What? Oh them? Those are just my Valkyrie Bodyguards. Well either they are Valkryie or the damned hottest meanest and sexist Seraphim I’ve ever encountered. All I know is impish tried his “poke, sniff & lick” ploy and nearly lost several parts of himself in retaliation. Even No-name our fearsome Head of Corporate Security won’t come up to my office anymore, or let me anywhere near his with them in tow. He Skypes me now and always lets me know its from a secure hidden location. Makes me sort of wonder if he dated one of them or one of them is his ex-wife or something. I’m getting off topic however in my musings.
Seems my laying out what Obama has done to the American populace at large last week garnered me a few (more) enemies (huge surprise THAT) and no small amount of animosity among the liberal entitlement minded delusional ‘Obama is the Messiah Sect’. Someone even gave the issue a one star rating. I felt such a gesture was deserved of a response so I poste3d an open comment to that person in the comments section. For those of you who missed that, or those of you who still refuse to read this on the blog as Dragon & Leprechaun intended (thanks BTW for making our lives that much harder by making us have to do things twice) here are those comments in their entirety again. IF you have already read them feel free to scroll on down until you hit coffee whilst grumbling with me about luddites and their quaint but oh so irritating hind bound ways.
TO THE ANONYMOUS INDIVIDUAL THAT GAVE TODAY’S POST A ONE STAR RATING:
I can only surmise this was due to the subject matter of my ‘Parting Shot’ feature and that you are probably one of our token liberals who constantly whine, cry and fuss about our treatment of Obama in the comments and then soundly get taken to school every time.
I’m sure that it is as annoying and embarrassing for you as it is bothersome and time consuming for me to do it and prove that what I have used are straight facts. I can only conclude you have switched to the much more time saving method of sniping me from the shadows with one star ratings. Democrats & Liberals are very adept at this tactic and in fact well know for it.
Unfortunately your attempt to discourage me, irritate me or otherwise cause me a negative emotional outcome has failed. See I look at that one star you gave the Posting and then I remember 2 quotes:
“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.” – Sir Winston Churchill
and then this one:
“The attacks are coming on the people who are telling the truth. …
If you have not been attacked, then you are probably not over the target.
If you have not been attacked, you probably are not doing anything,
because those that are telling the truth are getting attacked. …
Look back at those who are pointing the finger and I think you’ll see
who the real bad guys are.” – Joyce Riley from The Power Hour, 8/28/2006
and suddenly I’m not depressed over that One Star rating I am rather ELATED over it and encouraged to keep speaking the plain blunt truth about our Government and our President. Not just now, not just until the elections but for as long as I live, draw breath and can find a way to get my thoughts expressed and out in public forums.
To paraphrase the Apostle John: in the words of the prophet Isaiah: “I am a voice shouting in the wilderness, Clear the way for the WE THE PEOPLE are coming and we want out Country our Government, our Sovereignty, our State’s Rights our Pride and our RESPECT back!'” Like Dylan Thomas I do not plan on going gently (or silently) into the night that is the decline of your Country at the hands of Obama or his liberal lackeys. I plan to rage, rage, rage against that night and then suddenly sit up at my own funeral to rage yet again one final time.
I took an oath to protect this country against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. In fact I have taken that oath a total of six times and every time has simply added to my commitment to uphold that oath using what ever means and weapons are at hand and appropriate to the enemy. So snipe on from the shadows who ever you are rather than face me on open debate in a public forum. Your One Star ratings are worth 100 “Atta boys” to me each and every time because it means you acknowledge the futility of your position and support of Obama which tells me I’m not only on the right track but making progress as well.
WHO HASN’T HAD ONE OF THESE PEOPLE AROUND THEM????? I KNOW I HAVE.…
After a very busy day, a commuter settled down in her seat and closed her eyes as the train departed Montreal for Hudson.
As the train rolled out of the station, the guy sitting next to her pulled out his cell phone and started talking in a loud voice: “Hi sweetheart it’s Eric, I’m on the train – yes, I know it’s the six thirty and not the four thirty but I had a long meeting – no, honey, not with that floozy from the accounts office, with the boss. No sweetheart, you’re the only one in my life – yes, I’m sure, cross my heart” etc., etc.
