Good Morning Campers!  It’s Thursday!  Not quite to the end of the week yet, but still better than three other days!

Thursday gets a pretty bad rap.  It’s not as hated as Monday, not as happy as Friday, has no sexual connotations like Wednesday (Hump Day), is definitely NOT in the same class as Saturday or Sunday, which leaves it only in competition as Tuesday as having the crappiest gig of any of the seven days.  And you can even make the case that Tuesday ends up with all the two-fer specials (like the radio stations playing two-for-Tuesday songs and such) which leave poor Thursday completely out in the rain!  It’s really not fair, and actually quite sad.

So, rather than dwell on this sad subject any longer, wadda ya say we jump into the laughter and get this show on the road?

 

Yesterday Lethal asked: “I’m not sure which is worse for guys, the above scenario (getting certain male anatomical parts frozen to cold pieces of metal) or peeing on an electric fence! Impish I hear you’ve deliberately done both, any insight?”  Well, Lethal.  They both have their advantages and disadvantages.  In both cases, it is a unique and often humorous way of meeting new people and when handled correctly can either lead to serious sympathy/healing sex or a very electrifying afternoon for the ladies.
On the other hand, marks, scars, freezer burn or even real burns are not uncommon.  So, you take the good with the bad.

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Here’s a good video from MakeUseOf.com.  The only problem I have with it, is that they titled the video: People Should Stop Taking the Internet So Seriously when clearly, the intent of the video was to show that we should take more care with what we say and do on line.  But, it is a good video none the less and should be shared.
http://www.makeuseof.com/tech-fun/people-stop-internet/

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There is a new tattoo going around, especially in Europe, which women are getting to protect themselves from Muslim Men.  It’s actually a good idea:

Here’s a quick look behind the scenes at Dragon and Leprechaun Laff Industries.  A short editorial conversation between the two named partners discussing content.  Lethal is telling Impish about a news article he read…

S. Phibber McGee: WEST — Retired Col. Arthur “Kit” Murray, a U.S. Air Force test pilot who saw at the curvature of the earth when he set an altitude record at 90,440 feet in 1954 in the Bell X-1A rocket plane, has died in Texas. He was 92.

S. Phibber McGee: shit you get higher than that on a midair flatulence incident don’t you?
impishdragon: yeah, pretty much.  I’ve hit 100k
S. Phibber McGee: and that was without lighting it right?
impishdragon: yeah, one of those monsters, the last time I lighted one I ended up on the friggin’ moon
S. Phibber McGee: Well THAT explains the new crater they found on the dark side
impishdragon: Yup, that was me.  Damn near missed and ended up out past Mars.
S. Phibber McGee: You could have dropped in on cousin Marvin!
impishdragon: He’s stopped talking to me since I took his eludium three hundred space modulator or whatever the hell it was. I thought it was a pork chop
S. Phibber McGee: HE’s my arms dealing cousin we make him keep his office on Mars cause he kept having accidents and gold would get blown up
impishdragon: Must be a different Marvin…the one I know is a Martian, not a leprechaun
S. Phibber McGee: so he got mad and dropped the “O’ ” from his name
impishdragon: Ahhhh
O’Marvin
O’Marvin the Martian Leprechaun
S. Phibber McGee: well you know 500 years on Mars WILL change you a bit…then there was all those nasty legal proceedings where he wanted the name change and out of the family
now now
marvin O’Martian
impishdragon: Ahhh, nice ring to it
S. Phibber McGee: he changed it to Marvin Marshian
impishdragon: Does he wear a fuller brush on his helmet?
S. Phibber McGee: primarily cause Marv Mars was making too many faries giggle hysterically
yeah I sent him that as a gag gift after the first 150 years
impishdragon: Maybe it is the same guy
S. Phibber McGee: that’s a Fuller Brush Truck washing brush I had custom dyed for this helmet
impishdragon: Fuller Brush Truck Washing Brush?
FBTWB?
S. Phibber McGee: I told him it was for helping to wash the underside of his spaceship
he just had to walk around under there instead of trying to erect a ladder in that gravity
impishdragon: Little guy, right?  Can walk right under the space ship and shine it with his helmet?
S. Phibber McGee: yup
impishdragon: Yeah, that’s him.  He’s pissed at me
I ate his Plutonium Blaster thingy
S. Phibber McGee: 50 years later I sent him another one for polishing the under side. That led to the Iludium Q-38 Spacer Modulator development for blowing up the earth to get back at me
impishdragon: Yeah, that was it.  He used to say that a lot.
I guess that’s why the Earth wasn’t blown up.
And Bugs thinks he took all the glory.
Funny, funny world …
So, that’s your cousin, huh?
S. Phibber McGee: In retort for the whole blow up the earth issue I stopped being his IT guy so thats why he has all those cpmputer issues
impishdragon: Ahhhh!  Well that explains the rest of his piss-offed-ness.
S. Phibber McGee: yup
impishdragon: He couldn’t get HBO
S. Phibber McGee: plus I amde sure all he gets for TV waves captured is reruns of I Love Lucy & The Cosby Show
impishdragon: Okay, well all this talk of pork chops has got me hungry… and that Lucy…..yuck, yuck, yuck…. she sure is something.
I’ll talk to you later on.

S. Phibber McGee: Don’t forget Bill and his Jello Pudding!
impishdragon: Oh yeah!  Thanks!
Cheers

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Seriously?  That’s the headline an editor at the Post decides to go with?

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A Golden Oldie Video….is that even possible?

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I love this guy!  He’s the BEST!

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Today’s Last Word is an excellent essay called “Entitlement”.

An  “Entitlement???”
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What the  hell is wrong here?

Remember, not only did you  contribute to Social Security but your employer did too. It totaled  13.3% of your income before taxes.

If you averaged only 30K over  your working life, that’s close to $220,500. If you calculate the  future value of $4,500 per year (yours & your employer’s  contribution) at a simple 5% (less than what the govt. pays on the  money that it borrows), after 49 years of working (me) you’d have  $892,919.98. If you took out only 3% per year, you receive  $26,787.60 per year and it would last better than 30 years, and  that’s with no interest paid on that final amount on deposit!

If you  bought an annuity and it paid 4% per year, you’d have a lifetime income of $2,976.40 per month. The folks in Washington have pulled  off a bigger Ponzi scheme than Bernie Madoff ever had.

Entitlement my ass , I paid  cash for my social security insurance!!!! Just because they  borrowed the money , doesn’t make my benefits some kind of charity or handout !! Congressional benefits , aka. free health  care , outrageous retirement packages , 67 paid holidays , three  weeks paid vacation, unlimited paid sick days , now that’s  welfare , and they have the nerve to call my retirement  entitlements !!!!!!

Emergency Rooms for their general health  care at just one hospital the cost to tax payers totaled over 25  million a  year!!!

