Wow, some days things just look awesome. How can you have a bad day and see something like this and not say, "Man it's good to be alive" Can you believe I took these with a Cell Phone?
So ... my words to you this wonderful September evening area; make sure you take time and look around. Absorb what you see and appreciate it. Take a second from you hectic busy life and pause. You Never when you might miss something as beautiful as this evening sunset.
Tags:
sunset Technorati, del.iciou.us
Nashville Technorati, del.iciou.us
This is a the First ever photographed live Giant Squid (genus Architeuthis) in its natural environment. Taken by Tsunemi Kubodera, from the National Science Museum in Tokyo this 26 foot long squid is attacking the bait researchers placed on the end of a long stick.Specimens have been found washed up on beaches but none have ever been seen in the wild.
Links:
National science Museum in Tokyo, Japan
More Info on Architeuthis at Wikipedia.
Tags:
Giant Squid Technorati, del.iciou.us
Architeuthis Technorati, del.iciou.us
Tsunemi Kubodera Technorati, del.iciou.us
A Coworker of mine sent me a letter by a guy in Mississippi that asks where are the non-liberal and so called non-Christian organizations in helping katrina victims. The letter follows:
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING LETTER FROM A VICTIM OF HURRICAN KATRINA.
THIS
LETTER WAS EMAILED FROM DAVID MILLICAN TO HIS FRIENDS AND FAMILY.
From : David Millican. A resident of McComb Ms.
lives in the area where hurricane Katrina hit. To : To my
friends, my family, and all the good people and organizations that have helped
out.
WHAT I HAVE SEEN SINCE KATRINA
:
- The poor AND the wealthy hurt by the
storm.- Black, White, Hispanic, Oriental and Indian ALL hurt
by the storm.- Neighbors going door to door helping one
another.- Christian people giving, giving, giving, and continuing to
give with their time, money, and
services.-
Churches going all out to minister to people in need.- Thugs and
hoodlums going door to door looking for someone vulnerable.- Ice and
water being fought over as police tried to keep the peace.- People
coming up from New Orleans taking over empty houses because shelters are
full.- Out of town volunteers coming with food and staying for weeks
now still serving it.- The Churches all over the nation
doing what Christians do in a crisis and other times...help
out, give their time, their money, their love, and all
types of necessities.- FEMA doing a wonderful job in getting help to
us.- The American Red Cross doing a great job in the
shelters.- The Salvation Army doing a great job in the
community.- Four Hundred crewman from everywhere bringing back the
power to our homes,churches
and businesses.-
Lines at service stations a block to a mile long.- Our nationÂs
military and the national guard working tirelessly to help a nation in
need. - National Guardsman patrolling the streets of
McComb along with Kentucky policemen protecting us from
the hoodlums and thugs of McComb, Pike County and New
Orleans (one of the most dangerous cities in the world
before Katrina.).- Drug dealers working outside
shelters.- Doctors, nurses and other hospital personnel working
tirelessly, even sleeping in the hospital to do the job God
called them to do.- Liberal groups, liberal politicians, and the
liberal mainstream news media all across the
nation doing
everything possible to politicize this national disaster and
bash our president for their political gain.
NOW WHAT I HAVE NOT SEEN
SINCE KATRINA:
- The ACLU setting up a feeding line, or helping
out in any way.
- The atheists and gripers and complainers about
religion and Chrisitians in America doing
ANYTHING
to help out, leaving everything up to the good organizations, churches and
Christians that they criticize on a daily or weekly
basis.
- Americans United for the Separation of Church and State
putting out any time,
money, or energy to help the
nation and it people in a national disaster. - The liberal
mainstream news media doing anything to help show the
wonderful work that good people, churches, and organizations are doing
for the people in their time of crisis.
- People for the American Way helping in the shelters, or in any
other way- MoveOn.Org and the other liberal complainers doing
anything at all to help. - The NAACP doing any work
whatsoever.- The American Atheist organization serving meals in the
shelters.- Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton directing traffic at the
gas stations.- Ted Kennedy and John Kerry helping the elderly,
children, and the homeless. - The gripers and complainers in
Congress doing any work on anything to help people.
I could go on
and on but you get my message. As always, when a disaster hits our nation,
it's the nationÂs military, the American Red Cross and Salvation Army, good
conservative and Christian organizations, and Christian people with love and
compassion who do the work, pour out the money, and give of their time to help
out.
The loud mouth liberals and their complaining groups hardly
ever get involved other than to make speeches and spew out their poison about
how everybody messed up and the things that went wrong. While good, decent
people are out working so hard to take care of people, these loud complainers do
nothing at all to help out with money or time, instead they try to take
advantage of the situation to further advance their liberal agenda. What
pathetic people and groups to try to use a national disaster for selfish
purposes!
These liberal groups and the gripers in Congress should
come on down and get in line to pass out water and ice and food, go to work
cleaning up the mess, and help out the situation instead of hindering the
situation with their complaining and griping.
Are you
listening ACLU, MoveOn.org, Americans United, you liberals news reporters,
you other liberal groups, Hillary, Chuck, Teddy, John, and all the other sorry
loafers we call Senators and Congressmen? You donÂt have a clue as
to what this life is all about here on the gulf coast, or what is important to
mainstream Americans. And you never will have a clue because you havenÂt
got time to listen  youÂre too busy trying to promote your atheistic
liberal agenda!
BOY I FEEL BETTER NOW. I NEEDED THAT.
Thanks for listening,
David A. MillicanMcComb, Ms.