Fifteen minutes later, he was still talking loudly, when the young woman sitting next to him, who was obviously angered by his continuous diatribe, yelled at the top of her voice: ”Hey, Eric, turn off that stupid phone and come back to bed!”
Eric doesn’t use his cell phone in public any longer.
I’m a dude and I would have done it to Eric! By the time I got done his girlfriend/wife would not have been worried over the floozy from the accounts office but rather which team he was playing for!
Is Wal-Mart Destroying America? 20 Facts About Wal-Mart That Will Absolutely Shock You
America absolutely loves Wal-Mart. 100 million customers visit Wal-Mart every single week in this country. But is Wal-Mart good for America? That is a question that most people never stop and ask. Most of us love shopping in big, clean stores that are packed with super cheap merchandise, but the truth is that Wal-Mart is destroying America in a lot of ways. As you will see below, Wal-Mart has destroyed tens of thousands of small businesses and countless manufacturing jobs over the past couple of decades. Wal-Mart has become a gigantic retail behemoth that sells five times more stuff than any other retailer in the United States. Unfortunately, about 85 percent of all the stuff sold at Wal-Mart is made overseas. What that is costing the U.S. economy in terms of lost jobs and lost revenue is incalculable. But Wal-Mart is a perfect example of where our economic system is headed. Our economy is becoming completely and totally dominated by highly centralized monolithic predator corporations that ruthlessly crush all competition and that will stoop to just about anything in order to cut costs. In the future, will we all be working for gigantic communal entities that funnel all of the wealth and economic rewards to a very tiny elite? That sounds very much like how communist China works, and red-blooded Americans should want no part of that. America is supposed to be about free enterprise and competition and working together to build up this country, and Wal-Mart is destroying all of that.
The following are 20 facts about Wal-Mart that will absolutely shock you….
#1 The average U.S. family now spends more than $4000 a year at Wal-Mart.
#2 In 2010, Wal-Mart had revenues of 421 billion dollars. That amount was greater than the GDP of 170 different countries including Norway, Venezuela and the United Arab Emirates.
#3 If Wal-Mart was a nation, it would have the 23rd largest GDP in the world.
#4 Wal-Mart now sells more groceries than anyone else in America does. In the United States today, one out of every four grocery dollars is spent at Wal-Mart.
#5 Amazingly, 100 million customers shop at Wal-Mart every single week.
#6 Wal-Mart has opened more than 1,100 ”supercenters” since 2005 alone.
#7 Today, Wal-Mart has more than 2 million employees.
#8 If Wal-Mart was an army, it would be the second largest military on the planet behind China.
#9 Wal-Mart is the largest employer in 25 different U.S. states.
#10 According to the Economic Policy Institute, trade between Wal-Mart and China resulted in the loss of 133,000 manufacturing jobs in the United States between 2001 and 2006.
#11 The CEO of Wal-Mart makes more in a single hour than a full-time Wal-Mart associate makes in an entire year.
#12 Tens of thousands of Wal-Mart employees and their children are enrolled in Medicaid and are dependent on the government for healthcare.
#13 Between 2001 and 2007, the value of products that Wal-Mart imported from China grew from $9 billion to $27 billion.
#14 Sadly, about 85 percent of all the products sold at Wal-Mart are made outside of the United States.
#15 It is being reported that about 80 percent of all Wal-Mart suppliers are in China at this point.
#16 Amazingly, 96 percent of all Americans now live within 20 miles of a Wal-Mart.
#17 The number of “independent retailers” in the United States declined by 60,000 between 1992 and 2007.
#18 According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Wal-Mart spent 7.8 million dollars on political lobbying during 2011. That number does not even include campaign contributions.
#19 Today, Wal-Mart has five times the sales of the second largest U.S. retailer (Costco).
#20 The combined net worth of six members of the Walton family is roughly equal to the combined net worth of the poorest 30 percent of all Americans.
All over the country, independent retailers are going out of business because they cannot compete with Wal-Mart and their super cheap Chinese products. Often communities will give Wal-Mart huge tax breaks just to move in to their areas. But what many communities don’t take into account is that the introduction of a Wal-Mart is often absolutely devastating to small businesses….
