My first posting from Tokyo Japan. Liz and I arrived last week Tuesday after about 14 hours of flight time. Don and Akiko met us at the airport in Norita. I was about to find out what jet lag is all about. During this week we have toured Tokyo, met Akiko's father for lunch, ate sushi at an automated sushi bar, and walked far more then I have walked in years. Tokyo is so busy, so beautiful, and so confusing for this humble peasant from Muskegon Michigan. These people drive on the opposite side of the road, and their steering wheels are where the passenger should be. Everything is orderly chaos. The men all dress the same, as well as do the women. Individuality is definitely something only found in the states. With all this order, crime seems very low. They leave stuff right out in the open with no fear of theft. Their dogs are well trained pure breds, and their cat are ferrel. Their stores are always packed and there is more then enough sales people. Their police and ambulances stop at the red lights while on a call.
Japan state run health care seems to be a well oiled machine that work much better then our Republicans would tell us. In other words, the republicans are lying . These observations are only from one week here, and I plan on learning a whole bunch more. As Akiko delivers her baby I will write more about their health care system that requires the mom to stay 6 days in the hospital before going home.

Dr. Seuss 2011: I do not like this Uncle Sam, I do not like his health care scam. I do not like these dirty crooks, or how they lie and cook the books. I do not like when Congress steals, I do not like their secret deals. I do not like ex-speaker Nan, I do not like this 'YES WE CAN'..I do not like this spending spree, I'm smart, I know that nothing's free. I do not like their smug replies, when I complain about their lies. I do not like this kind of hope. I do not like it. Nope, nope, nope!

Save us from ourselves

I have enjoyed the last month or so just listening to the parties and their effort to raise the debt ceiling. They look like a bunch of blind monkeys looking to follow someone. Any positive move for economy would lose political power. The rich pay too much or too little, the poor are feeding of the hardworking Americans, the retired people are supporting the whole system with their retirement money, Social security is in trouble, and for some reason we are spending more then we take in, and it's all someone Else's fault. Well......I believe its the system that is at fault, not everyone else.
The fix is very simple.......stop spending more then we make. Our representatives, the people we elect into office need to use their brain. Instead they keep signing billions of dollars of pork while yelling ,"Save us from ourselves". Here is a good start, put down the pen. If any bills have pork, don't sign.
Social security is fine. It needs some fixes, but it is the strongest unit we have in the USA. Money has be used from this fund to help everyone else and was never meant to be drawn on for any other debt. It is an insurance fund that we pay into it for retirement and disability. That is what insurance does. We pay into it to be able to receive if needed.
Many people believe that eliminating unemployment,food stamps, and other forms of help will balance the budget. They want to kick these people into the streets with no new jobs in the market. This would be disastrous. Why not use these people who are collecting money and are able to work, give them local jobs. This has worked before.

I am confussed. The republicans want to cut our social security, tax our retierment, take away our voice via the unions, cut social programs like medicaid and food assistance. Let's see, those who are disabled and too old to work will have to find work in a market where there are no jobs. After big business was given bail outs and tax breaks, they turn around and ship jobs abroad, and raise prices on good and service and make huge profits. By raising prices, less people can afford their products, so they lay off more people...... Middle class and lower. You have to be more educated to get better jobs, but the cost of college education continues to rise out of reach. Grade school and high school education is being cut and no corrections being made.........wait....they are using China's business model. China is in the proccess of weeding out their poor people and infirmed people. China has sponsored the building of cities where the poor use to live, employing them to build it, and then pricing it too high for them to buy it.

When August 3 come around and there is no SSI checks, you will know that they have once again raided your Social Security again. Home forclosure will be on the rise again but that won't hurt the rich. Food lines will reach around the country, but the rich will eat just fine. They earned it.

.

Happy fathers day to my dad. He has been gone for a while now, but he still lives on in my heart. Happy fathers day to my son Don. His first child is not due for a few months, but I believe that he is a father. Happy fathers day to my son in law Chris. He is a great fathers to Vinny. Happy fathers day to Sean (tieson). Tieson is my "grand dog".
I have had the pleasure of being a father to many, my own kids, and those that I have adopted or friened.
Most of all is my Happy Fathers Day to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. God, every ones father, he who is both loved and hated, and still give his unconditional love to all. To all the fathers out there, happy fathers day. May you continue to love your children unconditionally.

blessed are the meek...............
or
the squeaky wheel get the grease.

Have I become a grumpy old man or have I just decided to play the system? There are so many positive thing in life to rejoice over, I feel bad when I complain about something. This week the trash men forgot to pick up my trash. Usually it is half full, but this time it was stuffed to the top. They must have driven by our house at least a dozen times. I put the trash out the night before so they can't say that it wasn't out there on time. Our driveway is on the side street and sometimes they skip it because it is not in front of the house. Do I bitch, or shut my mouth and see if I can smash the trash down, compact it for this weeks waste?

I've changed my title and hopefully some better topics. The picture is my wife, my grandson, my dog, and me. I like to blog to keep my mind active. I am a christian who does not know all the answers. I also do not believe that just because something is published, it is true. I also believe that memorizing the bible will not make me a better christian. I love a good sermon when it comes from the heart, not from quotes from someone elses book. I love my wife, my kids and their spouses, and my only grandson. I can truely say that I hate no one. I hate it when people confuse democracy with capitalism. I love the four seasons of the year that Michigan offers. I love my cardiologist who keeps my heart beating. I love my wife who keeps loving me. I love the house we own and never want to move. I hate white lies, big lies, and all types of spinning. I will gladly share my faith with you, but when it come to that final day and you are standing before God, you are on your own. There are too many experts in the world and I might just write a book on how to screw things up. Everyone else seems to write books on how to do things right. Finally, I can read the "muskegon chronicle" from begining to end in less then 10 minutes. I do not speed read.

