter how many times I see them. Benny Hill can always make me laugh. That video where the woman is playing a video game then Linda Blair from The Exorcist pops on the screen. That’s funny shit. Oh, and any time I see George W. Bush give a speech. Extremely funny shit! But I have just noticed another thing that makes me laugh. People in Winnie the Pooh costumes. I can’t help myself. It started with the below picture of Mob wife and former Mayor of Cicero, Illinois Betty Lauren Maltese. Ms. Maltese has retired from her life as a mob wife, mayor and city cauffer swindler. She is currently cooling her jets in prison but I cut this picture out of the news paper and had to scan it. I laughed for a solid week.

The only thing funnier than that is this! Below is a picture of former Iowa Governor and presidential hopeful Tom Vilsack. I’ve seen this picture a dozen or more times but I bust a gut every time. Tell me this doesn’t look presidential! (I’m laughing right now as I type! )

I think this administration is trying to set a new record for most scandals per week.  The latest debacle that has consumed the oxygen in news rooms across the country is the firing of eight US attorneys.  The only talking points the administration can drum up are, ‘The situation was mis-handled’ and ‘The US attorneys serve at the pleasure of the President’.  They sound like a broken record.  Let’s talk about Alberto Gonzalez changing story!  He must be saying to himself, “Let me throw it out there and see what sticks.”  Sorry Gonzo, giant turds do not stick to the wall.  They smear, fall and still stink!

And I don’t know if anyone caught Gonzo being interviewed on NBC by Pete Williams, but how on Earth did this guy get a license to practice law?  The case he was trying to make was full of gaping holes.  At one point he says he is responsible and at another point he says he was not involved in the decision making!  Which is it??  I interpret this as either he did know and lied about the reasons why the attorneys were fired or he is incompetent and has no control over high ranking officials in the DoJ!  Either way he should be fired.  Period!  Hell, he should have common sense to step the fuck down.  It’s just making the President look bad and this country doesn’t need our President looking bad!!  But the fun hasn’t even begun.  Gonzo’s chief of staff was fired and says he’s going to testify (aka sing like a canary!).  And the latest tangle for the administration is the news that Monica Goodling, a justice department official is taking the 5th!  Naw, that doesn’t look bad at all.  This is better than watching a Spanish Novella!  I wonder what is going to happen today!!

Below are short videos I took with my cell phone while I was at the big anti-war march in Washington D.C. this past Saturday. Sorry for the shaky videos.

I’ve just arrived at the gathering site before the march.

In the march alongside Code Pink. I’m still trying to make my way to the front to march with the other veterans.

I’ve finally arrived at the head of the march where other veterans organizations are leading the march.

The rally continued on but I got too cold and am on the train platform on my way to the airport. There were a couple of guys with guitars who wanted to play but were told by a Metro official that there was no instrument playing on the platform. This prompted everyone to break out in song.

This past Tuesday I was downtown at Federal Plaza to see an exhibit presented by Eyes Wide Shut. If you did not get a chance to see it, it is a haunting display of the shoes (or representative) of Iraqis who have been killed in the war. They were arranged in different geometrical layouts from all ages and all sizes. There was also a display toward the middle that contained screens with pictures on both sides. In the middle each screen told a short story about the life of an average Iraqi and how they died. This display does not and can not do justice to that life but it does offer a small window into what is happening every day to real people.

Regardless of your views about this war there is one thing that is indisputable. This war and every war affects real people. It tears their lives apart. It impoverishes, humbles and wreaks havoc on all that it touches. The people portrayed in the exhibit were real people who’s light is lost forever. There are many numbers that officials quote when speaking of the death toll due to this war. Some say 50,000. Some say over 600,000. I ask one simple question. One? Is this war worth one life? Can anyone answer that?

This Saturday, March 17th I will be in Washington DC joining fellow veterans and others who want American troops out of what is now a civil war in Iraq. It is my firm belief that the illegal and immoral war we started can not be won by force. Iraq has now descended into a civil war as stated by officials in the Pentagon. I believe it is impossible to take sides in a war that has enemies of the US on both.

I feel damn good toady! I did my income taxes last week and Uncle Sam has been kind to a brother this year. Or should I say, that dead beat Uncle was taking too much damn money out of my check all year! At any rate, I got a nice phat return coming and just received it this morning. Basically, I got it back in 5 business days. That has to be a new record! I pledged right away to pay off a couple of credit card bills and another annoying bill that has been lingering like moldy cheese. It felt so good to pay two credit card bills off with a click of the button!

I planned to pay off some bills with my return last year but I think I had my eye on a laptop or some other shinny gadget. You know how much I love my toys. Fiscal discipline has been a challenge ever since I was in the service. Being in the Marine Corps was great. I got paid twice a month, didn’t have to pay rent, buy groceries, pay gas or electric bills. It was mad money! And if I blew my entire check in one weekend, big deal. I had a place to live, food to eat and my commute was within walking distance! Those footloose days ended some 16+ years ago and I think I’ve been holding on to a residual part of that life ever since. I’m still cruising into payday on fumes! I’m curious, what other people out there are using their income tax return money for? Assuming you are getting money back!

I will be in Washington DC March 17th for this historic event.