My first thought when I read this is, How dare he. I got the impresssion the anyone who is a liberal or a non christian isn't doing shit to help.
Well i got a response to this letter sent to me by a friend that was written by Someone at Americans UIited i believe. Letter follows:
Mr. Smith,
First of all, please learn how to use BCC so that
the recipients of your e-mails don't see the names and e-mail addresses of
everyone else you addressed. Privacy issues - I'm sure you
understand. I will, however, take advantage of your oversight by
responding to all of your recipients.
I'm speaking for myself - not
for any organization. I feel compelled to show you that your perceptions
(giving you credit for the message you forwarded) are grossly incorrect. I
live in the area of Florida what was hit by Hurricane Charley last year.
Luckily, my immediate area was spared. While the news and media focused on
the coastal areas of Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda, the inland counties (which,
incidentally, tend to be much less wealthy) were virtually ignored. We
ventured into the Arcadia and Wachula areas the morning after Charley hit.
There was devastation beyond what most people can imagine and seeing it in
person has a much stronger impact on one's heartstrings that the television can
elicit. Sadly, we were the only people driving around. There was no
FEMA, no Salvation Army, no Red Cross, and no church organizations. Only
us with our meager case of bottled water.
The
following morning we returned (now two days after Charley hit). Still
no governmental or (as you put it) "Christian" organizations. There was
only us. This time we were prepared. We filled our pick up truck
with $2000 worth of groceries and other essential non-perishables from a local
Publix supermarket and gave them out to the dumbfounded and abandoned survivors
who hadn't prepared because they didn't expect such devasation so far
inland. A hurricane of that strength cutting through the state like that
was unprecedented. We gave dry cereal and canned foods to mothers who
cried at the thought of our generosity. We gave cases of water and juice
to children who were thrilled to be able to bring it home to their
parents. We even gave out portions of dog and cat food. Some people
told us that Jesus sent us - Jesus had nothing to do with our desire to help our
less fortunate neighbors. Just plain humanity and compassion.
Nothing based in religion. We didn't need a "god" to inspire
us.
Two other non-Christian concerned and caring Pagan (as I'm sure
you view us) friends also donated their time, money and personal belongings to
these victims. One is a Democratic activist, who, in the matter of a few
hours, was able to gather enough donations from fellow Democrats that her truck
was filled twice. We were the only ones in sight. And, yes, the area
was still dangerous. At one point, our truck got caught in a downed
telephone line and almost pulled the already slanted pole down upon us. We
eventually got our chassis unraveled and continued on our mission. We were
seemingly willing to risk our well being while none of the organizations you
credit for doing everything to help victims were willing to do the same.
No one ever reimbursed us for the purchases we made. None of us are
wealthy - my home equity line of credit paid for those supplies. And, no,
we weren't the only non-Christians who acted so benevolantly.
The
organizations that you list as those who are not seemingly providing direct
assistance to the victims of the hurricanes are not geared toward such
activities. They serve a different purpose altogether. Political
activism mainly. Yet, I did receive slews of e-mails from many
"progressive" organizations asking us to help the victims. None of these
organizations are based in religion. If you'd like a list of the Jewish
and other minority religious organizations that also requested (and received my
donations), I'll be happy to forward them to you. For your perusal, I'll
cut and paste excerpts, in no particular order, of some of the
NON-RELIGIOUS e-mail requests for aid below.
Meanwhile,
if you go to the Christian Coalition of America's website, they have one meager
blurb about Katrina:
Ministries' Response to Hurricane Victims Lauded; Prayer Asked for
Worn-Out Volunteers
Not exactly focused on helping the victims
directly - just like their politically oriented progressive
counterparts. Actually, probably less than.
Focus on the
Family's website offers a barely noticeable link to a donation form:
Help
Hurricane Victims
You can do more research on your own. I'm not
familiar (by choice) with enough of the right wing conservative Christian
organizations to do more.
The point is: altruism, compassion, and
love has no direct positive correlation to one's faith or lack thereof.
Anyone with an open mind and a loving heart will be happy to know that someone
or anyone is helping the victims of natural or man-made disasters. Whether
it be the most right or left wing organization, whether it be a Christian,
Moslem, Buddhist, or Atheist organization. Believe it or not, I have many
"real" Christian friends - the ones who expend their energy on doing what they
believe Jesus would have done instead of trying to point twisted fingers at
people who don't share their beliefs. To try to use a catastrophy like
Katrina as a political tool intended to divide people is, I'm sure, a sin in
such people's eyes. People who send out messages like the one I received
from you are part of the problem, professing hatred instead of love, and are not
part of the solution.
Here are the excerpts I mentioned
above:
------------------
Dear
MoveOn member,
The devastation from hurricane Katrina is heart-breaking.
With water supplies running out and shelters bursting at the seams, people in
Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida need somewhere safe to go. But
relief workers are struggling to find adequate housing for the one million
people who've had to evacuate their homes.
Because you live in the region,
you could do a lot to alleviate this crisis by opening your home. Do you have an
extra room, bed or couch where someone could stay? Post whatever you can offer
at:
http://www.hurricanehousing.org/index2.html?id=5952-3167753-11QbcKF.DozdhHURL4zx_w&t=2
Since
we launched this website 24 hours ago, more than 40,000 beds have been offered
throughout the country. But we need more in the Southeast region, closest to the
families forced from their homes by the storm and
flooding.