Someone please tell me what the HELL’s  wrong with all the people that run this country!!!!!!

We’re “broke” & can’t help our own  Seniors, Veterans, Orphans, Homeless
etc.,??? In the last months we have provided aid to  Haiti , Chile , and Turkey.
And now Pakistan home of bin Laden.  Literally,  BILLIONS of DOLLARS!!! Our retired seniors living on a ‘fixed  income’ receive no aid nor do they get any breaks while our government and religious organizations  pour Hundreds of Billions of $$$$$$’s and Tons of Food to Foreign Countries!

They call Social Security and Medicare an  entitlement even though most of us have been paying for it all our working lives and  now when its time for us to collect, the government is running out of money. Why did the  government borrow from it in the first place?
 
We have hundreds of adoptable children who  are shoved aside to make room for the adoption of foreign orphans.

AMERICA: a country where we have homeless  without shelter,  children going
to bed hungry, elderly going without ‘needed’ meds, and  mentally ill without treatment
-etc,etc.

YET………………….

They have a ‘Benefit’  for the people  of Haiti on 12 TV stations, ships and planes lining up with food, water, tents clothes, bedding,  doctors and medical supplies.

Imagine if the *GOVERNMENT* gave ‘US’ the  same support they give to other countries.

SAD?

YEAH, OK, SO WHEN DO WE GET PISSED  AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT  IT?????

“There are more instances of the abridgment of the  freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power  than by violent and sudden usurpations.” –James Madison, speech at the  Virginia Ratifying Convention,  1788

I ought to be posting this banner under the too much time on my hands header!

 

Morning fellow corporate rat racers!

Well today’s issue is going to be a memorable one one way or another. It’s either going to mark the dawn of a new era here at Dragon Laffs Enterprises, one of our ability to preload blogs to post automatically at pre-assigned times OR it’s going to mark the day I beat myself to death with a Laptop over my head and Impish finds himself once again upside-down and flying solo in the clouds.

It’s currently Monday evening as I draft this opening. If all goes right this issue should post at 5 AM EST on Wednesday. IF things go wrong only the Internet and Murphy himself know when it will be seen.

tUESDAY UPDATE: it’s NOT EVEN BLOODY HUMP DAY YET AND I’VE GOT PROBLEMS! I WENT AND POSTED THIS TO THE “LAUNCH PAD” AS SOON AS I FINISHED IT Monday NIGHT. COME round to THIS MORNING THERE IS iMPISH WITH HALF MY JOKES AND A YOUTUBE FROM THIS ISSUE SPLASHED ALL OVER HIS ISSUE! FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO RECALL THE POST ( I think) TO EDIT IT. I AM LEAVING ONE OF THE GRAPHICS HE USED DELIBERATELY BECAUSE I HAD A COMMENT ABOUT IT. I’M NOT REALLY MAD AT iMPISH THIS IS JUST GOING TO BE ANOTHER LEARNING CURVE WITH THIS SHAReD BLOG THING. besides I HAVE OTHER WAYS OF GETTING EVEN WITH HIM!

A few of you have been kind enough to write asking about the oppressive heat and the wildfires down here both of which have dropped off the news radar. Well let me let the Texas Forest Service and the National Weather Service field those questions for me.

COLLEGE STATION — The Texas Forest Service says a record 248 counties have outdoor burn bans as the drought continues during oppressive summer heat.

The previous record, prior to this year’s drought, was set in January 2006 with 221 Texas counties having outdoor burn bans. That mark was passed in June.

The National Weather Service says parts of Texas are under an excessive heat warning until Thursday night, with the heat index possibly exceeding 110 degrees

Oh yeah that “possibly exceeding” stuff? Make that a definitely exceeding. Today (Tuesday as I RE-write this) WE HAVE A WEATHER ALERT FOR A heat index likely to hit 114 or better!

Make that next cup of coffee an iced one please!

Some of you have also kindly inquired regarding Tropical Storm Don and if he brought any relief. Alas Don was apparently a Democratic storm, mostly full of hot air and empty promises of hope and change that fell apart when it came time to put up or shut up at the coast line.

Things are in fact so dry down here and what rain that is falling is in such negligible amounts that the national weather Service is having to invent new technology to detect and measure it. Seen here is their newest technological development the Texas Rain Gauge

 

  Now Let’s Laugh Before We’re Too Hot To!

Yup, I can think of one unlike the dragon:

make a fresh pot if you take the last damned cup!

 

The Most Beautiful Girls On Capitol Hill Gallery

The Hill recently released its annual list of Capitol Hill’s 50 most beautiful people. That’s a lot of people to go through, so we’ve done the hard work for you and pulled the top ten most beautiful women from their ranks. Click through to see them all.

(that last link only gets you their top ten you;ll want the first link if like me and Impish you are greedy for the site of hot babes

Thomas Flanagan was trying to learn the game of golf and having just a stinking time of it. “I would give nearly anything to get this game right, I would!” Thomas loudly exclaimed in exasperation.
Suddenly Satan himself appeared out of thin air and asked Thomas, “Anything?”
Of course, Thomas was quite surprised to find the Devil, himself, speaking to him. “Well…I guess, short of selling my soul, yes I would,” replied Thomas.
So Satan offered, “How about giving up sex for the remainder of your life?”
Thomas was quite taken aback by the offer, but he gave a wide grin as he quickly accepted the devil‘s offer. “Done!” he said.
Thomas finished his round of golf in remarkably good form, so the rumor of his deal with Satan rapidly spread throughout the course clubhouse. Timothy O’Shea was one of the club’s members, but he was also a news reporter who smelled a story in the making.
Back in the clubhouse O’Shea asked Thomas, “Sir, there is a rumor going around the clubhouse that you made a deal with the Devil, himself, to become a truly great golfer. Is there any truth to that rumor?”
“Yes sir! It is true enough, it is,” answered Thomas. “And it was a wise bargain on my part, for I just completed a nearly perfect round of golf, I did.”
“And is it also true that you gave up sex for the rest of your life as your part of the agreement?” asked O’Shea.
“Again your are right, sir. True again!” replied Thomas Flanagan.
“And may I get your name, sir, for my story?” asked the reporter.
“But of course. It’s Flanagan. Father Thomas Flanagan.”

Reasons You Should Buy a New Car
– Your passenger seat is on the National Register of Historic Places.
– Instead of an air bag, there is a whoopee cushion taped to your steering wheel.
– You lose the stoplight challenge to a 14 year old on a moped.
– 15 minute Jiffy Lube needs to keep your car for 3 days.
– When you gas up, the attendant asks, “Can I re-duct tape that windshield for you?”
– Thieves repeatedly break in your car just to steal the “Club”.
– While sitting at a stop light, people keep running up to you and asking if anyone was hurt.
– For the last five years, you’ve had to settle for making “vroom, vroom’ noises while in the driveway.
– You keep losing dates on left turns.

