2ND FLOOR: LADIES WEAR--AND NOSTALGIA

Kitty at Kitty Litter is showing off some of her father's old photos from the 1940s. Prior to her birth, Kitty's father was a professional photographer, and it looks like he had many commercial accounts. An early Madison Ave type?

Kitty's commentary with the photos makes the whole thing a trip down memory lane. She points out things in the photos and describes the differences of living back then and today. For example, she has a photo of a dept store and explains merchandise placement back then and why:

"Notice how much of the merchandise is behind counters. You were waited on in those days, and the clerks knew their merchandise, too."

Though her photos are taken back in the 40s, stores and service were pretty much the same until the mid 60s. And you know what happened after that: The 1960s happened. Over 40 years later and we're still paying for that decade.

Go over and scroll through the photos. But first, if you don't know what a "corset" is, at least you can see where they were sold. My favorite photo is the breakfast table ad for a dairy--Kitty discovers why the photo seemed so familiar, too.

DUMB STUFF FROM A 16 YEAR OLD

Farris Hassan wins the prize for the "story of the month. " You have to give this kid bonus points for his willingness to go the extra mile for a high school class. However, he gets points deducted for stupidity. Major stupidity.

His story raises a question in my mind, one that has yet to be mentioned.

How does a 16 year old, minor child, traveling alone, walk into an international airport, purchase a ticket to Baghdad, Iraq, and not get questioned about parental approval? You would think someone at the airport would ask about mom and dad. Think about it. He wasn't buying a ticket to Atlanta, Ga, for crying out loud; he was buying a ticket to the most dangerous place on the face of the earth! Ok, so Detroit is the most dangerous, but that's just splitting hairs, if you ask me.

Hassan's flight of fancy made me think of the dumbest thing I ever did at 16 years old. 1972 was the year. My girlfriend and I were madly in love and disliked our parents' methods of managing our lives. She was 14, but mature for her age. We bought a car, packed all our worldly possessions into it and began our adventure of running away from home.

Home was Kankakee, Illinois, and we pointed our car towards Titusville, Florida. In a few days we were there. To no one's surprise, except ours, a couple months later we were back in Kankakee, Illinois. At the time, the most dangerous place on the face of the earth was Viet Nam. However, it was soon replaced by Kankakee, Illinois: My girlfriend had two extra large brothers, 18 and 20 years of age. But, instead of death, they decided to have mercy on me.

Did you do anything stupid at 16? If so, share away.

SHIELDING THE FAMILIES--updated

In the not-so-distant future, Fred Phelps will be encountering something like this whenever he shows up to protest another fallen hero's funeral.
The Patriot Guard Riders have organized themselves to shield the families from the likes of this creep. And they have membership that stretches nationwide. I think Phelps' days of protesting are numbered. At their website, look on the right margin for "completed missions" and ones that are being planned for.

Read the full story at Michelle Malkin's site.

UPDATE: I sent an email to the national director of The Patriot Guard Riders, Jeff Brown, asking what we, as bloggers, could do to help in the cause. Donations, blogging, ect. Mr. Brown replied within 15 minutes. His email was very thoughtful and it explained exactly what his group is all about:

Dave,

Thank you for your support.

I feel I need to explain that our primary mission is to honor a fallen soldier, their family and community. We do this whether or not there are protestors present. We are not a protest or a counter-protest group. We work hard to down-play the protestor angle to our story because it interferes with our mission. Families and law enforcement can form a preconceived idea of what "bikers" are and fear that this solemn occasion will turn into a circus-like atmosphere. This is far from the truth. We establish Mission Rides as invited guests of the family and we conduct ourselves accordingly. We never have any contact with any protestors. If they are present, based on the family and law enforcement's wishes, we will form a barrier around them to shield the mourners from view of the protestors and their signs. The protestors see nothing but our backs for the duration of their presence. We have, at the family's request revved our engines to drown out the chants of protestors. The majority of our members are veterans and "military Bearing is the order of the day.

Having said all that, I urge you and your readers to go to our website (http://www.patriotguard.org/) and read our mission statement. Poke around and see if what you read aligns with your philosophy. If so, join. You don't have to ride two wheels to be a PGR member. We have lots of "cagers" :) We accept no donations, but sincerely appreciate the offer. We are a self sufficient organization. Just help us spread the word that our fighting men and women deserve nothing less.