------------------
In
the last few days, as the full impact of the tragedy in the Gulf Coast becomes
known, we at the American Humanist Association have received an outpouring of
requests from members who wish to give as Humanists to the relief efforts. In
response we have set up a secure website so that you can give online.
https://www.americanhumanist.org/secure/humanistcharities.php
This
serves as a reminder that the time is overdue to establish a permanent,
unambiguously, Humanist, means of supporting relief efforts. That's why we'd
like to offer you the option to allocate 5% of your donation toward establishing
Humanist Charities so we can better respond to catastrophes like this.
To
offer your support for the people of the Gulf Coast and help launch a lasting
and effective means of responding to future tragedies, contribute online now.
Funds collected will be batched and sent to the American Red Cross, the most
established and active relief agency recommended by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency that are not sectarian in
structure.
-------------
Storm Refugees Desperately Need Housing
- Can You Help?
Hundreds of thousands of people have been flooded out of
their homes and are in desperate need of someplace to stay -- especially in
southeastern states near you. Can you open your home?
Two web sites have
been set up to connect refugees with potential hosts. If you have a spare room,
please make a charitable offer of housing by clicking here:
http://www.hurricanehousing.org/
http://www.openyourhome.com/
Also, a
wide range of charities will be playing a large role in the recovery efforts.
Click on the links below to donate:
Second Harvest: http://www.secondharvest.org/default2.asp
Mercy Corps: http://www.mercycorps.org/
Acorn Institute: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=36&referer=http%3A%2F%2Facorn%2Eorg%2F
American Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/
Please forward this newsletter to
your friends and help spread the word about this important campaign!
Thank
you for working to build a better world.
Will EastonManagerActForChange/Working
Assets
-----------------
As progressives, we share a core belief that we are all in this together, and today
is an important chance to put that idea to work. There are thousands of families
who have just lost everything and need a place to stay dry. Let's do what we can
to help.
http://www.hurricanehousing.org/
If hosting doesn't work for you, please consider donating to the
Red Cross to help with the enormous tasks of rescue and recovery. You can give
online at:
http://action.truemajority.org/ct/I1SkfK41ERc8/
With gratitude,
The
TrueMajority Team
-----------------------
Over
the past few days we have all been overwhelmed by the devastating pictures and
stories that have come out of the hurricane stricken areas. So many of us
want to do what we can to help. The following is a message from Louisiana
Senator Mary Landrieu that we wanted to share with you.
J.B.
PoerschExecutive Director, DSCC
(It requested we donate to the Red
Cross)
-----------------------
Dear
NRDC Member,
I know you join me in sending our thoughts and prayers to our
40,000 Members and activists who live in the hurricane-stricken areas of
Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. Many members of the NRDC family --
and millions of others -- are in urgent need of assistance as they struggle to
emerge from the terrible aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. If you are moved to
donate, we recommend the following two websites that list highly-rated charities
assisting in the relief effort:
http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm/bay/content.view/catid/68/cpid/310.htm
http://www.networkforgood.org/topics/animal_environ/hurricanes/
Thank
you for helping at this very difficult time.
John H.
Adams
President
Natural Resources Defense Council
------------------------
If
hosting doesn't work for you, please consider donating to the Red Cross to help
with the enormous tasks of rescue and recovery. You can give online at:
Donate to the
Red Cross
This is a time for America to come together. And today, two of
the largest and most active online communities in the nation -- Moveon.org Civil
Action and johnkerry.com -- are working side-by-side to help in any way we can.
There are thousands of families who have just lost everything and need a place
to stay dry. Let's do what we can to help.
http://www.hurricanehousing.org/
Thanks for being there for families in urgent need of your immediate
help. Please keep the people of the Gulf Coast in your thoughts and prayers.
Sincerely,
John Kerry
-----------------------
Your
immediate help is urgently requested. Please make an
emergency gift today to help the women, children, and men caught in this
disaster. I pledge to you that 100% of your gift will go directly to the Planned
Parenthood affiliates and health centers in the affected region  so that they
can serve the women, children, and men who have nowhere else to turn. Planned
Parenthood staff in this region, and beyond, are determined to do all that we
can to serve every person who comes through our doors. Your support will allow
us to serve those most in need during this unprecedented crisis. Thank you,
Karen PearlInterim PresidentPlanned Parenthood Federation of AmericaOn behalf of
the Planned Parenthood community
---------------------------------
In
addition to mobilizing our infrastructure to support the housing drive, we have
also taken the following steps in the last week:
All DNC fundraising events
have been cancelled until further notice and donations are being directed to
relief organizations.
The DNC Fall Meeting that had been scheduled to take
place this week has been postponed.
All staff have been given leave to
participate in relief operations (many are completing Red Cross training this
week and will deploy shortly).
The Democratic leadership in Congress has
proposed a comprehensive policy package to ensure that victims receive health
care, financial assistance and educational and employment opportunities during
the crisis (go to www.democrats.org/reliefplan
for more).
But more than anything our organization has done, the thousands
of acts of compassion by ordinary citizens and a renewed sense of common purpose
will be the legacy of this effort.
Our American community will emerge
stronger from this crisis.
Thank you for doing what you can.
Governor
Howard Dean, M.D.
P.S. -- A number of organizations on the ground still need
financial support. You can learn about them here:
http://www.democrats.org/reliefgroups
Well said. It's hateful people like this that really make me mad. How is this the "christian" thing todon't I dont understand.