A study of small and rural towns in Iowa showed lost sales for local businesses ranging from -17.2% in small towns to -61.4% in rural areas, amounting to a total dollar loss of $2.46 BILLION over a 13-year period.
When we buy stuff made by people working for slave labor wages in China, we destroy good paying American jobs and we make America poorer. This is a point that I have tried to makeover and over.
Wal-Mart often tells one thing to the public and then does another thing in private. Sadly, the truth is that Wal-Mart does not care about U.S. manufacturing jobs. Wal-Mart just wants to get products as cheaply as they possibly can, and most of the time that means getting them from China.
Just check out this first-hand testimony from an 81-year-old retired apparel manufacturer….
I was president of the Southwestern Apparel Manufacturers Association. There was a meeting sometime between 1985 and 1990. Wal-Mart had contacted our organization and asked if they could meet with us at our beautiful Apparel Mart we had here in Dallas, which has now been razed, because all the independent merchants don’t exist that used to come to it. Two people from Wal-Mart came down and they said they were going to be sourcing goods from overseas and we would have to meet those prices for consumer products and to get ready for it—we are going to be sourcing the world. Wal-Mart was the only company that came out and said this.
It was sort of shocking: I was selling them some merchandise at the time. On the back of their trucks it was saying “Bring it Back to America!” They had the big “keep it in America” program going at that time on the big signs in the stores. Meanwhile when I reminded the buyer of that, she told me, “that is just for domestic consumption, we’re going to buy at the cheapest we can anywhere on earth.”
As I have written about previously, the United States has lost more than 56,000 manufacturing facilities since 2001.
We are losing millions of good jobs that cannot be replaced. If you can believe it, the United States has actually lost an average of about 50,000 manufacturing jobs a month since China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001.
Last year, the U.S. trade deficit with China was the biggest trade deficit that one nation has had with another nation in the history of the world, and Wal-Mart played a huge role in that.
In fact, Wal-Mart has actually been forcing some U.S. manufacturers to pack up and move overseas. The following is from a recent article by Amy Traub….
Wal-Mart’s market power is so immense that the even the largest suppliers must comply with its demands for lower and lower prices because they cannot afford to have their goods taken off its shelves. Companies that used to manufacture products in the United States, from Levi’s jeans to lock maker Master Lock, were pressured to shut their U.S. factories and moved manufacturing abroad to meet Wal-Mart’s demand for low prices.
Unfortunately, the vast wealth that Wal-Mart is sucking out of our communities is not put back into our communities. The profits are funneled out to Wal-Mart executives and shareholders. We may enjoy the low prices, but very little of the money that we give to Wal-Mart gets recycled in our local areas.
In the old days, you could actually support a family selling electronics or running a general store. But you can’t support a family working at Wal-Mart. The vast majority of the jobs that Wal-Mart creates are very low paying. Large numbers of Wal-Mart employees are actually on welfare, and this is part of the reason why we have seen such an explosion in the number of the working poor in America.
At this point, more than 40 percent of all jobs in America are low wage jobs and the middle class is rapidly disappearing.
If we do not support American jobs and American manufacturers they will continue to go away and the welfare rolls in this country will continue to explode.
There is not going to be any prosperity in this country without jobs. Unfortunately, most Americans simply do not understand how good jobs are being systematically destroyed in America every single day.
The path that America is headed on today is only going to end in complete and total disaster. We are being transformed from a wealthy nation into a poor nation. In the end, we will be dominated by a very tiny elite and everyone else will either be among the working poor or will be totally dependent on the government.
Our system is supposed to be about open, honest competition. But that is not what Wal-Mart is about. Wal-Mart is about crushing small businesses and manufacturers here in America and getting us all to buy their super cheap Chinese-made goods.
Shame on Wal-Mart. They are an un-American disgrace.
It’s Wal-Mart Dude and they’ve come for your small businesses!
And if all this isn’t enough proof of the kind of damage Wal-Mart is doing to America, as further proof I offer the horror that is ….
WAL-MARTIANS!
See my point? Wal-Mart is responsible for the epidemic of these (should be) illegal fashion faux-pasliens !
