Friday Funnies

This guy made me laugh!

Trump

Last week Donald Trump declared his candidacy for President.  Snicker, Snicker.  Come on...I'm sure.  I mean, who would take him seriously.  He's a gas bag.  A rich gas bag...but a gas bag.  He has made a ton of gaffes.  He says what he thinks.  Like the comments that Mexico is sending a lot of rapists and murderers to the U.S. and the border is a joke.  A lot of the politically correct crowd have backed away from him.  A few corporations have officially cut ties. He has sued some of the organizations who have violated contracts.  I wouldn't want to be them.  He has a habit of winning.  But he's a joke.  He has no chance.  He is fracturing the Republican Party.  He is driving away voters.

But wait...maybe the rush to judgement by the "oh so clever" media isn't quite right.  Turns out a lot of folks like his plain speaking.  A lot of folks admire his ability to make money, turn the deal, not to take any shit off anyone.  He is not shy with the media types either.  He has given a ton of interviews and doesn't back off from any of his opinions.  So while the "professional" political class discounts him and laughs at his candidacy, a lot of folks are listening.  Now, I don't for a second think that he has much of a chance.  But...he certainly is injecting an interesting dimension into the gaggle of candidates.  And personally, I think that what he says about immigration is pretty spot on.  The Federal government has been shamefully absent in this issue.  The Congress has been shamefully absent in this issue.  We need comprehensive immigration reform.  There is no doubt about that.  If Trump's candidacy moves Congress closer to doing something, well then that would be great.  And he's rather entertaining!

Women's Soccer

The women's World Cup was the bomb!!  Lots of fun to cheer for Team USA.  And they certainly lived up to expectations.  When I go watch my little Granddaughters in both SoCal and on the East coast, there are a ton of girls playing sports.  That is so great!  And how the USA has done in this world cup is reflective of how active girls are in sports.  It's truly a wonderful thing.  So good for them.  

But here's a little secret.  I'm not a huge soccer fan.  I mean...it's just a bit slow for me.  But it's great for the kids and it's great that Team USA did so well.  But I have to admit...I took a little nap in the middle of the game.  

Motivation Monday

Happy 4th of July

Along with Thanksgiving this is the quintessential American holiday.  My very best to all who love their country...the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Hillary

The hits just keep on coming.  You'd think that a little email traffic would be easy to track and produce.  I guess not so much.  Kimberly Strassel in the WSJ has an excellent article about some the shenanigans surrounding Hillary and her email woes.  You can read it here.

There's just so much to report.  But here's the pull quote that tells all.

"As it is unlikely the press corps will begin this investigation anew, or with any fervor, the best chance of getting answers from Mrs. Clinton probably rests in her Democratic rivals for the nomination. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley have so far avoided touching the Clinton scandals, unwilling to risk blowback accusing them of undermining the likely nominee. But if those men truly believe themselves better fit for the presidency, they could do the country no bigger favor than to start pressing Mrs. Clinton to explain her actions. Somebody has to."

Indeed...somebody has to!

Cool Pic

Hitchhikers

Whenever I'm driving down the road and see a hitchhiker, it always looks like this guy...

Never this girl!

Dogs Are Cool

Especially when they find pizza!

Stowaway

Wow...I didn't know he was along for the ride...

Friday Funnies

Glad I can finally post this as a FF.  As an American and an Episcopalian, before this week it was a sad commentary.  Now it's just a funny relic of the past...

Hillary

I haven't had many posts in my series about Hillary in the last few weeks because of all the other stuff in the news.  Maybe you've read a few of them.  But time to get back to tracking the old hag....er, Presidential candidate.  Can you believe that?  She just announced that's she's raised record amounts of money which makes me think that I'm seriously disconnected from the electorate.  But then I realize that there are a lot of low information voters out there that will fall for anything.  After all, they've fallen for Bubba and Hillary for 25 years.  It's amazing.

So to back into it I thought I'd focus on her latest lies.  You know what I'm talking about...the lost emails.  But then I realized, the found emails offer so much fodder.  A great article pointing out some of her shenanigans was penned by Jennifer Rubin in the Washington Post today.  You can read it here.  Now I realize that Jennifer is the token conservative in the sea of yes people...er, progressives on the WaPo staff.  But perhaps a few people will read it and maybe, just maybe, start to ask themselves just what the hell they are thinking in supporting her.  There is a lot of meat in the article, but here's my favorite quote:  "...this tranche of e-mails is revealing because it shows Clinton to be lacking real authority, surrounded and protected by political hacks, filthy rich and obsessed with political power.  In short, this is the real Hillary Clinton."  Classic!   Anyone who has been alive in the last 25 years knows this.  But it's sorta nice to see it in print.  

Media Responsibility

I've commented on this many times.  The simple truth is that the media in our country are not doing their jobs.  They are so enamored by the spotlight, that they seek sensational news and even embellish stories to make sensational news.  They do this for one thing.  To make a name for themselves.  So that they achieve celebrity status.  And then they become the news.  It's getting old.  I try and look at many, many news sources to get information.  But it's getting harder and harder to find the truth.

Inequality

There has been a lot in the media recently about income inequality.  In any system there are winners and losers.  But in a Capitalistic system, there is opportunity.  There are countless rags to riches stories in our country.  But you don't get there by wishing for it or expecting someone to give it to you.  It takes work.  Blood, sweat and tears.

I saw this the other day and it sorta resonated.  Those screaming the loudest never seem to begrudge the celebrities and the darlings of the media their wealth.  It's always the no good, conniving, slimy corporate tycoons.  But you know what?  Those in business are the ones driving our economy to new heights.  So the next time you hear about the plight of those being exploited by corporations, think about what those corporations mean to our economy.  Because as President Calvin Coolidge said, "the business of America is business".

Motivation Monday

Dogs Are Cool

Friday Funnies

Inevitable II

So the news of the day is the SCOTUS decision on gay marriage.  I've blogged about this previously. You can read it here.  I don't think my thoughts have changed much.  There are huge issues facing us so I'm happy that it's now behind us.  And I'm happy for all the folks that it will effect.  Good for them.  I've personally evolved to the point where this issue is, for me, really a non-issue.

I will say that from a Constitutional perspective, I don't really agree that the Federal govt has a say in this.  But I get the social imperative.  I get squinting real hard and using the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment as justification.  As I said...no worries from me.  I just wish there could be more honesty.

UPDATE:  Frank Bruni's column in today's NYT says it all.  When you get to the personal level, there is really no choice.  You can read it here.

Credit Where Credit is Due

If you've read this blog at all you know I have huge problems with President Obama.  He has not, in my view, been a very good President.  He has made huge mistakes.  He has repeatedly done things to divide us.  He has done considerable damage to the economy, caused poverty to widen, and led so many to dependence on the government.  His work in foreign policy has been a disaster that will take years to recover from.

Having said that, I was moved to tears by his eulogy this afternoon of Reverend Clement Pinckney was eloquent.  He got a bit political because he can't help himself, but he struck all the right chords.  It is exactly the kind of message I would expect a President to deliver.  And it is exactly the right kind of message to send to the black community in this country.  Uplifting.  Optimistic.  Promising.   Put aside what you're doing for 30 minutes and watch.

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