Tags:
Hurricane Katrina Technorati, del.iciou.us
Hurricane Technorati, del.iciou.us
New Orleans Technorati, del.iciou.us
Alabama Technorati, del.iciou.us
Mississippi Technorati, del.iciou.us
I witnessed a ton of football history Saturday:
- Vanderbilt Beat the Richmond spiders 37-13 going 4-0
- The crowd in attendance was 38,466 the largest since Vandy Auburn Game Sept. 29 2001
- Quarterback Jay Cutler had 119 yards passing yard which gives him 7956 yards for his career, a school record
- He also has a Career 42 touch down passes, another school record.
links to Articles about Games;
VUCOmmodores.com
Tennessean
Tags:
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Vanderbilt FootballTechnorati, del.iciou.us
College FootballTechnorati, del.iciou.us
Football Technorati, del.iciou.us
I'm drinking Sam Adams Cherry Wheat Ale. Imagine a Heffewisen with out the banana yeast by product and fermented with cherries. A good wheat front and a wonderfully light cherry finish. Awesome.So I'm cleaning House because dad and his wife and the kids are coming for the Vanderbilt-Richmond football game. Yea 4-0 baby ..woohooo.
I listening to my Napster account. Vanderbilt hooks us up with a discount on CD streaming from them so shut up. So here's what I have added to my "cleaning" mix:
- E-Pro -- Beck
- Girl -- Beck
- Landed -- Ben Folds
- Steal My Kisses -- Ben Harper
- A Lifetime -- Better Than Ezra
- If I had a Million Dollars -- Bare Naked Ladies
- Ohh Child -- Beth Orton
- My Doorbell -- White Stripes
- Closer to Free -- Bodeans
- Miss America and I -- Buffalo Nickel
- Bullet and a Target -- Citizen Cope
- Ring of Fire -- Social Distortion
- Big Sky Country -- Chris Whitley
- Pirate Looks at Forty -- Jack Johnson (Buffet Cover)
- Last Goodbye -- Jeff Buckley
- Illegal Smile -- John Prine
- Good Day -- Luce
- Starry Eyed Suprise -- Paul Oakenfold
- Evangeline -- Matthew Sweet
I watched this unfold last night on TV. A Jetblue Airliner with 146 passengers on it landed safely at LAX after reporting a front landing gear problem. As you can see the Landing gear is turned sideways.
The Question I have here is who's the hero? Is it the pilot that landed this plane or is it the engineers that designed the landing gear is such a way that it didn't break off?
Either way I'm glad this didn't turn out worse.
See video of landing here (QT via crooksandliars.com bittorrent link there)
UPDATE: pilots name is Scott Burke, good job sir...
This is the second near crash, did you see this when it happened(video included via MSNBC.com)?
Tags:
Jetblue 292 Technorati, del.iciou.us
Jetblue Technorati, del.iciou.us
airline Technorati, del.iciou.us
Scott BurkeTechnorati, del.iciou.us
I was curious as to what Snopes.com would have about the stuff we are hearing about Hurricane Katrina. Here are a few of the false statements:
1. Louisiana governor Kathleen Blanco refused President Bush's pleas to declare an emergency before Hurricane Katrina struck.
2. E-mail details purported increase in carjackings and release of sex offenders after Hurricane Katrina.(this ones partly true, see link)
3. Pat Robertson said that Hurricane Katrina was caused by God's anger over the selection of lesbian comedienne Ellen Degeneres to host the Emmy Awards. (I have actually not heard this).
4. Evacuees from Gulf Coast states can get food stamps and free gasoline from Texas.
There is more there and I would guess in the coming months there will be more added. Lesson here: Don't believe everything you see or hear.
Tags:
Hurricane Katrina Technorati, del.iciou.us
Hurricane Technorati, del.iciou.us
Urban Legends Technorati, del.iciou.us
I know alot of people didn't like Napoleon Dynamite, but it seem that the people of Idaho did:
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 29
BY WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE
1 A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
2 STATING LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND COMMENDING JARED AND JERUSHA HESS AND THE
3 CITY OF PRESTON FOR THE PRODUCTION OF THE MOVIE "NAPOLEON DYNAMITE."
4 Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
5 WHEREAS, the State of Idaho recognizes the vision, talent and creativity
6 of Jared and Jerusha Hess in the writing and production of "Napoleon Dyna-
7 mite"; and
8 WHEREAS, the scenic and beautiful City of Preston, County of Franklin and
9 the State of Idaho are experiencing increased tourism and economic growth; and
10 WHEREAS, filmmaker Jared Hess is a native Idahoan who was educated in the
11 Idaho public school system; and
12 WHEREAS, the Preston High School administration and staff, particularly
13 the cafeteria staff, have enjoyed notoriety and worldwide attention; and
14 WHEREAS, tater tots figure prominently in this film thus promoting Idaho's
15 most famous export; and
16 WHEREAS, the friendship between Napoleon and Pedro has furthered
17 multiethnic relationships; and
18 WHEREAS, Uncle Rico's football skills are a testament to Idaho athletics;
19 and
20 WHEREAS, Napoleon's bicycle and Kip's skateboard promote better air qual-
21 ity and carpooling as alternatives to fuel-dependent methods of transporta-
22 tion; and
23 WHEREAS, Grandma's trip to the St. Anthony Sand Dunes highlights a long-
24 honored Idaho vacation destination; and
25 WHEREAS, Rico and Kip's Tupperware sales and Deb's keychains and glamour
26 shots promote entrepreneurism and self-sufficiency in Idaho's small towns; and
27 WHEREAS, Napoleon's artistic rendition of Trisha is an example of the
28 importance of the visual arts in K-12 education; and
29 WHEREAS, the schoolwide Preston High School student body elections foster
30 an awareness in Idaho's youth of public service and civic duty; and
31 WHEREAS, the "Happy Hands" club and the requirement that candidates for
32 school president present a skit is an example of the importance of theater
33 arts in K-12 education; and
34 WHEREAS, Pedro's efforts to bake a cake for Summer illustrate the positive
35 connection between culinary skills to lifelong relationships; and
36 WHEREAS, Kip's relationship with LaFawnduh is a tribute to e-commerce and
37 Idaho's technology-driven industry; and
38 WHEREAS, Kip and LaFawnduh's wedding shows Idaho's commitment to healthy
39 marriages; and
40 WHEREAS, the prevalence of cooked steak as a primary food group pays trib-
41 ute to Idaho's beef industry; and
42 WHEREAS, Napoleon's tetherball dexterity emphasizes the importance of
43 physical education in Idaho public schools; and
44 WHEREAS, Tina the llama, the chickens with large talons, the 4-H milk
2
1 cows, and the Honeymoon Stallion showcase Idaho's animal husbandry; and
2 WHEREAS, any members of the House of Representatives or the Senate of the
3 Legislature of the State of Idaho who choose to vote "Nay" on this concurrent
4 resolution are "FREAKIN' IDIOTS!" and run the risk of having the "Worst Day of
5 Their Lives!"
6 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the members of the First Regular Session
7 of the Fifty-eighth Idaho Legislature, the House of Representatives and the
8 Senate concurring therein, that we commend Jared and Jerusha Hess and the City
9 of Preston for showcasing the positive aspects of Idaho's youth, rural cul-
10 ture, education system, athletics, economic prosperity and diversity.
11 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we, the members of the House of Representa-
12 tives and the Senate of the State of Idaho, advocate always following your
13 heart, and thus we eagerly await the next cinematic undertaking of Idaho's
14 Hess family.
15 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Chief Clerk of the House of Representa-
16 tives be, and she is hereby authorized and directed to forward a copy of this
17 resolution to Jared and Jerusha Hess, the Mayor of the City of Preston and the
18 Principal of Preston High School.
This passed 69-0-1
Tags
Napoleon Dynamite Technorati, del.iciou.us
Idaho Technorati, del.iciou.us
Movies Technorati, del.iciou.us
Saturday Afternoon I was in attendance at Dudley Field to witness the Vanderbilt Commodores beat Ole Miss 31-23. I heard the last time they had a 3-0 start was 21 years ago. I'm so happy that Vandy actually doing ok. They are usually an ok Football team just happen to be in one of the toughest college football conferences there are.
GO VANDY.
Next week they play the Richmond Spiders and the week after that they play MTSU (where I graduated from). There is a good chance that Vanderbilt could be 5-0 and if they can beat Kentucky or maybe even Tennessee (it possible folks, last year they gave them a run for there money) they could be 6-5 and possibly going to a bowl game. And believe me if they do, I will be there.
Tags:
Vanderbilt Technorati, del.iciou.us
Ole Miss Technorati, del.iciou.us
Football Technorati, del.iciou.us
Yazoo Beer now in bottles. Yes sir. How exciting.This weekend is booked solid for me. Tomorrow Vanderbilt's Football team will go 3-0. Yes 3-0 I said .. not 0-3. Games at 11:30 vs Ole Miss. Should be a showdown.
After that I' m heading to East Nashville for a Hurricane benefit at 1610 Holly St. I am going to see Kims Fable. I been meaning to see them for a while now. Everything starts at about 4:00.
Sunday I will probably catch some football but Nashville Sunday Night at 3rd & Lindsley is featuring the band Luce . You should check them out.
My goodness, what happened to Vanderbilt's Football team? Has the instant replay helped stop them from getting hosed by the refs? Last year we had the most promising schedule we could ask for and we got screwed by the refs on 3 occasions. Can we get the 6-5 record we need to make it to a bowl game? How awesome would that be.
I am soo happy I got season tickets this year. We should beat Ole Miss, we almost did last year. Richmond should be an easy win. I predict a 4-0 start for Vandy. Could it be? Can we beat MTSU and Kentucky for a bowl bid?
We shall see.
On a side note the suck ass Tennessee Titans got there ass handed to them 3 times over. HA HAA HAA . I so hate the Titans. Go Chargers.
Tags:
Vanderbilt Technorati, del.iciou.us
Tennessee Titans Technorati, del.iciou.us
Football Technorati, del.iciou.us
7:58 a.m. - United Airlines Flight 175 departs Boston for Los Angeles,
carrying 56 passengers, two pilots, and seven flight attendants. The
Boeing 767 is hijacked after takeoff and diverted to New York.
7:59 a.m. - American Airlines Flight 11 departs Boston for Los
Angeles, carrying 81 passengers, two pilots, and nine flight
attendants. This Boeing 767 is also hijacked and diverted to New York.
8:01 a.m. - United Airlines Flight 93, a Boeing 757 carrying 38
passengers, two pilots, and five flight attendants, leaves Newark, N.J.,
for San Francisco.
8:10 a.m. - American Airlines Flight 77 departs Washington's
Dulles International Airport for Los Angeles, carrying 58 passengers,
two pilots, and four flight attendants. The Boeing 757 is hijacked
after takeoff.
8:46 a.m. - American Flight 11 from Boston crashes into the North
Tower at the World Trade Center.