Most people tend to hear about food or drug recalls only when there’s news of a contamination. Often, it’s after somebody has gotten seriously ill or has died.
Would it surprise you to know that there have been more than 230 FDA recalls this year? In the month of July alone, there were more than 40. It’s important to stay abreast of the latest recall news before you ingest a contaminated product.
Drugsdb.com includes a constantly updated news feed of every FDA recall and safety alert. It lists which food or drug items are affected, the manufacturer and distributor, as well as what contagion or hazard they are contaminated with.
You can also keep track of the number of recalls by month and year. A running counter of the companies with the most FDA product recalls is also kept.
http://www.drugsdb.com/resources/fda-recalls/
Thanks to KimKommado’s Cool Site of the Day for this important tip!
The Top 5 Things You Can Learn About Sex by Watching the Olympics
5> Like sex, there’s a lot more to water polo than simply thrashing around and slamming your balls between the uprights.
4> You prepare for it your whole life, but the moment is over in mere seconds.
3> Shaving reduces friction.
2> Compliment a female weight lifter on her snatch at your own risk.
and the Number 1 Thing You Can Learn About Sex by Watching the Olympics…
1> Watching the experts and following along by yourself at home is often more gratifying than actually participating.
[ Copyright 2008 by Chris White/HumorLabs.com ]
If you use medication for erectile dysfunction and have an erection lasting more than four hours, go to this WEB SITE for immediate relief.
Today’s Irish Introspection is sort of a graphics based commentary on the ridiculous BS going on over the President of Chick-Fil-A exercising his right to have a point of view and express it with regard to the highly sensitive and controversial subject of Gay Marriage.
John Goodman weighs in on Chick-fil-A controversy—as Colonel Sanders (VIDEO)
I am for freedom and equality, including freedom and equality for the gay population.
Having said that, I agree that everyone should exercise their freedom of speech and should be equally respected for their beliefs.
I’m totally against this non-sense political brouhaha against Chick-Fil-A. They are NOT refusing service to gays, they are against gay marriage, so?… If you don’t like it, go eat chicken somewhere else and if you don’t like the rules of the BOY scouts, go start the gay scouts. Why do gays think everyone should change to fit them?
Actually, Huckabee came up with this idea AFTER state/local government officials began promising (threatening) Chick-Fil-A with using their governmental power/authority to retaliate against the chain because they didn’t like the CEO’s “bigoted” belief in the traditional Biblical view of marriage. So WHO is attempting discrimination against who?
Religion is on a quest to take over America, one law at a time, with wanton and total disregard of who their actions may be harming. Because they disagree with something, it means everyone should disagree with it, and that’s a good enough reason to make it illegal. That’s not the way it works, folks. Disagree with equal marriage rights? Then don’t marry someone of the same sex, and you’re fine.
Talk about being masters of the art of chillin’ & grillin’!
Got a related twofer today since neither one by themselves wastes much time.
![image_thumb[3]](https://dragonlaffs.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/image_thumb31.png?w=502&h=134 "image_thumb[3]")
To find out how much Southern blood your speech shows, simply choose the words you use below, then press “Compute My Score!” at the end. alphaDictionary will compute your score and tell you where you’re coming from: are y’all speaking Bubbaese or are youse guys Yankee Doodle Dandies? The higher your score, the deeper from the South you are coming.
http://www.alphadictionary.com/articles/yankeetest.html
Lethal’s Score: 13% Dixie. Wow! You are a Duke of Yankeedom!
Molly’s Score: 65% Dixie.Well under the Mason-Dixon Line
Here is what everyone has been asking for: The Advanced Rebel-Yankee Test! 20 more questions that delve even more deeply into the variations in American speech. The new test is based on comments and suggestions made by the 3000 people who wrote us about the first test. We hope this test incorporates your favorite accent feature.
To find out how much Southern blood your speech shows, simply choose the words below that you or the people in your region use, then press “Compute My Score!” at the end. alphaDictionary will tell you where you’re coming from and how much of the Yankee or Southerner is in you. As with the beginner’s test, the higher your score, the deeper from the South you are coming.
http://www.alphadictionary.com/articles/yankeetest_advanced.html
Lethal’s Score: 16% Dixie. Wow! You are a Duke of Yankeedom!