As promised this week we’re doing some slightly unusual Marinades, BBQ Sauces and some spice rubs.

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Magic Steak Dip Recipe

This dip will produce the most incredible grilled steak you have ever had in your life. It makes 2 quarts, but it lasts forever in the refrigerator.

1 (20 ounce) bottle good-quality soy sauce
1 (10 ounce) bottle Worcestershire sauce
1 (10 ounce) bottle A-1 Steak Sauce
1 (10 ounce) bottle Heinz 57 Sauce
1 pound light brown sugar
2 teaspoons granulated garlic or garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon freshly-ground pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup prepared mustard
2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

Mix all ingredients in a large glass or stainless steel bowl. Whisk until well blended. Store in tightly sealed jars in the refrigerator.

To use, pour a small amount of the dip in a nonporous baking dish and dip the steaks in it, coating both sides well. Marinate for about 30 minutes before cooking, turning often. Grill or broil to desired degree of doneness.

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Molasses-and-Coffee Marinade

Ingredients

    1 cup strong brewed coffee, cooled
    6 ounces molasses, by weight (about 1/2 cup)
    2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
    1 tablespoon dijon mustard
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
    1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
    6 to 8 sprigs fresh thyme

Directions

Combine the coffee, molasses, vinegar, mustard, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, the ginger, thyme and pork chops in a 1-gallon zip-top bag; seal and shake to combine.

The darker roast the coffee the more pronounced the coffee flavor will be

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Chipotle-Mango BBQ Sauce & Marinade

Ingredients

    1 1/2 cups mango, peeled, pitted and roughly chopped
    3/4 cup fresh cilantro (loose pack, not chopped, stems and all)
    2 chipotle peppers in adobo, plus 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
    2 tablespoons unseasoned rice wine vinegar
    4 cloves garlic, peeled
    2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
    1 tablespoon canola oil, plus extra for grill
    2 teaspoons kosher salt
    1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
    2 pounds chicken thighs and drumsticks, bone in, skin on

Directions

Put the mango, cilantro, chipotle, vinegar, garlic, lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of oil and salt and pepper, in a food processor and puree until smooth. Adjust seasonings, to taste.

Pour half the mango mixture to a resealable plastic bag, and use as marinade. Refrigerate at least 6 hours to marinate.

Put the other half of the mango mixture into a small saucepan and simmer over low heat until thick, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Set some of the simmered chipotle-mango sauce aside to serve on the side and baste the every few minutes with the rest of the sauce.

You got to love a recipie that does double duty! Good with chicken pork or shrimp

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RED WINE BARBECUE SAUCE

Ingredients

2 teaspoons fresh Rosemary, minced
2 shallots, peeled and minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 cup red wine
2/3 cup tomato puree
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons unsulphured molasses
1 teaspoon Tabasco
1 teaspoon liquid Hickory smoke
2 teaspoons Coleman’s English dry mustard
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon butter

Directions

In a saucepan, sauté shallots in oil 4-5 minutes, or just until they begin to take on a little color. After 2 minutes, add Rosemary and garlic.

Add wine and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer until there is only half the amount of liquid remaining in pan.

Stir in tomato puree, then add remaining ingredients (except butter). Simmer 15 minutes or until sauce is thickened.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in butter and allow to cool to room temperature before using.

Store unused sauce tightly covered in refrigerator for up to 1 week.

good with beef and country style pork ribs. Goes well on game. Changing the type of wine will produce a definite change in the end product as well. Keep in mind that the wine flavor will intensify as the sauce reduces.

Lastly if you would not drink the wine do not cook with it!

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PINEAPPLE GINGER BARBECUE SAUCE  

Ingredients

1 can pineapple chunks, in syrup
1 2-inch chunk fresh ginger, peeled
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1/3 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons cornstarch
large pinch hot red pepper flakes

Directions

Put all ingredients into a blender (including juice from pineapple can) and process until smooth. Simmer over low heat, uncovered, until mixture thickens; about 25 minutes.

Pour into a clean jar and refrigerate until ready to use. Keeps up to 2 weeks.

Cook’s Note: Allow to cool before using, if sauce is to be used right away.

Quick Version (no ginger): Combine pineapple (with syrup), cornstarch and soy sauce and proceed as above.

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White  Barbecue Sauce

1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1/4 Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 tsp Prepared Horseradish
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Black Pepper
1/4 tsp Cayanne Pepper or Hot Sauce.

Mix all ingredients togeather and serve as topping/sauce/condiment for any white meat

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Guy Fieri’s Mojo Spice Rub

1 tablespoon black pepper
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon dried oregano

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Sazon Seasoning

Sazon is a type of seasoned salt found in Spanish and Mexican markets. The seasoning is used on meats, fish, poultry and even to flavor soups and stews. One popular brand is by Goya Foods. Typical ingredients include, cilantro, achiote, garlic, salt. It is somewhat similar to Sofrito which would be the Puerto Rican, Caribbean & Latin equivalent.

This is a home version of the well-know Latino seasoning referred to as Sazon.

Ingredients

3 medium onions; chopped
1 ea pepper, bell, green; seeded, chopped
1 ea pepper, bell, red; seeded, chopped
4 lg garlic cloves; peeled, chopped
1 tablespoon oregano
1 cup scallions; chopped, both -green and white
1/2 cup parsley; coarsely chopped
1/2 cup coriander (cilantro); chopped
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1 tablespoon paprika, sweet
1 cup tomato paste
1 cup oil, olive
1/2 cup vinegar, white
salt; to taste

Instructions

Combine all ingredients and blend, bit by bit, to a puree in blender. Pour into saucepan and simmer, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Cool and place in a clean bottle or jar with a tight fitting lid. Used to flavor stews, beans, rice and vegetables

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Paul Prudhomme’s Seasoning Mix Recipe

1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

In a small bowl, mix all ingredients together.

Yields 1/4 cup.

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Emeril’s “Essence” Seasonings

Save a small fortune and make your own! a 3/4 oz. bottle of each of these in a 4 pack will cost you between $16 and $20 depending where you buy them. For the cost of roughly a single 4 pack you can make about 4 times that amount of each one!

Personally I leave the salt out of all of them so I can more easily control the amount of salt in my cooking and avoid unwanted or needed extra sodium

Creole Seasoning (also referred to as Bayou Blast)

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly.