Question Number One
What makes gas prices go up?
Answer
Any holiday (ground hog day is included), all weekends, and on everyones birthday. That's all.
Question Number two
Do we have an unlimited supply of oil?
Answer number two
Ask the oil companies. They are the experts in this.
Question number two revisted in a different way
Does a balloon full of air have an unlimited supply when you take air out but don't put air in?
Answer number two
Ask big business, they know all the answers.
Final question
Do we live in a democracy?
Final answer
Ask Oil and big business, they know all the answers.

WE SOLD OUR SOUL TO THE COMPANY STORE

Why am I so damn happy?

Someone asked me a few days ago If I was happy with my life. After fumbling for the right words, I came out with a not so convincing "Yes". I have now had a couple of days to think about it, and now my answer is "Hell yes". I am happy with my life, the life that God has blessed me with. Ever since I had my first heart attack I have wondered if I was happy. My wife and I live on disability, our retirement savings have been swindled away, we continue to fight health problems but God has blessed us in so many ways that I am happy with life.
Next year my wife and I will have been happily married 30 years. We have three wonderful children, their spouse, and one grand child that make us happy. We were not able to give them the silver spoon, so they each have to define their own lives. They have not resorted to lives of crime to support themselves, but are pulling themselves up. We as parents and grandparent can do what we can to help them, love them, and for that we are happy.
For 40 years I played piano in church, sang and directed choirs, and contributed my musical talents. This year I have had the chance to step back a watch. I am happy. For years I have served as elder, deacon, and volunteer leader of sundays schools, youth groups, and have seen the best and the worst that the church has to offer. Now I get a chance to sit back, and I am happy.
My wife and I have support other peoples children, in some cases helped raise them, and still have some of them call us Mom and Dad and for that I am happy.
My wife and I both have Jesus Christ as our lord and savior and we hope that we can share our joy with everyone.
Another reason I am happy come from the bible. In todays word of greed and capitalism these words are of great comfort.
"Love God, and your neighbor as yourself", and "It is easier for a camel to fit thru the eye of a needle then for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven".
When my day comes, and I stand before my maker, naked, no wealth or jewelry, my life opened up for everyone to see, and God looks at me and says "Don, How are you?". My response with be, "Lord, I am happy, My treasures of love for others I lay at your feet, and I feel great".
The next time you see a funeral for a rich man, take note of the Uhaul at the end. That also is not fitting thru the eye of a needle.

Will someone please explain to me how we have changed from a democratic society to a purely capitalistic society. The government, which is suppose to be of the people" is not run by the democratic proccess, but by capitalistic reasons. Democracy is suppose to allow capitalism, but the people need to keep capitalism in check. Now, capitalism allows democracy to exist, but in a much narrow definition. We now have the right to say we don't like it, but our other choice is" if you don't like it go somewhere else."
Since when has the "government" become some evil entity? Since capitalism is run uncontrolled, have people forgotten that the government is suppose to be of the people. Once again, capitalist don't like the part where the majority of the people have the choice, it's called voting. When capitalism replaces democracy it has become evil.
We need to defend domocracy and what it stand for. The rights of the people, not just the rich, not just the poor, not just the educated, not just the healthy, not just the sick, but for the rights of Americans as a whole.

Number 10
Life is sexually transmitted.

Number 9
Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

Number 8
Men have two emotions: Hungry and Horny.
If you see him without an erection, make him a sandwich!

Number 7
Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day, teach a person to use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks.

Number 6
Some people are like a Slinky ...
not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs.

Number 5
Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals, dying of nothing.

Number 4
All of us could take a lesson from the weather.
It pays no attention to criticism.

Number 3
Why does a slight tax increase cost you $200.00,
and a substantial tax cut saves you $30.00?

Number 2
In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

And The Number 1 Thought
Life is like a jar of Jalapeno peppers;
what you do today, might burn your ass tomorrow.

- - - and as someone recently said to me:
"Don't worry about old age; it doesn't last long."

I havn't written much lately. I have been spending alot of time with my grandson. His needs are much more important than the political needs.
Everyone is talking about the gas prices. They have risen over $4.00 per gallon to around $4.30 per gallon. They then cut the prices back to $4.05 per gallon, and the news media treats it like the second coming. While the cost of oil has gone down, the demand has gone down, and violence in the mid east has gone down, there is still an endless list of why the gas price continue to rise. Greed, greed, and more greed.
If everyone cut back on their gas consumption, the price would continue to rise, because it can and there is nothing you can do about it except pay. The search for alternative power will just make the gas price rise. Peace in the middle east will raise the prices as easily as the violence. The politicians want you to believe that they have the answers, but they don't because they are the problem. They bitch, they moan, they cry, they blame everyone else, but refuse to do anything constructive, because they are supported by big business.
My advice is to stay home this summer, enjoy your local areas and discover what they have to offer. Drive less and bike more. If it rains, go out and jump in the puddles because that is where I will be with my grandson, good free fun.

Everyone and everything has rights, but what happens when your rights clash with my rights. We hear it everyday in politic, in religion, and in human sexuality. You can have the NAACP but you can't have the NAAWP. Personally I like the NAASP (stupid people). Gays have the right to bash heterosexuals, but not vice versa. Atheism can be taught in schools, but not religion. You have the right to remain silent. If you choose to speak up, be careful what you say because you might hurt someone rights with your opinions. Do you have the right to be lazy and live on welfare? Does that interfere with the other person right to not support your right financially? What makes right?