Again, thanks for your interest.

Sincerely,
Jeff Brown "Twister"Patriot Guard RidersNational Directorwww.patriotguard.org

I'm impressed.

MORE GOOD NEWS

You'll want to read this article, that is, if you eat food. "Acrylamide" has shown up in a few articles here and there but it's getting more attention of late. This chemical was just discovered a few years ago; it may be something to consider next time you're eating or feeding your kids.

I think it's worthy of consideration because of this alone:

"The Environmental Protection Agency considers acrylamide potentially so dangerous that it has fixed the safe level for human consumption at almost zero, with a maximum permissible level in drinking water of 0.5 parts per billion."

"By comparison, a 2.4-ounce serving of French fries, a small portion at McDonald's, contains about 401 parts per billion, a small, vending-machine-sized bag of potato chips 466 parts per billion."

I don't know what all of this means, but 401 and 466 parts per billion compared to 0.5 ppb for water sounds daunting. However, I have never eaten a small order of McDonald's fries. So, if the danger is accurate, just know that my headstone has a broadband connection, because it has always been "large fries" for me!!


Read the article at the LA Times (reg required).

MONDAY MORNING

As long as the Vikings had a chance to make the playoffs, Mike Tice had a job. After losing Sunday night, a game he was in position to win, Tice will be looking in the Monday sports' section for the headline he knew was coming, eventually: Tice Fired!!

Wishing all my readers a Merry Christmas.

CONTROVERSY--JUST PART OF THE JOB

This wiretapping issue, and Bush's use of it in the fight against terrorism, has become the MSM's newest "possible" scandal in the fight against all things Bush.

In the end, it won't matter if Bush is found to be acting in accordance with the laws, because in the meantime, the MSM will get to run their headlines, "Bush Spying On Americans," in an effort to do him damage. If Bush's actions are found to be legal, the MSM will quietly drop the issue and move back to more fertile ground, such as Karl Rove.

This issue is a complicated one. Lawyers are swimming through the constitution in an effort to understand what the President's authority actually is. But it's becoming more clear how far the President is able to go in protecting the public.

The boys at Powerline have posted their analysis of the situation here and here. Also, Betsy's Page has info from Hugh Hewitt here. All are lawyers.

Since the MSM will be attempting to turn "presidential wiretapping" into the latest media-manufactured controversy, Betsy has a link listing 2005's controversies. Re-live them all here.

I JUST LOVE THEM DEMS

The democrats hold many solid positions on the issues of the day, especially if said positions have a chance of scoring political points against Bush. But on the most important issue of the day, the war in Iraq, Pelosi proudly states that the democratic party holds not one, but many, positions on the war. And that's how the party of diversity will enter the 2006 election cycle: In disagreement.

This is the party that wants to lead this great nation, but after reading this Washington Post article, where Pelosi outlines her party's position, or non-position, you'll soon realize why the democrats won't be leading anything come 2006. Mother Sheehan has nothing to do with this article--just thought you'd enjoy another sickening pic of her. Read it here.

***If you still think Hillary hasn't decided if she's running for the White House in '08 and that Fox News is completely slanted to the right, then you didn't watch Greta interviewing Hillary last night. After watching the interview, I was sure Greta had quit Fox News and was working on Hillary's campaign. The fact that Hillary agreed to be interviewed by Greta tells you all you need to know about Greta. I couldn't get a transcript of the interview, but this article by Cliff Kincaid, about Greta's politics, fills in all the blanks. Read it here.

***Ever wish you could attend one of those Beverly Hills' cocktail parties where a bunch of libs sit around discussing politics? Bridget at GOP Vixen was invited, and she sat directly behind Ed Asner. Ben Stein was there, too, but he left after getting a free cocktail or two. Join the party here.

***Pam at Blogmeister USA was taking the walking tour of New York City as she made her way to work today. She's covering the city's transit strike on her blog, and she throws in her views on unions, as well. Start walking here.

***Chris at Lucky Dawg News will enjoy Betsy's post about his favorite governor. Richardson might not have been scouted by professional baseball, but he makes up for it by being a "hands on" governor. Enjoy it all here.