Emeril’s Southwest Seasoning:

2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons paprika
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon dried oregano

Combine all ingredients thoroughly. Yield: 1/2 cup

Rustic Rub:

8 tablespoons paprika
3 tablespoons cayenne
5 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons garlic powder
3 tablespoons onion powder
6 tablespoons salt
2 1/2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 1/2 tablespoons dried thyme

Combine all ingredients and store in an air-tight container

This is great on chicken & pork or on potatoes tossed w/ a little olive oil and then oven roasted. It even make a great seasoning for pasta toss you favorite cooked pasta with butter & grated cheese to taste and season liberally with ths blend. Combined with olive oil and juice of a small lemon, it can be used to marinade shrimp before grilling on skewers

Emeril’s Italian Essence

* paprika…2-1/2 Tbsp
* salt…2 Tbsp
* garlic powder…2 Tbsp
* black pepper…1 Tbsp
* onion powder…1 Tbsp
* cayenne pepper…1 Tbsp
* dried leaf oregano…1 Tbsp
* dried thyme…1 Tbsp

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.

This is a good seasoning for just about any dish.

Next time: Ahhh…I don’t know yet. Maybe some crockpot recipes since I’m cooking there as much as possible to keep the temp inside down and the A/C from coming on too often.

 

 

A wife was in bed with her lover when she heard her husband’s key in the door. “Stay where you are,” she said. “He’s so drunk he won’t even notice you’re in bed with me.”
Sure enough, the husband lurched into bed none the wiser, but a few minutes later, through a drunken haze, he saw six feet sticking out at the end of the bed.
He turned to his wife, “Hey, there are six feet in this bed. There should only be four. What’s going on?”
“Nonsense,” said the wife. “You’re so drunk you miscounted. Get out of bed and try again. You can see better from over there.”
The husband climbed out of bed and counted. “One, two, three, four! Damn, you’re right.”

 

 

Old man Gallagher is lying on his deathbed after a vigorous life of 89 years. Gathered around him are his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, who are all saddened and teary-eyed at the nearing finale of Gallagher’s very long and productive life.
The weakened old man is in a deep coma, and old Doc O’Brien has said that the waiting should be over in less than twenty-four hours.
Suddenly, Gallagher opens his eyes, awakening from his coma, and remarks, “I must be in heaven already! I smell grandmother’s potato cakes!”
“No, grandfather,” says young Sean, a grandson. “You are not in heaven yet. Grandmother is baking home made bread and potato cakes right now as we speak.”
The dying Gallagher says, “Sean, could you please fulfill my last dying request. This will be the last time that I taste one of grandmother’s famously delicious potato cakes.”
“Would you please go down and get me just a small piece?” the old man asks with what is left of his rapidly declining breath.
Sean immediately dispatches young Michael, one of Gallagher’s great grandchildren, to fulfill the old man’s last request.
After quite a long time, young Michael returns empty-handed.
“Did you bring me one last piece of your great grandmother’s delicious potato cakes, Michael?” the dying old man asks.
“I’m very sorry great grandfather,” young Michael sheepishly replies. “But she says it’s for the funeral.”

 

 

*PRACTICAL ITALIAN GRANDPA*

(or*Why Italians pass their handguns down through the family.*)

An old Italian man is dying and says to his grandson: “you to take-a my chrome plated .38 revolver so you will always remember me.”
“But grandpa, I really don’t like guns. How about you leave me your Rolex watch instead?”
“You lissin-a me, boy. Somma day you gonna be runna da business, you gonna have a beautiful wife, lots-a money, a big-a home and maybe a couple of bambinos. “Somma day you gonna come-a home and maybe find-a you wife inna bed with another man…

Whatt-a you gonna do then? Pointa to you watch and say, ‘Time’s Up’?”

 

I’m not sure which is worse for guys, the above scenario or peeing on an electric fence! Impish I hear you’ve deliberately done both, any insight?

My friend Julie and I were eating at a Chinese restaurant. When an elderly waiter set chopsticks at our places, Julie made a point of reaching into her purse and pulling out her own pair.
“As an environmentalist,” she declared, “I do not approve of destroying bamboo forests for throwaway utensils.”
The waiter inspected her chopsticks. “Very beautiful,” he said politely. “Ivory.

 

 

An old gentleman wearing a beat-up old leather flying jacket sat down at the Starbucks and ordered a cup of coffee.
As he sat sipping his coffee, a young woman sat down next to him… She turned to the man
and asked, ‘Are you a real pilot?’
He replied, ‘Well, I’ve spent my whole life flying; biplanes, Cubs, Aeronca’s, T-6s, flew
in WWII in a B-25, and later Sabre jets in the Korean conflict. I taught 50 people to fly and
gave rides to hundreds, so yes, I guess I am a pilot.’
She said, ‘I’m a lesbian. I spend my whole day thinking about naked women. As soon as I get up in the morning, I think about naked women. When I shower, I think about naked women. When I watch TV, I think about naked women. It seems everything makes me think of naked women.’
The two sat sipping in silence.
A little while later, a young man sat down on the other side of the old pilot and asked, ‘Are you a real pilot?’
He replied, ‘I always thought I was, but I just found out I am a lesbian.

 

 

“How did your evening with your new boyfriend go?”
“It was a disaster. We were nude in bed in heavy foreplay and he had
a premature ejaculation.” “What did he say when it occurred?” “He
just said I was the loveliest girl he had ever come across.”

 

I’ve deliberately obscured the number on the photo at Impish’s request so his cell number doesn’t get out, He’s afraid being so popular as he is he’d never get any peace and quiet. I think he means popular with bill collectors, process servers, ex~wives and irate husbands!

Things your Mother would NEVER say…
– Yeah, I used to cut class a lot too.
– Go ahead and keep that stray dog, honey. I’ll be glad to feed and walk him every day.
– That outfit isn’t sexy enough, here, unbutton your blouse.
– Why don’t you hitchhike? It would totally be cheaper.
– The curfew is just a general time to shoot for. It’s not like I’m running a prison around here.
– Don’t clean your room so often. It makes the rest of the house look bad.
– Can I borrow your new speed metal CDs?
– Naw, you don’t have to call me, I’ll eventually figure it out if you’re in trouble.

 

 

During my brother’s wedding, my mother managed to keep from crying—until she glanced at my grandparents. My grandmother had reached over to my grandfather’s wheelchair and gently touched his hand. That was all it took to start my mother’s tears flowing.
After the wedding, Mom went over to my grandmother and told her how that tender gesture triggered her outburst.
“Well, I’m sorry to ruin your moment,” Grandmother replied, “but I was just checking his pulse to see if he was still alive.”

 

 

A woman was doing the laundry in the apartment building’s basement. She had just finished washing and drying one load and was getting ready to start another load when she decided to wash the nightgown she was wearing.
She took it off and placed it in the washer. Now she is naked and preparing to take the freshly cleaned clothes upstairs when she noticed her son’s football helmet lying on the shelf. She grabbed the helmet, placed it on her head, picked up the clean clothes, and turned around.
There stood the maintenance man who quickly said, “I don’t know which team you are playing for ma’am, but I sure hope you win.”