9:03 a.m. - United Flight 175 from Boston crashes into the South
Tower at the World Trade Center.
- U.S. Federal Aviation Administration shuts down all New
York area airports.
9:21 a.m. - Bridges and tunnels leading into New York City
are closed.
9:25 a.m. - All domestic flights are grounded by U.S. Federal
Aviation Administration.
9:45 a.m. - American Flight 77 crashes into The Pentagon.
10:05 a.m. - The South Tower at the World Trade Center collapses.
10:05 a.m. - The White House is evacuated.
10:10 a.m. - A large section of one side of The Pentagon collapses.
10:10 a.m. - United Flight 93 crashes in a wooded area in
Pennsylvania, after passengers confront hijackers.
10:28 a.m. - The North Tower at the World Trade Center collapses.
Some 3000 people total lost there lives in these attacks
See names of individuals Here
Other sites related:
http://www.september11news.com/ where most of the pictures where taken from
Via Archive.org http://september11.archive.org/
Via Wikipediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11,_2001_attacks
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Septemeber 11th Technorati, del.iciou.us
This man has said everything I have ever thought or tried to say over the last weeks. Thank you Tim Wise. For more writings By Tim go to http://www.zmag.org/bios/homepage.cfm?authorID=96
This is an open letter to the man sitting behind me at La Paz today, in Nashville, at lunchtime, with the Brooks Brothers shirt:
You don't know me. But I know you.
I watched you as you held hands with your tablemates at the restaurant where we both ate this afternoon. I listened as you prayed, and thanked God for the food you were about to eat, and for your own safety, several hundred miles away from the unfolding catastrophe in New Orleans.
You blessed your chimichanga in the name of Jesus Christ, and then proceeded to spend the better part of your meal – and mine, since I was too near your table to avoid hearing every word – morally scolding the people of that devastated city, heaping scorn on them for not heeding the warnings to leave before disaster struck. Then you attacked them – all of them, without distinction it seemed – for the behavior of a relative handful: those who have looted items like guns, or big screen TVs.
I heard you ask, amid the din of your colleagues "Amens," why it was that instead of pitching in to help their fellow Americans, the people of New Orleans instead – again, all of them in your mind – choose to steal and shoot at relief helicopters.
I watched you wipe salsa from the corners of your mouth, as you nodded agreement to the statement of one of your friends, sitting to your right, her hair neatly coiffed, her makeup flawless, her jewelry sparkling. When you asked, rhetorically, why it was that people were so much more decent amid the tragedy of 9-11, as compared to the aftermath of Katrina, she had offered her response, but only after apologizing for what she admitted was going to sound harsh.
"Well," Buffy explained. "It's probably because in New Orleans, it seems to be mostly poor people, and you know, they just don't have the same regard."
She then added that police should shoot the looters, and should have done so from the beginning, so as to send a message to the rest that theft would not be tolerated. You, who had just thanked Jesus for your chips and guacamole, said you agreed. They should be shot. Praise the Lord.
Your God is one with whom I am not familiar.
Two thoughts.
First, it is a very fortunate thing for you, and likely for me, that my two young children were with me as I sat there, choking back fish tacos and my own seething rage, listening to you pontificate about shit you know nothing about.
Have you ever even been to New Orleans?
And no, by that I don't mean the New Orleans of your company's sales conference. I don't mean Emeril's New Orleans, or the New Orleans of Uptown Mardi Gras parties.
I mean the New Orleans that is buried as if it were Atlantis, in places like the lower 9th ward: 98 percent black, 40 percent poor, where bodies are floating down the street, flowing with the water as it seeks its own level. Have you met the people from that New Orleans? The New Orleans that is dying as I write this, and as you order another sweet tea?
I didn't think so.
Your God – the one to whom you prayed today, and likely do before every meal, because this gesture proves what a good Christian you are – is one with whom I am not familiar.
Your God is one who you sincerely believe gives a flying fuck about your lunch. Your God is one who you seem to believe watches over you and blesses you, and brings good tidings your way, while simultaneously letting thousands of people watch their homes be destroyed, and perhaps ten thousand or more die, many of them in the streets for lack of water or food.
Did you ever stop to think just what a rancid asshole such a God would have to be, such that he would take care of the likes of you, while letting babies die in their mother's arms, and old people in wheelchairs, at the foot of Canal Street?
Your God is one with whom I am not familiar.
But no, it isn't God who's the asshole here, Skip (or Brad, or Braxton, or whatever your name is).
God doesn't feed you, and it isn't God that kept me from turning around and beating your lily white privileged ass today either.
God has nothing to do with it.
God doesn't care who wins the Super Bowl.
God doesn't help anyone win an Academy Award.
God didn't get you your last raise, or your SUV.
And if God is even half as tired as I am of having to listen to self-righteous bastards like you blame the victims of this nightmare for their fate, then you had best eat slowly from this point forward.
Why didn't they evacuate like they were told?
Are you serious?
There were 100,000 people in that city without cars. Folks who are too poor to own their own vehicle, and who rely on public transportation every day. I know this might shock you. They don't have a Hummer2, or whatever gas-guzzling piece of crap you either already own or probably are saving up for.
And no, they didn't just choose not to own a car because the buses are so gosh-darned efficient and great, as Rush Limbaugh implied, and as you likely heard, since you're the kind of person who hangs on the every word of such bloviating hacks as these.
Why did they loot?
Are you serious?