Money makes right, or might makes right. The rights of many are controlled by the power of a few, and the ultimate power of Washington. The Washington I refer to is the George Washington, or the dollar bill. The almighty dollar is the controller of what is right. The dollar has the final say. " I pledge allegiance to the dollar of the United States of America, and to the justice for which it stands. One nation, under George........".

The next time I hear someone say that their rights are being violated, or that it is not fair, I will shake my head. They are right.

STOP SHOUTING AT THE WIND.

I love watching Republicans and Democrats shouting at the wind to stop it from blowing. On a day like today, tax deadline, we hear more people shouting at the wind. The rich don't pay enough, the poor are too lazy to work and pay, the the large corporations are screwing everyone. Let's all go outside and shout to the wind. Lets hold our little gathering, sing kumbya, and cry on our shirt sleaves. Let's point fingers at everyone else for the situation that we are in. Before the last election it was the teaparty shouting to the wind, now it is the democrats. It's not fair, our representation is being taken away, etc........ We are all shouting at windmills and can't figure out why the wind is still blowing. The tea party has at least figured out that the wind will still blow and are trying to use it to their advantage. The Democrats want alot of good programs, but want the rich and the corperations to pay for it. The Republicans want to eliminate these programs and thus reduce the taxes by bad mouthing a government run system. Both parties profit by yelling at the wind. The present system is supported by the poor and the middle class. This system will fail if more money is not brought in to support the programs, or we will have to discontinue these programs. That is a fact. If you tax the rich, they will pass it down to the poor. (trickle down). We need a balanced tax system, not an amended tax system, to balance the system. If you want to yell, yell at the people you elect. A straight sales tax system and either a line item veto, or not add-on system will fully fund the programs we need, bring back the jobs from overseas, and increase jobs here at home. This would on the other hand hurt the lobbyist, the companies that have a monopoly, or are protected by their money and lobbyiest, and your representatives. Government would shrink and become more efficient and less intrusive.

Unfortunately, we will continue on this path of distruction. The parties need their soap boxes, and the rich need you to keep yelling at the wind. The parties need to keep scaring you into believing what they want to to believe. This is not rocket science, this is the KISS method. It is that simple. We need to start over before it is too late.

Gas Prices going over $4.00 per gallon. Why? Because they can.
Whose fault is it? People who pay the price.

The biggest fault are the Winny right wing greed merchants. They wine all day long about government interfering with private business. Government is too much in debt. Well yes, Government is in debt. Who is the Government in debt to. The big businesses who are shoving it up our butts with lucrative government bids. We need to pay off the same jerks that are sticking it to us.

Are we suppose to say thank you after getting it shoved up our pocketbooks. We are, according to Rushaholics, suppose to say thank you and can you please do it again with interest.

The next time someone remarks that we don't have the money, ask them about that golden toilet seat that the government purchased to keep a right wing conservative happy.

The Muskegon Chronicle made me laugh.

In the opinion section of the paper, the editor was trying to explain that newspapers do not take sides, they just report. I about fell off my chair. My reply would be, Who did the Muskegon chronicle endorse in the last election?

The tea party says it wants to bring back democracy, but their president says that they will not compromise on anything.

The unions are for the poor people. The NFL will go on strike because the rich owners can't come to a deal with the rich players. It's only a game.

A democrat party member confirmed that we are also in Libia looking for WMD's. Maybe while we are there we can look for Ben Ladden.

A news reporter claimed that the only thing worse then the lose of life in Japan, is the economic devastation.

There are people out there who claim that nothing good happens when government interfere with business. This statement has to be the most ridiculous. Abraham Lincoln interfered with business by abolishing slavery. Without government regulations in the work place, we could bring back the good ole sweatshops and cheap Irish labor.

Answer a question for me. Standing in line at the grocery store is a women with two shopping carts full of supplies. She pays for all of it using five bridge cards. There was nothing in any of the carts that would suggest that she had children.

At Burger King you can have it your way, but in politics you have to compromise.

Why is our educational system failing?

Here is Michigan, our Governor has quickly figured out how to play the political system. He has done it so well, that he is in a no lose situation. (Winning?)

It is very simple. Squeeze the school system and one of two things will happen.
1- A better educated work force creates higher paying jobs for the low and middle class. Taxing these dollars keeps the money flowing
2- A failed education system combined with a non working union, creates a separation in the work force. The unions forced big business to outsource to make a profit. With the unions out of the way, big business can bring back those low paying jobs and tax the new influx of cash (winning).

Big business loves win win situations. We will now go back to the days before unions had their input, and before government interfered. 100 years ago, the Triangle fire in New York City. Hundred of women and men died due to poor working conditions and unsafe labor practices. This helped force work place reforms and started the labor union. This is why a union is needed.

The unions then turned around and made a mockery of their new found power. Outrageous wages for little or no work. Instead of a fair working wage, they dug in for all the money they could get and did not re invest into the working class and help build the education of the labor force. They took the money and ran. When big business said enough is enough, they outsourced their work to other countries to maintain their profit. Instead of a more educated and balanced work force, we are where we are today.

I have to laugh when one party points it's finger at the other party. Both parties are winning, and there are no losers there. (winning)

The president has jumped on the bandwagon. Another war brings in more profit for big business. He is hoping to jump start the economy like the Republicans did, a war around the globe. We have to save democracy around the world.