Personally I’m hoping for a copy of the team photo!

 

 

Good Morning Campers!
Thanks very much to all of you who’ve been taking the time out to write to us and share your feelings.  It’s been great reading your comments and hearing how you feel.
It’s Tuesday….there’s not a hell of a lot to say about Tuesday.  If it had it’s own motto it might go something like, “Welcome to Tuesday!  At least we don’t suck as bad as Monday!”
Today is the first day of school for our the kids in our district.  They’re going on an unusual school year this year.  Instead of having a long summer break, they think that the kids will learn better by splitting the school year up into four nine-week semesters with about two weeks off in between and then two months off in the summer time.
I don’t know.
I remember being a kid and it seemed like summer lasted forever every year!  Every single day was a new adventure.  Mountains to climb, battles to fight, space ships to fly… nowadays kids can’t do that.  And it’s not because they don’t have the imagination, but they don’t have the safety.  We used to be able to run the neighborhood and beyond from dawn till dark…and then some…and our parents never worried about where we were.  They knew that every other parent in the neighborhood would keep their eyes open and no one would let anyone get hurt.
It would terrify me to let my kid do that now.  And it’s not because she’s not a good kid and it’s not because she doesn’t know better.  She is as well informed, if not better informed of the dangers out there than I was.  It’s because you can’t trust your neighbors any more.  There’s no “neighborhood” per se.
It’s a scary world we live in…
and a scarier one that our kids are growing up in.
And we’ve got the morons in Washington doing everything they can to make it worse for our kids instead of better.
It’s gonna be up to us folks.
We are the ones who are going to have to make the changes that need made, get rid of the ones who are trying to rape our fine country and put in some people who give a damn.
November 2012 is coming.
We better make the right choices.

Now, let’s laugh!

Two robins were lying on their backs, basking in the sun.
A mama cat and her kitten were walking by. The kitten complained, “Mama, I’m soooo hungry, what can we eat?”
To which the mama cat, spying the two birds, replied, “How about some… Baskin’ Robins?”

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What a stunning and motivational video….

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This is incredible!

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A young farm couple, Homer and Darlene, got married and just couldn’t seem to get enough lovin’. In the morning, before Homer left the house for the fields, they made love. When Homer came back from the fields, they made love. And again at bedtime, they made love.
The problem was their nooner; it took Homer a half hour to travel home and another half hour to return to the fields and he just wasn’t getting enough work done. Finally Homer asked the town doctor what to do.
“Homer,” said the doctor, “just take your rifle out to the field with you and when you’re in the mood, fire off a shot into the air. That will be Darlene’s signal to come out to you. Then you won’t lose any field time.”
They tried Doc’s advice and it worked well for a while. Homer came back to the doctor’s office..
“What’s wrong?” asked the Doc. “Didn’t my idea work?”
“Oh, it worked real good,” said Homer. “Whenever I was in the mood, I fired off a shot like you said and Darlene’d come runnin’. We’d find a secluded place, make love, and then she’d go back home again.”
“Good, Homer. So what’s the problem?” asked the Doc.
“I ain’t seen her since huntin’ season started.”

Why Sharks Circle You Before Attacking

Two great white sharks swimming in the ocean spied survivors of a sunken ship.

“Follow me son” the father shark said to the son shark and they swam to the mass of people.

“First we swim around them a few times with just the tip of our fins showing.” And they did.

“Well done, son! Now we swim around them a few times with all of our fins showing.” And they did.

“Now we eat everybody.” And they did.

When they were both gorged, the son asked, “Dad, why didn’t we just eat them all at first?

Why did we swim around and around them?”

His wise father replied, “Because they taste better without the shit inside!”

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Now that’s a line of bullshit that would even make the Leprechaun proud!

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I wish EVERYONE everywhere could watch this!

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WHISKEY

In 1952, Armon M. Sweat, Jr., a member of the Texas House of Representatives, was asked about his position on whiskey. What follows is his exact answer (taken from the Political Archives of Texas):

“If you mean whiskey, the devil’s brew, the poison scourge, the bloody monster that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys the home, creates misery and poverty, yea, literally takes the bread from the mouths of little children; if you mean that evil drink that topples Christian men and women from the pinnacles of righteous and gracious living into the bottomless pit of degradation, shame, despair, helplessness, and hopelessness, then, my friend, I am opposed to it with every fiber of my being.

However, if by whiskey you mean the oil of conversation, the philosophic wine, the elixir of life, the ale that is consumed when good fellows get together, that puts a song in their hearts and the warm glow of contentment in their eyes; if you mean Christmas cheer, the stimulating sip that puts a little spring in the step of an elderly gentleman on a frosty morning; if you mean that drink that enables man to magnify his joy, and to forget life’s great tragedies and heartbreaks and sorrow; if you mean that drink the sale of which pours into Texas treasuries untold millions of dollars each year, that provides tender care for our little crippled children, our blind, our deaf, our dumb, our pitifully aged and infirm, to build the finest highways, hospitals, universities, and community colleges in this nation, then my friend, I am absolutely, unequivocally in favor of it.

This is my position, and as always, I refuse to compromise on matters of principle.”

 

Today’s Last Word is from a blog called Brutally Honest….I’ll put the link at the end.  This very well written essay should be pushed as far and wide as possible.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Peggy Noonan’s lost that lovin’ feeling

We’ll first go to October of 2008 and these words from Ms. Noonan:

The case for Barack Obama, in broad strokes:

He has within him the possibility to change the direction and tone of American foreign policy, which need changing; his rise will serve as a practical rebuke to the past five years, which need rebuking; his victory would provide a fresh start in a nation in which a fresh start would come as a national relief. He climbed steep stairs, born off the continent with no father to guide, a dreamy, abandoning mother, mixed race, no connections. He rose with guts and gifts. He is steady, calm, and, in terms of the execution of his political ascent, still the primary and almost only area in which his executive abilities can be discerned, he shows good judgment in terms of whom to hire and consult, what steps to take and moves to make. We witnessed from him this year something unique in American politics: He took down a political machine without raising his voice.

That was then… this is now:

The secret of Mr. Obama is that he isn’t really very good at politics, and he isn’t good at politics because he doesn’t really get people.
…
The fact is, he’s good at dismantling. He’s good at critiquing. He’s good at not being the last guy, the one you didn’t like. But he’s not good at building, creating, calling into being. He was good at summoning hope, but he’s not good at directing it and turning it into something concrete that answers a broad public desire.

And so his failures in the debt ceiling fight. He wasn’t serious, he was only shrewd—and shrewdness wasn’t enough. He demagogued the issue—noSocial Security checks—until he was called out, and then went on the hustings spouting inanities. He left conservatives scratching their heads: They could have made a better, more moving case for the liberal ideal as translated into the modern moment, than he did. He never offered a plan. In a crisis he was merely sly. And no one likes sly, no one respects it.