Molly’s Score: 68% Dixie. Well under the Mason-Dixon Line
OK well no big surprises there though I am showing some signs of Southern/Texan Contamination in my Blue-bellied-Yankee blood and speech. I suppose that’s to be expected after an 11 year near constant exposure to Southern/Texas talk. What I DID find interesting is that I’ve apparently had a bigger effect on Molly’s speech than she has had on mine!
Post your scores in the comments section and lets see is youse guys is Rebels or Yankees.
Obamatime
http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=142516
well then by his own logic…
When the prez of the U.S. stands up and says that “you didn’t build that, someone else did” he insulted every businessman that ever started a business and tried to run a successful business. It’s time we stood up and say “NO, Mr. President, you are wrong. I built this business.” If you have a marquee or a sign board you owe it to your country to answer back. This is someone’s answer to Obama.
The funny thing is it was his own Presidential brand of Bullshit he was choking on!
I’m going to dispense with the Middle Ages Royal frippery as it takes quite a while to write and I suspect is largely lost on most of you instead getting right to the heart of the matter by speaking ‘da plain’ ( or is it ‘de plane- de plane!’?).
Our newest Knight of the order comes from a corporation places like Wal-Mart, Target, K-Mart and other brick and mortar competitors for your purchasing dollars love to whine& cry about while vilifying them as the down fall of America. [I’m pretty sure I showed above that Walton family does FAR more damage than his guy] His name is Jeff Bezos, the Founder & CEO of Amazon.com.
Amazon was recently named the #1 Top Military Friendly Employer by G.I. Jobs Magazine.
“We value the leadership experience that military veterans have brought to Amazon, and we’re honored that G.I. Jobs has named Amazon the #1 Military Friendly Employer for 2012,” said Dave Clark, vice president of Amazon’s North American Operations
“We have a dedicated military program that has helped hundreds of veterans transition into the civilian workforce and build their careers at Amazon, and we’re actively recruiting for even more veterans to join our company.”
The list of 100 companies represents the top 2% of more than 5,000 eligible companies whose annual revenues exceeded $500 million. Criteria included the strength of company military recruiting efforts, the percentage of new hires with prior military service, retention efforts, and company policies toward National Guard and Reserve service.
The military produces approximately 400,000 new civilian workers annually, making “military alumni” one of the largest, and arguably most valuable, sources of renewable and skilled talent in the country.
Not un-coincidentally Amazon is our newest inductee into the role of Hospitaliters as well.
From GIJobs.com:
On Point with Amazon
Get your résumé ready – this e-commerce monster is shopping for more amazon warriors.
The recession hasn’t slowed down Amazon one bit. In fact, quite the opposite. The company that Jeff Bezos launched as an online bookstore in 1995 has grown into a cyber merchant of every imaginable product. Through 2010 and 2011, as the economy struggled to recover and analysts debated the likeliness of a “double dip” recession, Amazon posted record sales.
While profits dipped a bit in 2011 as Amazon invested heavily in the Kindle Fire – the tablet computer expected to give the iPad its first serious competition – and 17 new fulfillment centers, the company is focused on sustained, long-term growth. That translates to tens of thousands of jobs, and military talent tops the list of Amazon recruiters’ wish list.
“Thousands of soldiers are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan this year, and we’re proud to offer opportunities for them to join the hundreds of veterans already working in the Amazon fulfillment network,” said Dave Clark, vice president of Amazon’s North American Operations.
Amazon has a team of military recruiters, made up of veterans from all branches of the Armed Forces, that helps veterans transition into the civilian work force and find job opportunities within the company. Amazon also offers an internal network of military veterans to provide mentoring and support as new veterans transition into the company.
G.I. Jobs spoke to Phil Dana, a former Navy warfare surface officer who now serves as Human Resources manager of military recruiting for North America Operations, about why Amazon recruits veterans and where you can find the hottest job opportunities.
G.I. Jobs: What does it mean to be ranked the No. 1 Military Friendly Employer in the world?
Dana: Amazon has long supported military veterans as an employer, and it’s an honor to be recognized by G.I. Jobs magazine. We actively recruit U.S. military veterans to join our organization and provide them with programs to help them be successful once they’re on board.