It's politics folks. The politic of making money. The politic of greed. It's the elephant vs the jack ass. Both are very dumb....or are they?

If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to witness, does it make a sound?

The real question is, Are we listening? Something like selective hearing. You hear what you want to hear and disregard the rest. There are different levels of hearing that we are not aware of. How do we decide what or who to listen to?

Two weeks ago an earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear reactor leak happened in Japan. The news carried it on every channel. Everyone listened, for about a week and then moved on to something else. It had become history. Even though bodies were still being recovered, people are still with out home, food, and basic necessities, we have stopped listening.

When someone passes away suddenly, we often exclaim that we did not hear of any problems that person might have been going through. We all of a sudden start to hear everything about their lives from second hand sources. We find out more about that person at their funeral that we never new while that person was alive.

Some people choose to be alone and not share their lives, others try to tell everyone, but no one listens. People don't walk around with signs saying, "talk to me, I'm lonely." Many time these people could be wearing a sign that says "leave me alone".


This past week we heard of a family member who had passed away, and his body wasn't found until over a week later. He had had a past of alcohol and drug abuse, recovery and relapse. He chose to live off the map. Failed family, failed marriage, failed military career, and not much to show for 50 years of living. He died almost alone, his dog was there. He had been on disability from a working accident, and his cause of death was an accidental mixture of pain medication and alcohol. You could say that his tree fell in the Forrest and no one was there to hear it. Now that his is gone, everyone is wondering why they weren't listening.

In this case people tried to help, but he was not willing to say he needed help. He chose to live alone, and that is the way he died. He chose not to listen to others who offered help. It was his choice. He already had made the decision that other people were not important for him.

His life, and many others lives could have been so different if we as Americans had put our attention to where it belongs. Raising our children, making sure that there is medical care, and making education available to all without a price tag applied. Would this have changed the outcome? Not anymore, but we can stop this from happening now. Listen, there are a lot of trees falling in the woods and no one there to hear it. There is no profit in listening. We only profit in sickness and death. Our system of government calls for profit on pain and suffering.

Until the day comes that we value life over profit and riches, that we stop trying to get all the money, and devalue the live of others, nothing will change. When we care more about Charlie Sheen then that troubled kid that is skipping school there will continue to be a decline in personal value at the cost of a few getting more money.
Rest in peace Tim, maybe we can hear something in death that we couldn't hear in life.

Don't forget to mark your calendars.
As you may already know, it is a sin for a terrorist Muslim male to see any woman other
than his wife naked and if he does, he must commit suicide.

So next Saturday at 1 p.m. Eastern Time, all women are asked to walk out of their
house completely naked to help weed out any neighborhood terrorists.

Circling your block for one hour is recommended for this anti-terrorist effort.

All patriotic men are to position themselves in lawn chairs in front of their houses
to demonstrate their support for the women
and to prove that they are not Muslim terrorist sympathizers.
Since Islam also does not approve of alcohol, a cold 6-pack or a mickey at your side is further proof of your patriotism.

This makes as much sence as the Republicans and Democrats.

I'm fat, stupid, and ugly. I been called ignorant, lazy, living off the good will of others. I been called uneducated, a liar, a thief, and even a SOB. I've been called un bending, stubborn to a tee, and a fake. In my life I have been called these and many more names. It started as a child when I was called a "Thumb Sucker".
I was also called a baby, a dork, a dick, a penis head, an A hole, Martin Fartin, buck toothed, loud mouth, greaser, hippie and many more. I have been called many things by many people in my 56 years of living. My kids have told me that "I just don't understand", "I'm not fair", I play favorites, and that I really don't care about them. Kinda sounds like politics.
What is so great about it?
Recognition

Think on how many people in this world get ignored and shunned. I am blessed with recognition.
I know that there may be some people out there who think better of me and thats ok. It is more recognition.
I believe the more important thing is how I feel about you, what is in my heart, what God has blessed on my soul.

I truly, with God's help, do not hate anyone. Maybe I don't know you well enough, but I pray it is because God allows me to forgive others. Thank you God.

The cost of food has risen 35% over the last year. Here are the reason
1- too much rain
2- too little rain
3- perfect weather led to overabundance and no profit for the farmers
4-too much sunshine
5- too little sunshine
6- Storms
7- Insect
8- grain being used for ethenol

The price of gas can also use these excuses plus many more
1- Political climate
2- too much supply
3- too little supply
4- refineries being down
5- Neucular melt down in Japan...... yes that is right
6- Holidays and vacations
7- blah blah ,blah

Any other questions?

What irony, or what timing, anyway you look at it it has to make you chuckle. This week Governor Snyder signed a bill that would give emergency power to the state should a school district or city fail to handle their business properly. The state police swept down on the Muskegon Heights Board of Education, seized school records, and in turn fired two of it's employees for money missing. Muskegon Heights as a school system and a city are broken. They are the poster children for Gov. Snyder and his plan to turn things around. I know I have been a little rough on the right wing, but they were easy targets. Now lets see the left side of the aisle spin the problems in the Heights. Remember, the Heights Police is still under investigation for stuff missing from their evidence room. The heights School system has been rated as one of the worst in the state of Michigan. They also sit right next to one of the wealthiest school systems and cities, that being Norton Shore or the Mona Shores School system. What is wrong with that picture? Plenty and for those looking for an easy solution, this is not a race or color problem. This is the haves and the have nots. The heights as a community has dug it's own grave, and now needs to pull it together and maybe a program like Gov. Snyders might be the right thing.
Lets start small, both sides come together and fix Muskegon Heights. If you can't come together over one little city, how can we trust you with the whole state.