***After the plane in Miami went into the water, killing all aboard, the MSM (tv) were reporting that this was not an act of terrorism. No one has an idea as to what caused this crash, but when the MSM reports that it isn't terrorism, that makes me think it is. Shows you how nervous the airline industry is.

***Want to get really pissed off? Michelle Malkin and Lucky Dawg News posted about the Germans. However upset you get, this terrorist isn't long for this world.

***Need a smile now? Mary Christmas!!

BE BACK LATER

I'm helping a friend who's having surgery today. A double hernia at 8am; out the door at 2pm. That doesn't sound right to me but, then again, I'm not a doc.

Now I have to go walk his dog. He said he'd leave a plastic bag with the leash. Plastic bag?

REPORTING FOR DUTY--BUT FOR WHICH SIDE?

**UPDATED**
John Kerry, the far left's political, flip flopping, freak show, is doing his best to embolden our enemies and give them hope.

The other day he gave a speech in a DC bar and had the following to say about our President:

"If we take back the House, there a solid case to bring articles of impeachment against this president,” according to one listener who spoke to the National Journal’s Web site The Hotline."

But, his remarks about Bush didn't set well with some republicans. Later, Kerry's office released this:

The Massachusetts Senator’s communications director, David Wade, tried to downplay the remarks, saying Kerry was "joking.”

Threatening to impeach the President during a time of war is a joking matter? Please, someone explain this to me. Well, maybe the NYT will cover it in tomorrow's edition, right?

UPDATE: More backtracking by Kerry here.

AND THE ENEMY IS....

Is it just me or was history made yesterday? I thought history was made, but why hasn't anyone told our biggest and most important newspapers about it?

The voting in Iraq yesterday was history in the making, at least as significant, I think more, than two guys grudgingly shaking hands in the Clinton Rose Garden. This wasn't about words of good deeds, it was actual progress being made. Democracy on the move.

It isn't a stretch to say the Iraqi elections are the most important, historical elections to have ever taken place, so where the hell is Jimmy Carter when all this is unfolding? A dumb question, I know, but it had to be asked.

Back to the papers. This morning I went to the major newspapers to see what their morning internet editions were sporting as headlines. Because I am aware of who the real enemy is in this country, I was not surprised at what I found:

NYT--Transit Strike.
WAPO--Bush Allows Spying on Americans.
LAT--John McCain's Al Qaeda Bill of Rights.

I stole the "Al Qaeda Bill of Rights" comment from Rush. He won't mind, though. And to be fair, I checked the headline of the NYT that you would buy on the streets of New York. It was about the election, with picture, but on the left side, at the same level, was the John McCain Story. Furthermore, I figure there's a reason why the NYT went with something other than the election on their internet site: Millions more read that site as opposed to actual papers being bought on the street.

Yesterday, I started my little check on the media with CNN's Anderson Cooper. If you're in Iraq on or around December 15th with a film crew, there's only one story to cover, you would think. But Anderson was able to locate one that he thought was more important, and, apparently, CNN agreed with him.

Anderson is with an American unit and they're taking fire from some terrorists located on a rooftop. The Americans call in an air strike and level the building. Tragically, 17 people, civilians, are inside the building and are killed. Then CNN warns its viewers that the following images are graphic in nature. They begin to show the dead bodies being pulled from the rubble. One picture is of a little boy--his father says, " Look at him. Look at him. He looks like he's sleeping." Truly heartbreaking.

Anderson got his story, but not the one about elections; he got the one about how our troops are doing harm--killing innocent civilians.

It's not only the MSM who's glossing over the Iraqi elections, either. Some in Congress are avoiding it at all costs. Illinois' version of Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Marathon Pundit's rep in Congress, has one of the 15 balloting stations for Iraqi expatriates located in her district. However, she's mum about it. You would think she's be down there supporting them, having her picture taken with them, and even dipping her far-left finger in the ink well. Read Marathon Pundit's rundown on the story here.

I think we have a better idea, today, who the real enemy is. Not that we didn't already know. It's important to always note what these news outlets cover; it's equally important to note what they don't cover.

SAY CHEESEKATE!!