G.I. Jobs: What makes Amazon the most Military Friendly Employer®?
Dana: We actively recruit U.S. military veterans, but also work hard to provide several programs that help them transition more easily into the civilian work force once they’re working within the company. Once they’re on board, every veteran is connected with our vast network of military veterans to receive mentoring and support.
G.I. Jobs: Why does Amazon recruit military veterans?
Dana: Amazon strives to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, and to get there, we need exceptionally talented and innovative leaders that can drive change and deliver results. We value the leadership skills and technical expertise that military veterans bring to our organization – they know how to take care of people and be mission-focused.
G.I. Jobs: When did Amazon begin recruiting military veterans?
Dana: Amazon has long supported military veterans as an employer.
G.I. Jobs: You listed “area manager” as your hottest job opportunity for veterans in 2012. Briefly describe the responsibilities of an area manager.
Dana: Area managers lead large teams of associates inside of fulfillment centers throughout the U.S., and overseas. They are responsible for meeting dynamic productivity rates, leading a culture of safety as our number one priority, motivating and developing associates, and exceeding our customer’s expectations.
G.I. Jobs: Why is this position an ideal fit for veterans?
Dana: The position of area manager is a “rubber meets the road, roll up your sleeves, and jump into the fire” type of leadership role – the kind of role that resonates with military veterans. It poses dynamic challenges, where no day is the same. It’s demanding and rewarding. In this role, you’ll have a big goal, with little guidance, so it requires the ability to be nimble and make analytic decisions based on what you see at that specific moment.
G.I. Jobs: What skills or education are required for this position?
Dana: We require a degree, a track record of progression and success, and leading large teams in a fast-paced environment.
G.I. Jobs: What is the average starting salary for an area manager?
Dana: We have the ability to make a compensation package work for the individual through a combination of base salary, bonuses, and Restricted Stock Units.
G.I. Jobs: Is this position best suited for transitioning JMOs, or is it a good fit for junior and senior enlisted personnel as well?
Dana: We have hired several different backgrounds and ranks for this position, from NCOs coming out of top-tier MBA programs, SNCOs, JMOs, and senior officers. In 2011 alone, we hired veterans from all ranks – from lance corporal to brigadier general.
G.I. Jobs: What kind of careers can transitioning junior and senior enlisted military personnel expect to find at Amazon?
Dana: Amazon is a diverse company with many business units – we have tens of thousands of positions available, and we encourage veterans to work with our military recruiters to translate their skills into a great fit at Amazon.
G.I. Jobs: Why should a veteran choose to work at Amazon?
Dana: Amazon has a culture of customer obsession, and our employees are committed to working hard, having fun and making history. Every employee has the opportunity to innovate and own interesting projects, and every tool that veterans acquired in the military will be used to meet those challenges head-on.
G.I. Jobs: What advice do you have for transitioning military who want to pursue a civilian career at Amazon?
Dana: Apply via our military career site and connect with our military recruiters: http://www.gijobs.com/amazon.
G.I. Jobs: Amazon has experienced explosive growth despite the worst recession since the Great Depression. What is the outlook for the next couple of years?
Dana: It’s still Day One at Amazon. One of the coolest things about working here is being able to collaborate and build with the world’s brightest minds.
http://www.gijobs.com/whos-hiring-veterans.aspx
Vermont man uses tractor to flatten 8 police cars
Police say a man drove a tractor over eight police vehicles Thursday. The damage is estimated to be about $250,000.
By Andrew Mach, NBC News
A man driving a farm tractor ran over eight vehicles in the parking lot of a Vermont police station in an apparent revenge scheme, according to local reports.
Police said Roger Pion, 34, of Newport, Vt., flattened seven marked police cruisers and one unmarked personal vehicle at the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department in Derby, Vt., around 12:40 p.m. Thursday.
“We came out and sure enough there was someone who had run over our cruisers with a tractor,” Chief Dep. Philip Brooks of the Orleans County Sheriff’s Dept. told WCAX.