Idiots

There was a protest in Muskegon supposedly against Governor Snyder and the Republican party. I did not go. They had a tea party last summer, I did not go. I am a fence sitter. I am the scourge of America according to Rush. I don't care about America according to Rachael Maddow. These talking heads demand that I join their cause or I am lazy and unamerican. According to many, there cannot be a middle of the road. Let's put the word in review.

The rich want to tax the poor and the poor want to tax the rich. The retired want to tax the working class, and the working class wants to tax the retirees. The Republicans want pure Capitalism and the democrats want poor socialism. The Republicans want to keep out aliens and the liberals want to feed the world. The Republicans think that since they were elected, they now get to rule any way they like, and the Democrats want to reverse all the votes that didn't go their way. Everyone want to throw the baby out with the bath water except those of us sitting on the fence. Let me put the world into proper perspective.

There was a catastrophe like the world has never seen in Japan. Thousands of people have died, will die, and will be suffering for years.

There are uprisings in the middle east like the world has never seen. Thousands of people have died, will die and will be suffering for years.

According to the right wing, we can't help them. We don't have the money. We can't spend money that we don't have.

According to the left wing, we need to throw money at these problems with reckless abandon.

Now back in the states, we argue about capitalism, and unions while our children are under educated, people are starving and malnourished right here. We can't afford to give our own people reasonable health care and free education because we don't have the money.

Comon you idiots, come back to the fence. Come back to the middle. The view is much more simple and the people are less vocal. A straight tax on everyone, on all good and service, and everyone pay the same percentage, not amount. Everyone pay the same price for a bar of chocolates, or a 100 ft boat.. but that is too simple.

Praying for Japan

My son and daughter-in law live in Tokyo. Thanks for all the prayers as they are doing fine with only minor inconvenience's. Damn their government interference by making people build earthquake proof building in Tokyo. Damn their government interference by demanding earthquake drills and preparedness programs. Because of their government interference, many live were saved. I personally want to thank the Japanese government for their interference. Now their government run health care system is stepping up to the plate. Their Government disaster reaction make Bush's response to disaster look like a fire drill. They immediately asked for help from anyone, including the US military in which there is not a lot of love. They have said, To hell with the cost, people need help. Bravo Japan. I hope our right wing is watching.

Watching the rain fall makes me happy that warm weather will be here soon. It has been a long winter. The snow came early and often and we never saw it completely melt away. As I'm writing this, the rain has turned to snow and then back to rain. Old man winter does not want to give up. This type of day gives to time to sit back and think on what this year might bring. I ask questions like, What war will we be in next, how can we get America back to work, can the poor, working class, and senior citizens balance the budget for those who have it and don't want to share it? Will riots and civil unrest descend upon America like it has descended on the middle east, and how can we avoid it.
I think of those that have gone on before us. I miss my parents and their generation. Those were the days where one parent worked and the other stayed at home with the kids. The neighbor hoods were full of kids running and playing with sticks and their imaginations. We knew everyone on our block and strive to make it the best neighborhood. When it got dark out, you could hear mothers for miles around shouting for their kids to come home . Children were better behaved because there was a family unit. We may have had fight with our sibling, but no one else was allowed to pick on them. On Saturdays you could hear the radios with Tiger Baseball, while washing your car or mowing your yard.
"Those were the days my friend, we thought they would never end. We'd sing and dance, for ever and a day. We'd live the life we choose, we'd fight and never lose, those were the days, o yes those were the days."
Gone are the corner grocery stores, meat markets, barber shops and produce stands. Gone are the neighborhood block parties, the neighbors talking over the fence. Gone are the sounds of bed sheets flapping in the wind or block parties to welcome new people to the neighbor hood. Gone are the sound of baseball cards slapping on the spokes of a passing bicycler. Life back them was simple and hard, but we enjoyed it. Now we bitch about what is owed us, why the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. Our great advancements don't come close to measuring up to the simple days of yesterday. We have lost far more then we have gained. My father always told me to use the KISS method. He was a wise man.
Here is a toast to 2011 and may we stop losing all that we had.

Has anyone noticed that after FRD, we changed from a democratic government and became a capitalistic government. A poor man will never get elected to public office. This was the reason we left England, remember the tea party, it was a protest against the rich, tea sipping self serving capitalism of the British Monarchy. I guess history is something to ignore.

If you disagree with that statement, let me simplify it for you. "MONEY TALKS, BULLSHIT WALKS". How about Harry Truman's'"The buck stops here". He was not talking metaphorically, but expressing an idea that government can be bought.

This is pointed at both parties. Not the Republican and the Democratic, but the other real parties, The Capitalistic Party and the Socialist Party. Who allowed this to happen? We the people. I fear that I am one of the few that still believe in democratic principles. Our system is broke, beyond repair and will only get worse if we stay the course. History, there is that bad word again, has showed us what will happen if we continue to want to rule the world, or buy it. The middle east capitalism has been cloaked by monarchies and dictatorship, but once that veneer is stripped away, the peoples eyes are opened and they start to rebel.

History shows that every empire that was ruled by capitalism has fallen. Britain controlled the trade routes of the world and look at what happened. That is only one example.

Socialism is not the answer either, because people have shown that this can be corrupted. The unions were suppose to be for the little man as was the democratic party, trying to break the grip that capitalism had on us. The unions were suppose to balance the books, but greed and corruption swung the balance to the "He who has money rules" side of the ledger.