People are dying, in the streets, on live television. Fathers and mothers are watching their baby's eyes bulge in their skulls from dehydration, and you are begrudging them some Goddamned candy bars, diapers and water?
If anything the poor of New Orleans have exercised restraint.
Maybe you didn't know it, but the people of that city with whom you likely identify – the wealthy white folks of Uptown – were barely touched by this storm. Yeah, I guess God was watching over them: protecting them, and rewarding them for their faith and superior morality. If the folks downtown who are waiting desperately for their government to send help – a government whose resources have been stretched thin by a war that I'm sure you support, because you love freedom and democracy – were half as crazed as you think, they'd have marched down St. Charles Avenue and burned every mansion in sight. That they didn’t suggests a decency and compassion for their fellow man and woman that sadly people like you lack.
Can you even imagine what you would do in their place?
Can you imagine what would happen if it were well-off white folks stranded without buses to get them out, without nourishment, without hope?
Putting aside the absurdity of the imagery--after all, such folks always have the means to seek safety, or the money to rebuild, or the political significance to ensure a much speedier response for their concerns – can you just imagine?
Can you imagine what would happen if the pampered, overfed corporate class, which complains about taxes taking a third of their bloated incomes, had to sit in the hot sun for four, going on five days? Without a Margarita or hotel swimming pool to comfort them I mean?
Oh, and please, I know. I'm stereotyping you. Imagine that. I've assumed, based only on your words, what kind of person you are, even though I suppose I could be wrong. How does that feel Biff? Hurt your feelings? So sorry. But hey, at least my stereotypes of you aren't deadly. They won't effect your life one bit, unlike the ones you carry around with you and display within earshot of people like me, supposing that no one could possibly disagree.
But I'm not wrong, am I Chip? I know you. I see people like you all the time, in airports, in business suits, on their lunch breaks. People who will take advantage of any opportunity to ratify and reify their pre-existing prejudices towards the poor, towards black folks. You see the same three video loops of the same dozen or so looters on Fox News and you conclude that poor black people are crazy, immoral, criminal.
You, or others quite a bit like you, are the ones posting messages on chat room boards, calling looters sub-human "vermin," "scum," or "cockroaches." I heard you use the word "animals" three times today: you and that woman across from you – what was her name? Skyler?
What was it you said as you scooped the last bite of black beans and rice into your eager mouth? Like zoo animals? Yes, I think that was it.
Well Chuck, it's a free country, and so you certainly have the right I suppose to continue lecturing the poor, in between checking your Blackberry and dropping the kids off at soccer practice. If you want to believe that the poor of New Orleans are immoral and greedy, and unworthy of support at a time like this – or somehow more in need of your scolding than whatever donation you might make to a relief fund – so be it.
But let's leave God out of it, shall we? All of it.
Your God is one with whom I am not familiar, and I'd prefer to keep it that way.
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Ahh another Friday. Been a pretty good week for myself considering all that's happened. I think I going to see 40 Year Old Virgin tonight . I heard it was really funny and I like Steve Carell from his days on The Daily Show. Tomorrow I think I will make a stop at the Australian Festival at Centennial Park. Also the Greek Festival is happening at the Greek Orthodox church on Franklin Road. Sunday, Second Harvest Food bank is having a benefit for the Hurricane victims at the Convention Center. It's 25 bucks and 100% of the money will go to the relief effort. I will probably go. They plan on showing the Titans game. They suck but hey they are playing Pittsburgh and All my family is form that area. Plus it for Charity so I can deal with it.
On August 20th, Hunter S Thompson's ashes where blasted out of a cannon as fireworks. How cool, I thought to myself. I want to do something like that when I die. But what will I do? Here are my options so far.:
- Have may ashes turned in to a concrete block and dropped in the ocean to become part of a coral reef
- Have my ashes turned in to a gem stone and put in to a ring for my loved ones.
- Have a small amount of my remains blasted in to space as part of a satellite.
- Or I could just be buried normally and have one of these on my grave stone
Some people just don't see what happening in front of them.(from Yahoo)By John Nichols of The Nation:
"Everyone is so overwhelmed by the hospitality. And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this, this is working very well for them," Mrs. Bush told American Public Media's "Marketplace" program, before returning to her multi-million dollar Houston home.I hope people in this country see this and understand just how the Bush type conservative really feel about the people of this county.On the tape of the interview, Mrs. Bush chuckles audibly as she observes just how great things are going for families that are separated from loved ones, people who have been forced to abandon their homes and the only community where they have ever lived, and parents who are explaining to children that their pets, their toys and in some cases their friends may be lost forever. Perhaps the former first lady was amusing herself with the notion that evacuees without bread could eat cake.
At the very least, she was expressing a measure of empathy commensurate with that evidenced by her son during his fly-ins for disaster-zone photo opportunities.
On Friday, when even Republican lawmakers were giving the federal government an "F" for its response to the crisis, President Bush heaped praise on embattled Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Michael Brown. As thousands of victims of the hurricane continued to plead for food, water, shelter, medical care and a way out of the nightmare to which federal neglect had consigned them, Brown cheerily announced that "people are getting the help they need."
Barbara Bush's son put his arm around the addled FEMA functionary and declared, "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job."
Like mother, like son.
Even when a hurricane hits, the apple does not fall far from the tree.
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I was watching MSNBC a few days ago and I saw video of Brian Williams walking down the streets of New Orleans with Harry Connick Jr (Via MSN). This was done Sept 1st prior to the Federal Government stepping in.