Not only were their roofs and hoods caved in, but “the radios are ruined, the radar detectors, the cages in the cars … We’re going to have to get the jaws of life up here to pry the trunks open and see about the rifles and shotguns,” Sheriff Kirk Martin told the Associated Press.
With the vehicles crushed, police had no way to pursue Pion after he drove off in the tractor.
Demian Warner / The Newport Daily Express
Police say Roger Pion took out more than half of the sheriff department’s fleet — some of its newest vehicles were only four months old.
“It felt like I was in a Monster Jam rally or something,” witness Rene Morris told WCAX. “I just couldn’t believe it. He’s backing up, going over it, turns around, makes his way to the other vehicles smashes those up, did his business and headed right down Route 5.”
Police eventually caught up with Pion a mile and a half from the police station and arrested him. The motive is still under investigation, but witnesses believe Pion was angry about his recent arrest for marijuana possession and resisting arrest.
Stephanie Dasaro / Vermont State Police
Police arrested Roger Pion of Newport, V.T., after the tractor incident. He also was arrested recently for marijuana possession and resisting arrest.
The damage is estimated to be about $250,000, according to police.
No one was injured. At least two deputies had gone inside a few moments before after washing their vehicles, officers said.
Brooks said the destroyed vehicles constituted more than half of the fleet of sheriff’s cruisers in the rural county on the Canadian border. The others were out on patrol. Since the incident, neighboring counties have offered their help.
“We have other county sheriff’s departments who are offering cruisers to us,” Brooks said. “We’ve already had one county that’s dropped one off to us and we’ve got two others that are on the way.”
It’s not known where Pion got the tractor but police said he comes from a farm family.
Demian Warne / The Newport Daily Express
Police don’t know where Pion got the tractor from but say he comes from a farm family.
Pion was held at the Northern State Correctional Center in Newport in lieu of $15,000 bail.
He is expected to appear in Orleans County Criminal Court Friday to answer to seven counts of felony unlawful mischief, one count of misdemeanor unlawful mischief, one count of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, one count of gross negligent operation, and one count of leaving the scene of an accident.
How can you be charged with leaving the scene of an accident when it was NOT an accident but a deliberate premeditated act?
Today’s Parting Shot Requires not only a banner but a disclaimer, as well as (possibly) several other labels and qualifying comments to set up so bare with me please
This warning is meant for BOTH political parties today
RALPH NADER: An open letter to RNC Chair Reince Priebus and DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Published: Monday, August 06, 2012
Having grown up literally one town over from Ralph Nader in Connecticut his book, his “Nader’s Raiders exploits” and his political views were always covered prominently and in depth in the local papers. IT’s always been my belief that he went from relevant Consumer Activist and Champion to ‘colorful local politically pissing up a rope guy’ though admittedly he has never forgotten his hometown and done his level best to use his fame and influence to help the people of Winsted.
I never was in agreement with Mr. Nader about much of his politics or his views on them, that is until this piece appeared in Monday’s local paper back home.
Chairman Reince Priebus
Republican National Committee
Phone number:202-863-8500
Fax number: 202-863-8773
Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Democratic National Committee:
Phone number: 202-479-5100
Fax number: 202-226-2052
Dear Chairpersons:
The tough times in America continue. Tens of millions of Americans are feeling the squeeze and are suffering diminished livelihoods. More than 15 million children go to bed hungry at night. Unemployment and underemployment affect more than twenty million adults. Calls for cutting into the core of programs for the needy, the vulnerable and the disadvantaged regularly emanate from Congress.
These calls are coming most insistently from the Republican leaders. Congressman John Boehner, Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan and Senator Mitch McConnell are demanding severe reductions in effective social programs and more tax cuts for the wealthy and the large corporations, many of which have been paying very little or no federal income tax, such as General Electric.
Against this background, what have the two parties done? This year they have each taken $18.2 million in taxpayer money for their national political conventions in Tampa, Florida and Charlotte, North Carolina later this summer. The money comes from taxpayers via the Treasury Department’s “$3 Tax Check-off” found on tax return forms.
Taxpayers who check-off are told that the money generally goes “to the Presidential Election Campaign Fund.” Taxpayers are not told the first priority is funding for the party nominating conventions, not the general election nominees and primary election candidates.