Back in early August, for those of you that aren't familiar with this story, The Captain's Quarters sent out an S.O.S. for Kate at Electric Venom. While out riding her bike, Kate had an accident which resulted in the loss of her front teeth, and to make matters worse--no dental insurance. The cost of the reconstruction was estimated at around $8,500.00.

Many bloggers got on board with the Captain, the money was raised in no time flat, and soon Kate found herself in the dentist's chair having her smile resurrected. The blogosphere is an amazing group of people, and everyone who posted about Kate or sent her a few bucks can now officially take a bow. You did good.

1. Just after the accident. 2. Temporary teeth (she hated them). 3 and 4. The new smile.

Thanks for all the support!

IT'S OFFICIAL

December 13th wasn't just another day, it was a day that aviation history was made: The F-22 Raptor is now officially operational and ready for duty.

Let's sell the first batch to Israel and see how well they do in Iran.

USAF F-22 recruitment video.

Hat tip to Vodkapundit

U.S. SOLDIERS: KILLING MACHINES

This bitch doesn't deserve to enjoy the good life our fighting men and women provide for us here in the United States.

Hanoi Jane is not only saying our GIs are war criminals, but that they are trained to commit atrocities.

"Hanoi Jane" Fonda is claiming that ever since Vietnam, U.S. troops have been trained to commit atrocities against innocent civilians as a matter of military policy.

And why?

"This began," Fonda maintained, "because the military discovered that in World War II and Korea, [U.S.] soldiers weren't killing enough."

I would venture to say this woman has security whenever she goes out into public, and for good reason. In the event I found myself in the same restaurant with her, I'm fairly certain I would be needing the services of an attorney.

Read the article here.

BLESS THEM, ONE AND ALL

Yes, bless them, one and all. The democrats, that is, for promoting this nut to the head of the DNC. The Right Place is featuring this picture of Howie Dean in this week's photo caption contest. Entries for this week, so far, are double for most weeks. Enter your caption here. Good luck!

I GIVE HIM SOME CREDIT...

...and I don't support the death penalty. Yes, you heard that right.

In this country we just don't do a good job when it comes to the death penalty. In California, if you get the DP, you're more likely to die of old age than a lethal injection. The appeals process overloads our courts and costs the taxpayer millions upon millions of dollars. Not to mention we've executed some innocent folks in the past.

If you kill someone, I think the State should have the option to take your life as punishment, but first we need to improve on the death penalty process and the standards for applying it, especially in California. I'm perfectly satisfied if a killer gets to spend the rest of his wasted life in a box, thinking about his crime, and suffering in his surroundings.

Credit to Tookie? Although Tookie is responsible for killing some people, you have to give him credit for doing some good while on death row. He made an attempt, albeit limited--it's true he could have done much more, and his motivations are suspect. In the end, he did change the lives of many young people with respect to the world of gangs. However, his good works behind bars doesn't erase his crimes, nor should it provide him a pass from the death chamber.

Arnold, unless he's an idiot, will not step in and save Tookie.

Having said all that, I may not agree with the current DP process, but I do respect the law of the land. So, tonight, Tookie should pay his debt to society--in full.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:

If Arnold allows the execution to go forward, look for smoke and flames in Los Angeles and the East Bay area. As a blogger, you may want to stay up for this one.

UPDATE: From Foxnews--Arnold denies clemency. (12:35 pm pst)

ALEC BALDWIN AND CHRIS WALLACE

I don't watch Saturday Night Live like I did years ago, but this week I had to watch. Our good friend Alec Baldwin was hosting for the 12th time. I suspected the script would be laden with anti-Bush administration and Iraq policy slams. And, I was right.

At one time, this show was so funny it would cause discomfort from laughing so hard; now it's just painful to watch.

When they made fun of presidents it didn't get any better. If they ran out of stuff about Jimmy Carter, they'd just add something about his idiot brother, Billy. Gerald Ford, who couldn't walk 3 feet without bumping his head or falling down the stairs of Air Force One, was too good to be true. The material they did about Ronald Reagan was true genius--Johnny Carson made a living off the guy, too. Bush 41 and his choice of words provided another 4 years of great comedy. Bill Clinton, though, was the Atocha of comedy material for the SNL staff, and they mined it for all it was worth. If the Clinton material got a bit old, enter Janet Reno--the material practically wrote itself.