So he is losing a battle in which he had superior forces—the presidency, the U.S. Senate. In the process he revealed that his foes have given him too much mystique. He is not a devil, an alien, a socialist. He is a loser. And this is America, where nobody loves a loser.

And so yet another Obama supporter succumbs to the reality.  Ho hum.  I’m getting a little bored with the flip floppers.  The Obama supporters who’ve lost their mojo.  But this one at least has one thing right when she calls Obama good at dismantling.  He’s dismantling this once great country.  He’s dismantling that which made her great but thankfully, he’s also dismantling the false pedestal upon which he was placed by his supporters and an accomplice media.  The house of cards that formed the basis of who we were told the man is is collapsing.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s still work to do.  There are still ardent supporters, some of which will never be swayedbut the hope is that there are those like Noonan who see the man for what he truly is.

He is not what he was portrayed back then to be.  He never was.

And as promised, here’s the website.  Brutally Honest… I love this guy’s tag line. “Plain thoughts, delivered roughly.” http://www.brutallyhonest.org/brutally_honest/2011/07/peggy-noonans-lost-that-lovin-feeling.html

I’ll save you all the questions. It’s not about how much you have on deposit before they’ll let you play with their electronic sign. It’s all about owning a majority share of the damned bank and agreeing not to introduce the Bank President’s virginal teenage daughter to Impish.

Yeah Yeah Yeah I know, “The issue Lethal get the issue out for us. Hurry man! The issue! It’s been 24 hours since we had a decent laugh!” 

DON’T START WITH ME IT’S BLEEDING MONDAY AND PRE-MY FIRST CUP OF COFFEE BESIDES!

I swear the only time you’ll meet a cross fairy is Monday mornings (or anytime the subject of Smurfs and their possible status as wee folks comes up before the Board of Mythical Creatures). I think even Buddha and Gandhi were P.O.’d on Mondays.

I’m even grumpier than usual on Mondays (if that’s even possible) while Impish, he’s just basically a total loss on Mondays. First it takes 5 gallons off coffee just to get his eyes open and focused. Then it takes another 5 gallons just to get his brain to function at the “Fire bad. Tree pretty. Cup empty. Want More Coffee.”  grunting level. Once he gets that third 5 gallons of coffee in him he discovers its Monday, whines about having worked the weekend and promptly goes back to bed!

Sigh! And people wonder why I am bald and curmudgeonly!

MRSA Superbug: Can Coffee And Tea Protect You?

The Huffington Post Meghan Neal Posted: 7/15/11 10:21 AM ET

More good news for coffee drinkers? Possibly.

A government study looked at 5,500 Americans and found those that drank tea or coffee had half the chance of carrying the MRSA superbug in their nasal carriage. Scientists have long been aware of tea and coffee’s antimicrobial properties.

“Our findings raise the possibility of a promising new method to decrease MRSA nasal carriage that is safe, inexpensive, and easily accessible,” wrote the study authors in the Annals Of Family Medicine.

 

Still, more research is needed. Lead researcher Eric Matheson, of the University of South Carolina, told Reuters:

The study shows an association between the two, but you never can conclude causation from an association. I can’t tell you that this finding isn’t just a coincidence.

Since it’s discovery in the early 1960s, the antibiotic-resistant “superbug” MRSA, short for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, has been quickly spreading across the U.S. and oversees — suggesting epidemic levels.

From WebMD:

MRSA often causes illness when it comes into contact with an open skin wound. People with weakened immune systems are at higher than average risk of having an MRSA-related illness. Hospital-acquired MRSA accounts for many fatal MRSA infections.

 

In June a new strain of MRSA was discovered in cow’s milk. While alarming, researchers said it was unlikely the bacteria would seep into the food chain.

 

So the gaffer is Irish and the geezer was a Dragon..ok got it. Makes perfect sense to me!

A group of hunters, out on holiday, were driving along searching for a place to hunt, when they pulled their vehicle into a farmer’s yard in County Waterford, Munster, Ireland. Sean, the driver, approached the farmhouse to ask the farmer for his permission to hunt on his land.
The owner, an old farmer, said, “Sure you can hunt, but would you be doing me a favor, sir? My old donkey standing over there is 20 years old now. She is deathly sick with cancer, but I just don’t have the heart to kill her meself. Would you do it for me?”
Sean answered, “Of course I will.”
While returning to the car, however, Sean decided to play a trick on his hunting buddies. He got into the car and said nothing.
Naturally, his buddies anxiously asked if the farmer had given his permission to hunt.
Sean said, “No, that old farmer said we can’t hunt here. So I’m going to teach that old man a lesson he won’t forget.”
With that, Sean lowered the window on his side of the car, pointed his gun out the window and shot the donkey. Then he shouted, “To be sure, that will teach the old timer.”
At that moment a second shot rang out from the passenger side of the vehicle and one of his hunting mates yelled, “And me, begorra, I got the cow.”

 

 

The resemblance of that cartoon to my actual conversation just last week with Impish is uncannily scary!

 

9 Tech Superstars as Comic Book Characters

Ever wonder what superpowers Steve Jobs or Bill Gates would have in a comic book? Check out our what-if tech superheroes (and supervillains).

Steve Jobs

After his painful initial ouster from Apple, Steve Jobs underwent a radical transformation. Pride and rage amplified his Reality Distortion Field and his impeccable design aesthetic into a powerful force capable of entrancing men, women, and children the world over. Now, millions of people have been filled with insatiable lust for the turtlenecked tyrant’s shiny tech baubles. Word has it that his secret hit squad, known as The Geniuses, “schedules a visit” with anyone foolish enough to resist their leader’s mind-bending magic.

Bill Gates

Much like a certain ironclad superhero, Bill Gates once made billions by exploiting the world’s markets–except instead of selling weapons, he sold a horribly bloated operating system and a ubiquitous office suite. Shamed by the horrors that he had inflicted upon the world’s productivity, he decided to give back by fashioning his own superpowered suit to fight injustice (and malaria in Africa). Fun fact: His suit’s optical technology eventually found its way into the Kinect.

Linus Torvalds

Linus Torvalds fights for truth, justice, and the inalienable right to use a computer without being beholden to anyone. Not only can he code whatever superhero tools he needs to fight for liberty–compiled from tarballs!–but he also gets support for his freedom-fighting ways from his loose-knit confederation of open-source allies. And, of course, his rascally penguin sidekick Tux provides comic relief.

Ada Lovelace

Every tech superbeing can trace the origin of their powers back to Ada Lovelace and her work on the Analytical Engine in the 1800s. Official records state that she died shortly after she began to tap the true power of the computer, but conspiratorial types are convinced that she haunts the Internet, lending a hand to the good guys in times of dire need…a friendly ghost in the machine.

