Deanie's Blue Inkblots: Recent Comments

Comment on TANGLED UP IN BLUE

Deanie Mills — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 01:49:45 GMT

Oh man you hit the very thing I said over and over again--If they had just let the son of a bitch be baseball commissioner, which is all he ever wanted to be in the first place, we'd've never had to suffer through the cataclysmic disaster that was 2000 through 2008. (Not to mention what the state of Texas had to go through before that with him as governor and since then with his appointee, Rick Perry.)

Honestly, I don't think George W. Bush ever wanted to be president, and I don't think his family ever wanted him to be. I think they wanted JEB to be, but he didn't get elected governor at the right time, and Dubya did. And it was the Legacy Train. Go friggin' figure. That's the only thing. That, and that Dubya didn't get to be baseball commissioner. I've always said that.

Comment on TANGLED UP IN BLUE

Marla — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 19:47:44 GMT

Here's the best re-framing I've heard to date: In an interview with the Houston Chronic, former Texas state COP chairman Tom Pauken says that George Bush "might have made a terrific Major League Baseball commissioner, but he was a lousy president of the United States." http://thinkprogress.org/2010/03/02/bush-pauken/

And no, I won't tell your husband, but I think he was right about MA being a wake up call. Now everyone just needs to get a cup of coffee.

Comment on THE REAL DEFICIT IN THIS COUNTRY IS NOT ECONOMIC

Nigel — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 17:36:38 GMT

>>>Christian evangelicals salted the board with candidates over the past few years and they damn near got evolution tossed out of science curriculum in textbooks; this year, they DID influence social studies<<<

I've got a creationist in my tutor group. The others were having a really good go at him when I joined in. "What if there is a god and he/she/it caused the big bang and then let evolution take over?"

>>>What I'm saying is that many JOBS are being affected by these cataclysmic changes as industries go under--newspapers--that's another example. So yeah, you've got to anticipate trends and keep up, and/or prepare for a whole new livelihood.<<<

People will always want food and "stuff." Those that make the highest quality and/or best value food and stuff will be OK. Now if I could just invent a softer, stronger, cheaper toilet paper......

Comment on THE REAL DEFICIT IN THIS COUNTRY IS NOT ECONOMIC

Deanie Mills — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:25:45 GMT

You are absolutely right about that my friend. I've had the privilege of knowing you since your bobby days when you worked in British law enforcement (for my American friends' benefit), and I've seen you do this in real-time, and a splendid job you've done of it, too. Much as I tease you about the "bad" influence you've had on those young people, I can think of no better person to be setting an example for them.

You hit on a very key point that I have raised many times, and that is that we are indeed at the tail end of the Industrial Revolution and undergoing the Technological Revolution, and there are so many industries that are scrambling to keep up and still don't seem to realize what's hit them. Publishing is a case in point. I daresay the onset of the Kindle will most likely usher in the end of the publishing world as we now know it. Ten? Fifteen? Twenty? I don't know how many years it will be before we will be like Jean Luc Picard on the Starship Enterprise, reading all of our books on handheld devices and considering actual pages to turn as quaint.

Already, a number of schools are phasing out old-fashioned school libraries, giving the entire student body laptops and using digital information for the curriculum, at least, here in the States. I can see that happening more and more, especially with the continued controversy we have here in the States of the ridiculous stranglehold the Texas School Board has on textbooks over 10-year periods in almost every state in the union (because the largest textbook publisher is located in this state.). Christian evangelicals salted the board with candidates over the past few years and they damn near got evolution tossed out of science curriculum in textbooks; this year, they DID influence social studies, so that people like conservative Newt Gingrich were prominently featured and liberals like Ted Kennedy completely eliminated.

But I digress. What I'm saying is that many JOBS are being affected by these cataclysmic changes as industries go under--newspapers--that's another example. So yeah, you've got to anticipate trends and keep up, and/or prepare for a whole new livelihood.

Comment on THE REAL DEFICIT IN THIS COUNTRY IS NOT ECONOMIC

Nigel — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:51:19 GMT

>>>Where has our empathy gone, as a nation?<<<

It's not just the USA, I think it's a worldwide thing. I've listened to some Tony Robbins, I've even been to one of his weekend RaRaupschool weekend does. I do not think he is without empathy for people less fortunate than he is. I've had a couple of careers and I'm now on my third. I have also had some other jobs over the years. I have been fortunate in that my careers have been sort of natural progressions, and, I could afford to sack the employers I did not want to work for when doing the jobs.

I have learned that evrybody who wants to, can eventually find something satisfying if they are prepared to train to do it. This often means financial hardship whilst they do the training but with the support of family there is usually a workaround. Just over 25 years ago, I was witness to the end of thousands of coal mining jobs and even had a part in the demise of these jobs because of my own. A lot of these workers have now found something else, and, have better health because they're not breathing in coal dust eight hours a day. It is an unfortunate fact that "market forces" can end careers and jobs in a short time because we are living at the tail end of the industrial age and if a specialist position becomes uneconomic, that specialist is going to have to find something else even if they lve their work. As you know, I now work at brainwashing kids into being happy and successful. If this career fails, I will have to find something else. I am prepared for that as I have found other interests that I enjoy and can probably find paid employ (or go self employed) in them. Once again, I am lucky in the way I think about things like this because I am not bothered what I find as long as I enjoy it. Having said that, I believe I can understand the feelings of a person who has had their life's passion whipped away from them. I have seen it happen to a few friends and it is truly devastating. Finding one thing to fill the void may be nigh on impossible but with a bit of searching, there may be a number of things in combination that could do the trick. At least single malts, beer and wine appear to be safe for the forseeable future.