Bush 43 is difficult for them because he doesn't provide SNL with the really good stuff the previous presidents did. Yes, he trips over the English language all too often, but it's hard to play on that for long and still have it be funny. What's clear about the show today is that SNL hates Bush and his Iraq policies--it was crystal clear last Saturday.

Anytime you try to make jokes about policy, it won't be funny. Policy just isn't funny; falling down the stairs is funny. I don't remember any attempt at humor regarding someone on the left. However, they did do stuff on Bush, a major piece on Dick Cheney, another major one on Bill O'Reilly's show, and Weekend Update had several items about the Iraq war. The lowlight was a piece about Cheney and our soldiers that was in poor taste.

All the bits had one thing in common: They weren't funny. And it was obvious to anyone that the show was doing its best to get an opinion across, and with Alec Baldwin as the host, it didn't surprise me in the least. Trying to be funny, while injecting opinion into humor, is like trying to force the square peg through the round hole--it won't work.

Admittedly, I only watched the show for one hour, so if they went to town on Howard Dean, Murtha, and Dick Durbin, I missed it. However, I think it's safe to say they didn't.

I'm liking Chris Wallace more and more. Previously I posted about him admitting that there was a bias in the MSM.

Last Friday he went off on his dad, Mike Wallace. He thinks his dad has "lost it." No joke. Read the story here. Chris mentions a term that I think should be used more often when referring to the MSM: Tokyo Rose.

TWD ACCIDENT REPORT

While listening to the NTSB press conference today, I was amazed at the stupid questions reporters asked regarding the cause of this crash.

One reporter wanted to know if the airport had a design flaw. I thought this was rather ignorant since Midway has had about a billion takeoffs and landings over the years, and if there were a flaw, I think it would've shown up by now.

Let's see, this pilot was landing in a blizzard, so do you think maybe, just maybe, the weather played a part?

When the lady from the NTSB started rattling off the black box information, I immediately thought of Greybeard, because he just posted about landing into the wind and why it's preferred. The pilot of this plane had a 9 knot tailwind at touchdown, and under poor braking conditions, this is huge. So, now, I'll do my own accident report and I bet I'm pretty close to the cause. Of course, I expect Greybeard to correct me since he's the expert on aviation.

The pilot's last information about braking conditions was "fair" to "poor." But during snowy conditions, the status of the runway can change in a matter of minutes. I think during the time he was configuring the aircraft for final approach, conditions on the runway went to "poor" to "nil." "Nil" would mean the airport is closed and he would be vectoring to O'Hare or the next best choice.

His landing airspeed was 124 knots, and with the tail wind of 9 knots, that would bring his landing airspeed to 133 knots. Under normal conditions, I think that would be deemed "a little fast." Under icy conditions, it would be "coming in hot." And, under acceptable conditions, his point of touchdown would be normal, but under icy braking conditions, his landing would be considered long. In other words, he wasn't stopping his aircraft in time. With the "poor" runway conditions, he would almost have to put down on the runway threshold to get it stopped in time. So, I think the pilot was the victim of bad information and did the best he could. Of course, during the investigation, there will be much "ass covering" going on as to the accuracy of the info given to the cockpit.

Southwest is one of the safest airlines in operation; here's some brief reports about their last two incidents. The second report, and they're short, is the most interesting one of all. Southwest likes to say they've never had anyone die on-board as a result of an accident, and, technically, that's true. However, a few years back, someone died.

Greybeard: Why would they have the pilot land downwind in a storm?

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

This poem was removed from a school textbook in Pakistan after officials noticed the first letters in each line went on to spell "President George W. Bush." Also, there's a "President John F. Kerry" version. Read the story here.

H/T Dr. Sanity

WELCOME TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD

A block away from my house is this sign. The sign on top with the line drawn through IRAQ was put up over a year ago and I never could figure out what he meant by it, but the other day he added the one on the bottom. Now it's clear.

BACK TO BLOGGING

I took a break and will be back to blogging this evening or Sunday morning. In the meantime, get on over to The Right Place and get a head start on the new photo caption contest. This week's photo submission is a beauty and will certainly have many funny captions.