Mark Zuckerberg

Although he does have the ability to throw the occasional sheep, Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t have superstrength or the ability to fly. What he does have is a database with every single piece of Internet communication you make on your phone or PC. That database contains information on everyone’s strengths, weaknesses, and secret identities. He calls it “Facebook.”

Larry Page and Sergey Brin

Google cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin aim to solve the world’s wars, inequalities, and strife…by uniting everyone under the Google banner. This dynamic duo can always find whatever they’re looking for, and they have the uncanny ability to manipulate the weather (well, the cloud, anyway). Backing them up is an army of Androids with a penchant for sweets.

Steve Ballmer

The Zune, the Kin, Windows Vista…well, those aren’t Steve Ballmer’s fault. He’s just really, really excited about Microsoft and technology, and before you know it he’s on the CES keynote stage shouting “DEVELOPERS!” over and over again.

Carol Bartz

We wouldn’t even be talking about Yahoo anymore if it weren’t for Carol Bartz, who went off the deep end trying to restore Yahoo to its major-player status. She has trained in the ruthless art of Management Fu, and her loyal minions, the Yahooligans will stop at nothing (short of labor laws) to deliver her to Google’s seat of power. Or Facebook’s. She’s not picky.

Steve Fox

You know that sinking feeling you get when you buy a brand-new gadget and think, “Man, this thing sucks?” PCWorld editorial director Steve Fox knows the feeling all too well: After having been bitten by a radioactive copy of Windows Me, he vowed to rid the world of baseless hype and too-smooth sales pitches. They say that “Steve Fox” is actually a title passed down from hero to hero, and that his powers are activated by reciting the PCWorld Oath:

In 4G blind spot
In Wi-Fi den
No bad tech is beyond my ken
Let shameless hucksters and pitchmen
Beware my writing,
Steve Fox’s pen!

 

A dying granny was talking to her granddaughter:

“I may die any minute so I want you to inherit my farm including the villa, tractor, the farmhouse and all the livestock and $22,389,630.00 cash”.

The granddaughter replied: “Wow!!” ‘Thanks granny, I didn’t know you even had a farm & all this wealth! Where is it??”

Granny says with her last dying breath…..”It’s on my Facebook.”

 

As two very proper English ladies were discussing their vacation plans on a London street corner one day, Miss Molly O’Malley, a fine Irish lady, who was waiting for the trolley could not help overhearing.
“We are planning a simply lovely holiday in Devon this year,” said the first Englishwoman in a haughty tone.
“Oh you mustn’t do that,” replied the second Englishwoman. “There are far too many Irish there in Devon! It would be simply awful.”
“Oh! Dear me!” said the first English lady. “Well, where are you going to go?”
“Salisbury,” replied the second woman in a knowing manner.
“But Salisbury is simply crawling with Irish! That would be just terrible!” the first Englishwoman objected.
It was at this point that Miss Molly, the Irish lady, could bite her tongue no longer. “Why don’t ye both go t’ hell,” she interjected. “There’ll be no Irish there!”

Although it was barely noon with the sun straight overhead, ol’ Fogarty already had a strong start at imbibing a healthy share of Guinness. In short, he was quite a bit nearer to a state of inebriation than he was to sobriety. Okay, truth be told, he was so drunk that he staggered from side to side as he walked along the street.
As he haltingly stepped first this way, then that, even a casual observer could see the state he was in. Two nuns who were approaching him noticed his condition immediately and were naturally quite nervous at the thought of passing near a man so drunk.
As they neared Fogarty, the two nuns split far apart with one walking wide to Fogarty’s left and the other walking just as wide to his right.
After the nuns had passed him by, Fogarty spun around and said, “Now how in the hell did she do that?”

The Aussie, the Texan and the Canadian were having a bullshit session on this cruise ship.
The Aussie said, “In Australia we have sheep that are so big they take all day to be shorn.”
The Canadian said, “That’s nothing,  our cattle are so big the steaks have to be turned with a fork lift.”
The Texan said, “That’s nothing, we have te purdist cowgirls you ever done see with pussies this big.” (He then stretched his hands so wide that it’d do the biggest fish justice.)
“How do you screw them then?” asked the Canadian.
“Oh they stretch.”

 

Well I made it a whole entire week before having to resort to a Last Word. Blame the fact this one is here at all on Impish. No seriously I’m not joking. When I told him about this revelation Friday night he was going to use it for his Last word on Saturday. Saturday Morning rolls around…Impish suffers total brain fart and cannot remember what it was we were talking over. OK it happens, he did have a house full of giggling nine year olds all night, that’s got to take a toll on anyone’s sanity.

I told him I was going to publish a Sunday Week In Review on this particular subject. I then spent the remainder of the day to draft the issue. It included the subject below, a couple reader comments and another short comment by me on the issue of the debt Ceiling stalemate.

I awake this morning to see that Impish ahs decided that the Binky and Ba~ba Brigade trumps anything that is scheduled previously and is more important that this serious travesty and insult. Thunder and readers attention having been usurped chances of reader paying anything more than cursory attention to anything not baby related for the rest of the day ZERO ZILCH NADA. So as you can see I had no choice but to go back on my word not to get out my soapbox to get this word on this travesty out and it really IS Impish’s fault.

9-11 Bill Does Not Cover Cancer

WTC heroes are being denied under the Zadroga Bill

After a long battle, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act also know as 9/11 Responder Health bill passed last December amidst massive Republican foot dragging  and took effect this July.

The Zadroga Act provided a $2.8 billion federal fund for people with Sept. 11-related illnesses, and an additional $1.5 billion to monitor their health, according to the Associated Press. However, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health determined there was too little scientific evidence linking cancer to time spent amid the dust and wreckage. The tragedy of 9/11 continues for many responders and their families in a very direct and sad way.

Jon Stewart just one of many champions of a bill, which will provide health care for first responders sickened at Ground Zero and used his show and the resultant bad publicity for Republicans to pressure all those involved to get off their backsides and get these people the help they so desperately needed, deserved and was certainly their due. Apparently that Republican foot dragging forced a compromise to get the bill passed which mean it does not cover CANCER!

Just when we thought we finally passed a bill to provide healthcare coverage to the 9/11 workers, we now find out the this bill does not cover cancer. Really?! It covers laryngitis and carpel tunnel, but not cancer. Apparently, there’s not a direct, proven link between the cancers suffered by the workers and the huge pile of carcinogen-laced debris they were cleaning up.