Comment on I'VE BEEN DOWN THIS ROAD BEFORE AND I WON'T GO BACK

Deanie Mills — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 17:26:18 GMT

Nigel, your illustration of sitting in the car as an argument on global warming is absolutely brilliant.

Yes, I said it. Not likely to do it again any time soon!!!

Comment on I'VE BEEN DOWN THIS ROAD BEFORE AND I WON'T GO BACK

Nigel — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 11:43:57 GMT

>>>the MAIN argument to be having is that the planet is running out of drinkable water, and food sources while the population explodes<<<

Australia is already looking at desalination as a means of getting drinking water. They have the solar energy and sea water available. UK has the sea water but I'm not so sure about the solar energy. OTOH, we have got wind.

>>>What is completely maddening to me is that even the PENTAGON knows that climate change is real.<<<

I do not care if climate change/global warming is caused by human activity or not. I certainly do not agree with putting all the chemicals into our environment that we are. I would ask any naysayers to fill their vehicle's fuel tank, attach a hose to their exhaust pipe and put the other end in the cabin. Sit in the vehicle, close the windows, switch off the aircon and start the engine. Stay in the car until the fuel runs out, then answer this question "Do you still believe that humans are not harming the environment?"

Comment on I'VE BEEN DOWN THIS ROAD BEFORE AND I WON'T GO BACK

Deanie Mills — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 21:31:25 GMT

I think you're absolutely right about that Nigel, although I do believe Wendy has reason to worry about her mother.

But yes indeed, of course this planet will run out of carbon-based fossil fuels. And it absolutely boggles what's left of my MIND that we are even DEBATING the issue any more. For Chrissake--it's like Obama said in the State of the Union address, even if you deliberately choose to ignore the overwhelming science behind climate change, fine then, at the very least you should be in favor of creating jobs and giving a jolt to the economy that clean energy development does. Solar and wind energy in the Southwest and high plains and off shore, as you said, certainly. And yes, I've been paying attention to France and their handling of nuclear energy for some years because of the way in which they manage nuclear waste--it is a brilliant, workable system, but GOD FORBID we listen to the FRENCH. It has been willfully BLIND to continue this ABSURD and IDIOTIC debate which, I might add, is driven by conservatives (of course) while we are losing time.

And while we are at it, of course, the MAIN argument to be having is that the planet is running out of drinkable water, and food sources while the population explodes, so while the billions of people who are controlled by patriarchial religions that enslave women and deny decent birth control to them, thus leading to over-population, those same populations often must deal with drought and famine. So it is just a matter of time that wars will be fought over water.

What is completely maddening to me is that even the PENTAGON knows that climate change is real. They have already begun planning war-games for dealing with the social unrest that is going to result from these scenarios. Throw in the running-out of fossil fuels, and there you have it. What a mess.

And President Obama will look like a fucking prophet but it will, of course, be too late by then, the morons.

Comment on I'VE BEEN DOWN THIS ROAD BEFORE AND I WON'T GO BACK

Nigel — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 19:40:51 GMT

Wendy,
>>>She has started an urban homestead, stockpiled food, bought guns (!!!), and started collecting tools and things that don't run on electricity. <<<

Oil WILL run out and unless we all start investing in solar, wind, wave, nuclear, whatever other than oil energy for cooking, cleaning, heating, internet access etc (not to mention vehihicular transport), there is going to be a problem. Why is it that in Arizona and New Mexico say, where the sun shines 320 days (for the sake of argument) days per year people do not have photovoltaics and solar heated water? Why is it that in the not too deep waters off Florida, the USA doesn't have more wind farms? "As of 2008, nuclear plants produce 90% of EDF's and about 78% France's electrical power production" France isn't going to worry too much about their elctricty supply when oil runs out. Don't get me wrong, my country is just as bad as yours. But, *we* really do need to be addressing this challenge NOW. Even in the UK, we could pass a law that makes builders put solar on every new build and it would help tremendously. We have street lamps everywhere. Why? Our ancestors managed with shucks, well yours did, mine just walked in the dark. I do not advocate going without electricity, but, we need to be doing something NOW so that we do not rely on Saudi Arabia, Russia or anybody else for our uninterrupted electricity suppplies. I'll bet the Amish are chuckling about the plight we are going to be in in say 30 years time if we do nothing. ;-)

Comment on I'VE BEEN DOWN THIS ROAD BEFORE AND I WON'T GO BACK

Deanie Mills — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 14:27:27 GMT

Well what a pleasant surprise--I'm not used to coming to Blue Inkblots and getting such a nice compliment; thank you kind sir.

I saw a clip of Beck, apparently last night, holding up two cards, one had a photo of Bin Laden on it and one had a faceless sillouette--ostensibly the pilot of the plane in Austin--on it, and he said, "I hate the IRS too, but I DON'T KILL PEOPLE."

It sounded very righteous, as does most of what he says. What infuriates me about his ilk is that they refuse to take responsibility or accountability for their WORDS, that if their WORDS incite people to violence, or make people feel so completely hopeless and helpless that they feel they have no recourse BUT violence, then they MUST bear at least part of the blame.