After watching that it really angers me when people like the Rev. Fred Phelps say, "Thank God for Katrina. New Orleans, symbol of America, seen for what it is: a putrid, toxic, stinking cesspool of fag fecal matter.(snip) America is irreversibly doomed. It is a sin to pray for the good of this evil fag nation.(snip). Pray for more dead bodies floating on the fag-semen-rancid waters of New Orleans." Or when Michael Marcavage of Repent America says, "this act of God destroyed a wicked city. (snip) From 'Girls Gone Wild to 'Southern Decadence,' New Orleans was a city that had its door wide open to the public celebration of sin. From the devastation may a city full of righteousness emerge". Or what Franklin Graham, of the evangelical charity Samaritan's Purse said about the looting on fox news Thursday, "This happens in our country when we have taken God out of our schools and God out of our, out of society. We don't have a moral standard". These people need to get rid of the hate talk and do something. These people where and still are dying. Have a heat and help . New Orleans is a wonderful city. Yea stuff happens there that shouldn't but the same stuff happens all over the world, everyday. These people did not in any way deserve this. Not at all. No one deserves this.
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Found via Crooks and liars:
Finally, a personal thought. We have come through what may have been one of the worst weeks in America's history, a week in which government at every level failed the people it was created to serve. There is no purpose for government except to improve the lives of its citizens. Yet as scenes of horror that seemed to be coming from some Third World country flashed before us, official Washington was like a dog watching television. It saw the lights and images, but did not seem to comprehend their meaning or see any link to reality.
As the floodwaters rose, local officials in New Orleans ordered the city evacuated. They might as well have told their citizens to fly to the moon. How do you evacuate when you don't have a car? No hint of intelligent design in any of this. This was just survival of the richest."
For more See Video (WMA)
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A week later and people are still asking for help? Why?
Here is a video of Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard pleading for help. (QT,WMA Via Crooks and Liars)
Video of Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu on This Week with George Stephanopoulos as they do a helicopter flyover of New Orleans (WMA Via Crooks and Liars).
And and amazing open letter to the President from the New Orleans Times-Picayune:
Dear Mr. President:
We heard you loud and clear Friday when you visited our devastated city and the Gulf Coast and said, "What is not working, we're going to make it right."
Please forgive us if we wait to see proof of your promise before believing you. But we have good reason for our skepticism.
Bienville built New Orleans where he built it for one main reason: It's accessible. The city between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain was easy to reach in 1718.
How much easier it is to access in 2005 now that there are interstates and bridges, airports and helipads, cruise ships, barges, buses and diesel-powered trucks.
Despite the city's multiple points of entry, our nation's bureaucrats spent days after last week's hurricane wringing their hands, lamenting the fact that they could neither rescue the city's stranded victims nor bring them food, water and medical supplies.
Meanwhile there were journalists, including some who work for The Times-Picayune, going in and out of the city via the Crescent City Connection. On Thursday morning, that crew saw a caravan of 13 Wal-Mart tractor trailers headed into town to bring food, water and supplies to a dying city.
Television reporters were doing live reports from downtown New Orleans streets. Harry Connick Jr. brought in some aid Thursday, and his efforts were the focus of a "Today" show story Friday morning.
Yet, the people trained to protect our nation, the people whose job it is to quickly bring in aid were absent. Those who should have been deploying troops were singing a sad song about how our city was impossible to reach.
We're angry, Mr. President, and we’ll all be angry long after our beloved city and surrounding parishes have been pumped dry. Our people deserved rescuing. Many who could have been were not. That's to the government's shame.
Mayor Ray Nagin did the right thing Sunday when he allowed those with no other alternative to seek shelter from the storm inside the Louisiana Superdome. We still don't know what the death toll is, but one thing is certain: Had the Superdome not been opened, the city's death toll would have been higher. The toll may even have been exponentially higher.
It was clear to us by late morning Monday that many people inside the Superdome would not be returning home. It should have been clear to our government, Mr. President. So why weren't they evacuated out of the city immediately? We learned seven years ago, when Hurricane Georges threatened, that the Dome isn't suitable as a long-term shelter. So what did state and national officials think would happen to tens of thousands of people trapped inside with no air conditioning, overflowing toilets and dwindling amounts of food, water and other essentials?
State Rep. Karen Carter was right Friday when she said the city didn't have but two urgent needs: "Buses! And gas!" Every official at the Federal Emergency Management Agency should be fired, Director Michael Brown especially.
In a nationally televised interview Thursday night, he said his agency hadn't known until that day that thousands of storm victims were stranded at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. He gave another nationally televised interview the next morning and said, "We've provided food to the people at the Convention Center so that they've gotten at least one, if not two meals, every single day."
Lies don't get more bald-faced than that, Mr. President.
Yet, when you met with Mr. Brown Friday morning, you told him, "You're doing a heck of a job."
That's unbelievable.
There were thousands of people at the Convention Center because the riverfront is high ground. The fact that so many people had reached there on foot is proof that rescue vehicles could have gotten there, too.
We, who are from New Orleans, are no less American than those who live on the Great Plains or along the Atlantic Seaboard. WeÂre no less important than those from the Pacific Northwest or Appalachia. Our people deserved to be rescued.
No expense should have been spared. No excuses should have been voiced. Especially not one as preposterous as the claim that New Orleans couldnÂt be reached.
Mr. President, we sincerely hope you fulfill your promise to make our beloved communities work right once again.
When you do, we will be the first to applaud.
Please give till you can't no more. As you can see these people need it.
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