We must decide, do we want to be ruled by "Big Brother" or do we want the richest people to make the decisions? Do we need government telling us how to run our lives, or have our lives dictated by speculators, big business, and wall street?

America, lets take small steps to correct things. Tell the talking head of the media to shut their pie holes. They are in it for the money, not for the people. Everyone is an expert and the millions of books that are published on everything shows the ignorance that has descended upon us. If you muddy the waters enough, nothing will be clear.

Take the profit out of politics. Line item veto's, one bill at a time, get rid of the IRS and put a straight tax on everything. If you are out of work, a straight tax can create jobs to improve America and get you back to work. This way unemployment is a subsidy to get back to work with hope for the future.

Remove the profit out of education and health care. There are less students in our schools and they still want more money. We would have less people on disability if people didn't have to worry about health care costs. Centralize the school system so that they can purchase fairly and economically.

These are starts that we don't want to take. Neither party want this, so as long as we continue to follow our pied pipers, (Party Politics) we are doomed to follow history. It is that simple.

SORRY CHARLIE.

Charlie Sheen, love him or hate him, on drugs or clean, good or bad father, or just plainly a jerk. Let me start this out by saying that he is just an actor, and what happens to him really does not effect my life, but just for the fun of it lets answer some key question you might ask him and the answers that might come out.

QUESTION... Charlie, are you on drugs?
Answer... No, my mustache has just turned grey...sniff.
Question. Don't you care about the people on your show that you have put out of business?
Answer......I'm a true republican, you don't work you don't eat. I can only care how happy I am and how much money I can make. Do I have to be on drugs to want more money for myself. If that is the criteria, the whole right wing is on drugs. If I get three million per episode, I should be getting four million and guess what....they will pay it.
Question...Why don't you go to drug counseling or drug rehab.
Answer... Addiction is very serious, drug and alcohol being only two of them. There are millions of self professed methods out there and a lot more trying to make money on me without knowing me. If a person quits smoking can he just quit or does he have to use someones therapy or read someones book.
Question.....Charlie, you live with two "goddesses", isn't this wrong?
Answer...Jealous? I'm not breaking any law, I'm not running for public office, and I'm not a christian, so what the problem?

Stupidity

I thought I had heard it all until I heard someone say that we should support our leaders in everything no matter what, because they were voted into office by a democratic process. This was almost as bad as President Nixon saying that no one should question him because he was the president.
Someone should explain to these people that being elected is not the same a getting the keys to the kingdom. Because you were elected, does not mean that you are above the law. We, the people, elected you to help the democratic process along, not to be king. We elected you to represent the people, not the rich and powerful or the big corporation.
Given enough money, anyone can be elected to any office. Look how long Mubarik bought the election in Egypt.

The Wisconsin War

I have talked with both wings and it just doesn't make sence. It probably does to someone who is blinded by party politic, but in my humble opinion is that both side are so far off coarse it is mind bogggling that they were ever elected.
1- The dems who left the state were in the wrong. The people of Wisconsin elected you to run their state. The bottom line is that it is wrong, but what choice did you have because.......
2- The Gov. wants to break the unions. Why not just step on the constitution. Just because you were elected doesn't mean that you abuse your power. They thought you were wise enough to work with the other side, and vise versa.
The Republican "give us your tired, your poor, and you mass seeking freedom and we will ship you south of the border" attitude is morally represhensible. The party that claim to have God on their side has gone to Hell in a handbasket.
The dems who claim to support the poor and middle class has the financial backing of some of the richest people in the world.
aonce again it will be the poor and middle class that will lose. The almighty dollar will win out. The country will be run by big business, financial speculation, and greed. The only chance for equality for middle and poor is the union, their only voice. The unions have screwed it up before and now have a chance to make it right.
I pray for both sides, shake my head and keep on going.

Who can you trust for honest answers?

The other day I went to the dentist. No cavities but he want to do so much extra work. periodontal cleaning, a bit to stop my teeth from grinding, etc...... I have had other dentist do this, so this one is not alone.

The other day a roofer came by and told me I need a new roof. I told him that there are no leak, but he tried to convince me that there was. Sorry, no sale

The other day I had my car in for an oil change and was given a list of thing that needed to be done on my car. My car is ten years old. How many time do you have your car in for something, and as a result there is a lot more to be done.

The other day the Governor came out with his proposed budget for the year. It cut into healthcare, the poor, and education. It did tax the rich and big business, but we all know how that trickles down. Let's all be like the democrats in Wisconsin, run and hide.

The solutions are simple, do we need it or not? Can we get by without it? Tell both parties to stop playing games and do the job we elected them for.

Good Luck Governor Snyder of Michigan.
He presented a proposed budget to Michigan today. I realize that no one is going to agree with every part of his proposal but at least he trying something. He has to try to correct the problems that were ignored by the last three governors. Michigan has grown on the back of the middle class and poor, the crash effected mostly the working class, middle class, and poor, and now it is up to us once again to bail out Michigan. The Gov wants to tax the big business and upper class, but this will just be past down. This is another form of trickle down.
Cutting education at first seemed like a bad move but it really isn't. One reason is that the population has decreased thus there are less students. It's time that our educator and school administrator become accountable. Give us a program that will work and more money can become available. "Count Days" to determine how much money should be an average year count. We need the students to be in class more that 2 days a year. Why not tax professional sports for reimbursement for our student athletes, tax our recording industries for the training that school have provided for their profit. Our education system need to be reimbursed for their training.
Detroit is a perfect example of raising prices for professional venues and the people will still show their support.