Wednesday, the news story broke that Doctor John Howard has stated to have found that there is not enough scientific evidence right now to add cancers to the list of diseases covered by the law signed late 2010 by President Obama. This doctor has come to this conclusion despite us knowing the type of cancer causing asbestos building insulation that exploded into dust that these heroes breathed in while saving lives or looking for body remains while working at “the pile”.  9/11 advocate, John Feal one of the strongest champions of the Zadroga Bill was understandably furious because he stated that he “has been to 53 funerals of 9/11 rescue worker victims– and 51 of those deaths were from cancer”.

When the WTC Twin Towers were brought down in the worst attack leveled against America, it released carcinogens from building insulation which contains fibers of asbestos.

In the aftermath of this tragedy, many of the firefighters and police officers who rushed in to save lives and people who worked on “the pile” looking for body remains became toxically sick. Many healthy people of that day eventually got cancer and died. Many suffer today from having this deadly disease, lost their source of income for themselves and families and have become prisoners’ of their own homes. Besides not being able to work and provide for their families, they have thousands upon thousands of dollars in medical expenses and debt mounting up– adding to their suffering, in their fight to remain alive.

Then-Governor of New York George Pataki signed into legislation the Zadroga Bill, a 2.8 billion compensation fund, named after Detective James Zadroga, on August 14, 2006. This bill was to expand death benefits to Ground Zero workers who died from cancer or respiratory diseases, under the presumption that the cause was due to exposure during recovery efforts. James Zadroga was the first NYPD officer whose death was attributed to exposure to his contact with toxic chemicals at the attack site.

Despite an initial synopsis by Gerard Breton, a pathologist of the Ocean County, New Jersey medical examiner‘s office, (who) conducted an autopsy in April 2006, and he reported, “It is felt with a reasonable degree of medical certainty that the cause of death in this case was directly related to the 9/11 incident.”This attribution made Zadroga, 34-years-old at the time of his death, the first 9/11 responder whose death was directly linked with toxic Ground Zero substances. Breton’s autopsy found what he described as “unidentified foreign materials” in Zadroga’s lungs, which were identified by the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Washington, D.C. as talc, cellulose, calcium phosphate, and methacrylate plastic; However, the examination did not compare the particles found in his lungs with actual dust from the World Trade Center site. Then Chief Medical Examiner Charles Hirsch and another medical examiner signed a statement that said “It is our unequivocal opinion, with certainty beyond doubt, that the foreign material in James Zadroga’s lungs did not get there as the result of inhaling dust at the World Trade Center or elsewhere”. Hirsch concluded that Zadroga died from self-injection of ground drugs, with Hirsch finding severe scarring in his lungs that he determined was caused by cellulose and talc granulomas and stating (through a spokesperson) that “The lung disease he had was a consequence of injecting prescription drugs. They tried to make James Zadroga’s death caused by prescription drug abuse. This discredited who he was—which was a healthy 34-year old detective –who was a first responder– or in other words a true hero. They stated that Zadroga injected Oxy-Contin in himself despite no needle track mark scars present. A third opinion obtained by Zadroga’s family later that month from Dr. Michael Baden, chief forensic pathologist of the New York State Police (and former New York City Medical Examiner), backed the original claim of WTC dust responsibility, citing the presence of glass fibers in Zadroga’s lungs that could not be related to injecting drugs.

(Any mistakes and/or confusion in the above quoted passage are courtesy of the Washington Post)

Asbestos and 9/11

The inhalation of asbestos glass fibers can cause serious illnesses, including malignant lung cancer, Mesothelioma (a formerly rare cancer strongly associated with exposure to amphibole asbestos), and asbestosis (a type of pneumoconiosis). Long exposure to high concentrations of asbestos fibers is more likely to cause health problems.

Six minerals are defined by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as “asbestos” including those belonging to the serpentine class chrysotile and those belonging to the amphibole class amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, anthophyllite and actinolite. There is an important distinction to be made between serpentine and amphibole asbestos due to differences in their chemical composition and their degree of potency as a health hazard when inhaled. However asbestos and all commercial forms of asbestos (including chrysotile asbestos) are known to be human carcinogens based on sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans. There is without out a doubt that the building insulation used in the Twin Towers contained asbestos containing cancer causing carcinogens.

More than 1000 tons of asbestos are thought to have been released into the air during the destruction of the Twin Towers. Inhalation of a mixture of asbestos and other toxicants is thought to be linked to the unusually high death rate of emergency service workers from cancers since this tragedy. Many thousands more are now at risk of developing cancer dues to this exposure with those who have already died and being only the “tip of the iceberg”. Many have criticized authorities for using asbestos in the Towers’ construction.

Ten years after the towers fell there are still not sufficient studies to see if Ground Zero toxins caused cancer. The evidence will be required to be reviewed again a year from now but the sick and those mired in medical bills need our help now.

I urge You to contact your Senators and Representatives. to encourage law and policy makers to open more extensive studies NOW—not next month— or next year. (The links for finding their phone numbers assresses and e~mail addresses appear at the end) The sick may not have that long— and we can possibly cure some by seeing that they are treated properly and treated with the dignity that is worthy of United States hero. If we cannot save their lives we should not leave their spouses mired in crippling debt.

Common sense tells me that there is something radically wrong when most of the deaths are attributed to the 9/11 responders cancers. There was 1000 tons of cancer-causing asbestos building insulation, glass dust particles released into the air of NYC and surrounding areas. I am also calling for a ban on this type of scientifically known cancer causing product to be banned from further use on new construction projects and for our nation to come up with an effective insulation alternative, which is non-toxic. Every time there is a building fire, this hazardous material gets released.

The question needs to be raised why cancer was removed from the coverage compensation of this bill when most of the deaths are in fact from cancer?

On his show Thursday night, Jon Stewart said, ““Who gives a [bleep]? The worst-case scenario here is we accidentally treat a 9/11 responder’s cancer, even though his cancer may not be proven to have its gen­esis on 9/11.”   http://www.salon.com/news/morning_clip/?story=/politics/war_room/2011/07/29/steward_9_11_responders_cancer_coverage

 

Call and/or write your Congressional Representatives! Do not allow this travesty to go unprotested!

http://www.house.gov/

https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

http://www.contactingthecongress.org/

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

http://www.senate.gov/reference/common/faq/How_to_contact_senators.htm

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/911-first-responders-bill-does-not-cover-cancer-jon-stewart-is-mad-video/2011/07/29/gIQAq4m8gI_blog.html

 

Today is going to be a huge baby day in the Dragon household.  Not only do I have pictures of the brandy-newest grand baby, but two other grand babies are coming to visit grandpa today….so you’ll get pictures later….right now, may I introduce to you, Miss Rose Michelle, born 30 July 2011 at 0730 hrs, weighing in at 6 lbs, 15 ozs and 19 inches tall….

Happy Birthday Rosie!  Welcome to the family!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And thank you my wonderful camper friends for sharing in the miracle with us.