Taxpayers who opt for this partial public funding of elections may not like funding political extravaganzas for the two parties, festooned by banners, musical entertainment, food, drink and other amenities. They might not want their tax dollars associated with nearby lavish corporate hospitality parties loaded with lobbyists lusting for access, subsidies and other special privileges.
They might not want to have their tax dollars mixed with corporate contributions to the two conventions from the oil, drug, insurance, banking, nuclear, military weapons and agribusiness-food processing giant multinationals.
When your two parties in Congress established this slush fund for the conventions years ago, they tried lamely to justify the use of taxpayer contributions for the conventions by declaring that televised conventions were educational presentations; live democracy in action. That didn’t pass the laugh test then or now. The nominations are all wrapped up. The conventions will be coronations of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. The party platforms are done deals.
Party rituals, the mutual admiration exchanges and the scripted, pre-cleared speeches by selected speakers are the highlights of these uncontested, predetermined, rigged shows of inaction.
Pay for your own parties, your own liquor and your own entertainment.
Return the misled taxpayers’ $36.4 million to the U.S. Treasury now. Or if you wish to receive some benefit from this modern version of “l’etat c’est moi,” donate the money to the Tampa and Charlotte charities that are feeding the hungry poor and homeless. Their menu will certainly be different than yours, but they (with their strapped budgets) certainly will be pleased by the gesture.
I have sent copies of this communication to charitable associations that provide food and other necessities for the growing number of impoverished Americans in Charlotte and Tampa. The recipients were Second Harvest Food Bank, Loaves and Fishes, and Faith Soldiers in Charlotte, North Carolina; and Feeding America, Kaye Prox Food Bank, and Metropolitan Ministries in Tampa, Florida. Those compassionate providers and their volunteers, reached on the telephone, were gracious regarding the meaning of this message to you.
Other citizen, charitable and religious groups in these two metropolitan areas may be inclined to emphasize this request with their own manifestations later next month. You would be well-advised to wisely render their reactions unnecessary by taking this humane initiative.
Should you not respond to this plea, which I am sure would be supported by the vast majority of the American people of all political persuasions, your conventions could be labeled the “Marie Antoinette cabal of 2012.” Surely, you remember what she suggested.
Sincerely yours,
Ralph Nader
WELL SAID SIR! BRAVO!
Both committees have enough “big money” contributions to sponsor their as you so aptly put it ‘Party rituals, the mutual admiration exchanges’ that they damned well SHOULD pay for their own parties, liquor and entertainment.
You have uncovered yet another indication that our political election process is antiquated, bloated and filled with ways that those who have made Politics into a lucrative career (something the founding fathers never envisioned or intended for it to be) can lie and cheat the populace at large out of their money.
Personally I think that WE THE PEOPLE need to send these buffoons a clear message come next tax season. I suggest NOBODY check off the ‘Donate $3 of my return’ box AND that we hound our Senators and Congressmen into removing and repealing the law that put that box there because it is a FRAUD!!
Good Morning Campers. Another Saturday spent with your favorite dragon… Nol! Not Barney! Dammit Lethal! Stop spreading rumors! Me! Impish Dragon, I’m your favorite dragon….right? RIGHT?
Ain’t it the truth! We ALL need to let them know that. Your chance comes in November. You must be sure to take advantage of that opportunity! Please, don’t sit your ass at home. You need to get out there and:
Thanks to Lynn for this Way Cool Website to Visit:
The following video is a GREAT representation of how the current political regime is concerned more with their own re-election and popularity than they are with the lives of the men and women and their family and friends, who are protecting this country. You must watch this video. Which means you are going to have to go to the website to see it. Our website is http://dragonlaffs.com . The video is called Dishonorable Disclosures: How Leaks And Politics Threatens National Security. It’s put together by a group called OPSEC. Those of you in the military or associated with the military know that this acronym stands for OPERATIONS SECURITY. The hallmark of keeping our brothers and sisters safe. As one of the speakers at the end puts it so succinctly, “Shut the fuck up, Mr. President.” Here’s the video’s own description: 
Controllers wanted to make sure the camera still functioned after Curiosity’s 352-million-mile voyage and harrowing landing early Monday, Edgett told reporters at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. 
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