Valentines Day, what a joke.

I have been married to the same women for 29 years and I don't need a greeting card holiday to tell her that. I also don't need the guilt trip that others put on me when I don't celebrate this day. I celebrate everyday with the ones I love, not just one or two days per year.

Almost nine years ago I nearly lost my life when my heart stopped. Thru dozens of heart events, TIAs , and stints I have relished life in a way that few can imagine.

My love for my God is the strongest, then my wife, family, friends, animals and so on. I love my house, my car, my lazyboy and my neighborhood. I love music and a good movie. I love my grandchild and will love more grandchildren when they come.

I love my time alone and I love my time with friends and family.

I love the feeling and emotion of love and thank God everyday for it.

LORD, HELP ME TO SHARE MY LOVE WITH EVERYONE, RICH AND POOR ALIKE.

Donna Summer Mac Athur Park

Capitalism, right or wrong.

I love it when people throw around words like capitalism, socialism, and Communism.
If you are on the right you are a capitalist, if you are on the left you are a socialist, and if you are neither, you are a Communist(according to Rush). Our love for capitalism has run it's coarse. The lumber barons who cut down the forest without replanting were capitalist. The large and small companies that polluted our planet are capitalist. The one who profit by taking and not replacing are capitalist. Those who want to give yours and my money away are socialist. What we get down to is the childish ranting of, "it is mine". What we need to do is to get rid of the political parties and their rantings.
What we give to Egypt per year to support our capitalist ventures over there, we could pay for every ones health care in the United States. What we give to support capitalism in other countries, we could use to educate our own. In little over 200 years, capitalism has caused recession or depression at least three times. That means that once in every Americans lifetime, greed has hurt us all, yet we continue down the same path. We are so busy pointing out the problems of the world, looking for weapons of mass destruction, searching for ALkida and BinLadden, and telling everyone how they are running their countries wrong, that we fail to look in the mirror. We are the greed merchants of the world, we are the polluters, we are the uneducated and we can't even see that. We are blinded by greed.
"IT'S MINE AND I'M NOT GOING TO SHARE IT"

LORD PLEASE HELP ME TO SEE THAT ALL I HAVE IS YOUR.

My nephew Kevin's band(Chasing the Sky) was on local TV this morning. Their music was also played on the comercial for Glee during the Super Bowl. Kevin plays bass.
My nephew Christian, his band(The Vincent Hayes Project) is up for a blues award. He plays Keyboards.
I know how hard it is to make your bones in the music world and I am very proud of these two.

How can we fool the public into believing that everything is ok. The American media makes everyone else look bad. I heard on the news that Japan has a worse job situation then we do. My son lives and works in Tokyo and he say that this is a lie. The same thing happens when a country that is run by profit margin and ridiculous claims that are unfounded. (example being health care) Don't believe everything you hear in the news.

The sun shown down on a foot and one half of fresh snow. The front and the back door were drifted shut. Two hours later with the help of neighbors, our walks and driveways are clear. Thank you Lord for a great neighborhood and the kind hearts of good people.

Getting ready for the storm of the century. Is this the big one? Will it paralyse the state for weeks. Supplies are running out in the stores, people are panicking, the end of the world as we know it. People standing on roof tops, waiting to be rescued, The wind will bring the temp 50 degrees below zero, even the ice road truckers won't be able to make it. There will be so much snow, it won't melt until July.........................maybe, maybe not. This is Michigan, it might be sunny and 90 by tomorrow morning. The lake effect might blow all the snow on Detroit or even farther to the east coast where they need more snow. Sit back, throw another log on the fire, and drink your hot chocolate. The sun will rise tomorrow to a brand new day.

What won't they put on TV? HDTV tried "watching the grass grow" but it was cut short. Just a little joke
Making cakes. How boring can this get? Try have a contest between people making cakes judged by some guy who make cakes. Then this person turn around and has a cooking show, without cakes.
Toddlers and tieras has to be wrong in so many ways. Tiny preschool girls dressed up to look like hookers and dance on stage.
How about some woman named Kate, who with her husband raises 8 kids? The husband runs off because his wife is a bitch, and now she is raising the kids alone, with the help of a film crew etc.........
How about the Sunday Morning ministers who hawk their wares in the name of the Lord?
How many reruns of home improvement shows can you watch and be told how stupid you are because you don't have the gift of carpentry?
How about driving a truck in Alaska or Canada, or catching fish in the Baltic? The only thing worse is Sarah Palin showing you how to do it.
This is what you get when you pay for all these cable stations. Remember those good ole days when there were just three stations?
Well I've got to shovel some snow, anyone want to come film it?

I'm not sure what to make of the last response to my post. What gods is he/her talking about? The great thing about America is everyone can express their opinions. Now, moving on.
Last night we had Washington's version of the horse and pony show. I thought the President did a great job by really saying nothing. The house was full, everyone sitting next to someone of the other party. The only thing they didn;'t do was to kiss and sing kumbaya. It was truly a Ronald Reagan type atmosphere. When the speech was over, they shook hands, and hugged and smiled for the camera's. It was so touching it brought a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat. This will go down as one of the greatest wasted speeches of our time. We are going to have a new government, a new way of doing business, and finally peace and harmony..............
Now that the speech is over, the Republican rebuttal started the old business again. A smiling conservative from Wisconsin took the first shot, then the commentator all gave their interpretation of the speech, then the liberal defended the attack because the weren't ready for it. The night, or hour of harmony was over.
The computer, or technology age has made the rich richer, and the poor poorer. It has made the thieves more advanced and has separated the classes. We thru technology have made everything more complicated. We need to simplify, not complicate. Gene Roddenberry's futuristic Star Trek had the technological age so advanced that money was not needed, machine did all the work assisted by computers. Man could use his time improving himself and those around him. Sorry Gene, Computers and technology are a means to an end, and that end is profit and greed. If we truely wanted to educate everyone, all schooling thru college would be offered for free. The first allocations would go to education and health, but there is no profit in that.
The only thing of value the President said last night, was that he would veto and bill that had ear marks. Why not just give the President a line item veto and not waste time sending bill to the President that are laden down with pork? Want to cut the deficit, cut the pork. It is that easy.

WHO'S TO BLAME.

Every time a tragedy happens the talking heads all want to blame someone other then the person who comitted the crime. Then they continue to stir the fire. Why not talk about the people that send out kids off to war only to return in pine boxes. Where is the uproar there. Where is the uproar when these soldier return wounded and are put in under staffed VA hospitals. How about the 3000 babies that are aborted daily as form of birth control, where is the uproar. How about those on SSI that the right wing wants to take away their money. There is lot more to be concerned about then one terrible tragedy, they happen every day.

Buy American

What ever happened to the pride of knowing if you bought American made products you would get quality for the price. Buying American usually means getting screwed American. Our quality is so bad that the Chinese won't allow our products to be sold in their country. Our Automobiles are being replaced by foreign competition because the quality is better. I have tried to buy American when I can, but the quality is just becoming so bad, I have to rethink my decisions. I have been having a problem with Westinghouse and their 32" TV. The first one I bought lasted a little over a year before it caught fire. Fortunately we were home and no damage was done to the house. We called Westinghouse and a soon as I mentioned that it had caught fire, they fell over themselves to replace the set. They paid to have the defective set sent back, and then sent us a "refurbished" set. This set lasted a little over one year and now will not hold a picture. I have talked with them and emailed them but have just received the runaround. Below is a series of emails between myself and Westinghouse

A few years back I bought my first flat screen TV. I Chose Westinghouse for many reason which include price and that it is an American company. A little more then 1 year after I bought it, it caught fire. Westinghouse jumped up to the plate and replaced it with a refurbished one. A little over a year later, this rebuilt one won't hold a picture. My conversations with Westinghouse resulted in my being told that there is nothing they can do because it is out of warranty. I assume from the conversations that 32" Westinghouse flat screens only last a little over 1 year. The refurbished model is SK-32H240s-A with a serial number 5062w74706004A Qc 5013935. The ship date on the replacement model October 9, 2009. The account number was4505 1834 4 .

My bedroom TV is a 20 year old Westinghouse that is still working, I guess my wife and I can squint to watch our small TV because we can't afford to buy a new one since we are both on disability.

I would assume this is not the publicity that Westinghouse would want, but I realize we are only one small poor customer that had to buy their TV from WalMart. Maybe in a few years we can save up enough money to buy a 40" Tv, but right now it's medical bills that come first. Having two heart surgeries last year has made TV watching a bigger part of my life. My wife had back surgery last year and her mobility is limited, and the amount of medical bills we have to pay is enormous. If you can help out, this would be appreciated.



Don VanAntwerpen

Liz VanAntwerpen

Westinghouse offers an upgrade option to all of our Out of Warranty customers. The units we have to offer as an upgrade are:

SK-26H640G for $200.00 plus tax
VR-3250DF for $250.00 plus tax


If you agree to the upgrade, you will be responsible to package and ship your defective Westinghouse unit to us. Westinghouse does not hold any responsibility for damages incurred during shipping and will decline to upgrade if such an instance occurs. Once your unit has been received and inspected for non-warranty damages, about 3-5 business days, then the upgraded unit will be ordered. We will email the tracking information as soon as it becomes available.



Please contact us at:



Westinghouse Customer Support Center at:

1-800-701-0680



Our service and support team is available:



Monday - Friday

7:00am - 7:00pm CST (North America)




Sincerely,





Westinghouse Digital LLC Customer Support




Let me understand this, I can get my defective 32" Westinghouse replaced for $250.00 plus shipping. The TV set originally cost around $275, now to replace it in the store would be around $320.00. I believe that shipping cost would be around $50.00 and there is no guarantee that something might get broke during shipping which would make this a 32" paperweight that I paid 275.00, plus 250.00, plus 50 shipping. If it doesn't get damaged during shipping I would get a refurbished 32" for$575.00, which would be over $200.00 above the retail cost of an average 32" flat screen.
The first set could have burned down our house, and the refurbished one just set there and reminds me that I wasted time, aggravation, and money on a 32" paperweight.
----- Original Message -----
From: WDE_Service
To: VANSMAIL@COMCAST.NET
Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 5:57 PM
Subject: zw1094213


Don VanAntwerpen,

Buy American? Think twice.

Hey Russ, your battle with cancer is over and I still find it hard to see the winning. I know that you are in heaven, I know that you are pain and cancer free, and that all your worries on earth are done. You are not here for your family and I as one of your friends, will miss your warm words. Our loss is heavens gain and I understand that, but you are gone. The Bible says we are suppose to rejoice in your going to heaven but for those left behind it is still hard to rejoice. We will miss you, but life will move on, a better life because you have blessed it, because you shared it, and didn't lose it, because you will always be remembered for living it. You have to lose something in order to find it, and examples from your life will always be here, never lost. May we continue the work that you have done on earth, may we share our faith in a way that you did, living life with love for everyone. Goodbye for now.