Pour Me Another One

Okay, I admit it. I'm on my second Dirty Vodka Martini.

It's okay, though. After all, I am (a) over the age of 21 and (b) Catholic, which means I can imbibe now and then with no guilt. So long as I keep it to two.

I have to leave within a short time with la familia, as my 23-year-old stepson, whom I adore, has invited us to dinner. Dinner, that is, at the home of he and his "about-eight-years-older-and-has-three-kids" girlfriend.

I think they are going to announce wedding plans. Did I mention that I am a family law attorney? I have this odd notion that marriage before the age of thirty should be avoided, if possible, so as to allow security and maturity to be firmly planted. My stepson has the maturity at least to the extent that he wants to make sure the kids are taken care of. Yes, yes, I could argue that is the responsibility of their fathers, but Darling Boy has a heart of gold.

Security - stable foundation and reasonable expectation of stability - is another matter. I do not believe he reads this blog, but I do believe he is aware of my opinion, as it has been expressed - and unremarkably matched - by his father, that is, he who is the DigiSpouse.

Ah, but that is why St. Paul exhorts us to "pray unceasingly." And why God gave Man the gift to create a Dirty Vodka Martini.

DigiMom out.

Update!

For those who may be concerned about my health - please note that olives are a wonderful source of mono-unsaturated fats and I placed three in each round. For health purposes.

More Update!

All in all, a delightful evening! Forgive me, but some of my fears have been allayed. Now I want the happpy couple to give us the kids on a Saturday night so they can get a break. I like a household full o' chlluns and it gives me an excuse to find a good movie, pop popcorn, and get into PJs for a casual evening . . .

I Used to Laugh at Those Who Saw the Black Helicopters

Obama's orders to close Gitmo, overhaul interrogation

Obama Authorizes $20 Million in Aid to Gaza Palestinians

Obama Calling for Defense Budget Cuts

Warning: film contains very graphic images that are disturbing and may not be suitable to some viewers.

When the Blindfold on Lady Justice Slips

The introduction of hate crime legislation brings a subjective element into the legal system. Where typically Lady Justice is blind and only takes objective facts into consideration, disregarding the position and the opinions of those committing the crimes, she may now apply the law unequally and selectively. Our societies subsequently risk losing an important principle of Western law, viz. equality under the law. Europe has already gone further down this road than America, but the U.S. is following fast in Europe’s tracks.

Prosecutors and judges are no longer interested in what actually and objectively happened. Instead they focus on the intentions which they claim motivated those who acted. No longer is Lady Justice blind to anything except the facts; she is blind to the facts, but claims to be a clairvoyant about everything else.

Last week , the White House website announced that President Obama and Vice President Biden intend to “strengthen federal hate crimes legislation, expand hate crimes protection by passing the Matthew Shepard Act, and reinvigorate enforcement at the Department of Justice's Criminal Section.” In the past, Europe was in the habit of imitating bad American examples (never the good ones). Now it seems the policies of “Change” in the U.S. mean that America will imitate Europe’s bad examples.

I have long railed against the concept of "hate crimes" for this very reason, that they (a) introduce more subjectivity into the decision as to whether a crime occurred, and (b) they reduce the stature of one victim over the other.

This article is worth a read also to see the remarkable difference between the United States and Europe with the approach to "hate speech" and the infuriating inequality with which it is applied in Europe, with favor and kowtowing being given to Europe's Muslim population.

The acts done to Matthew Shepard were horrific - but the motivation behind it should be considered only to bolster an argument that the men did it, not to "specialize" their crimes. Otherwise, Lady Justice is peeking unfairly.

Here's to You, Mrs. Robinson

Michelle Obama stepped into the policy spotlight as first lady on Thursday at President Barack Obama’s signing of the equal-pay bill. She hailed the legislation as symbolizing her and her husband’s commitment to policies that “help women and men balance their work and family obligations without putting their jobs or their economic security at risk.”

How might Mrs. Obama bring her voice to issues of work-life balance?

Easy . . . get your mother to move with you into gummint housing.

At least one "expert" was honest:

Michelle Obama knows what it’s like to balance a more-than-full-time job with parenting and did it almost as a single mother when her husband was on the campaign trail. Of course, she also has a mother willing to babysit and the financial ability to pay for good child care when she needs it.

She Forgot the Eighth One - "Preserved"

On an appearance Thursday on "Oprah," [Suzanne] Somers, 62,
invited cameras into her home to watch her daily routine of hormone injections and supplement popping.

She begins with rubbing a syringe of estrogen on one arm,
every day. For two weeks out of the month, she rubs progesterone on the other.

After that, she injects estriol vaginally, which she graciously spared the audience from watching.

She can’t start her day without taking 40 pills, 15 of which she downs in a thick, yellow smoothie her husband makes for her (she says it's the secret to their marriage!). Then she ends her day with an additional 20 pills at night before bed.

While she admits the routine makes her seem “like some kind of fanatic,” she says it has helped her beat the “Seven Dwarfs of Menopause: Itchy, B**chy, Sleepy, Sweaty, Bloated, Forgetful and All Dried Up.”

I think there's less toxic waste in the Jersey Meadowlands . . . wait a minute, maybe that's where Hoffa is. Hope he can duck the syringe.

Father Knows Best

The fiancée of ex-cop Drew Peterson, who is suspected in the disappearance of his fourth wife and the death of his third, left him after her father gave her a "him or me" ultimatum.

Or perhaps, more aptly, it was a "do or die" situation . . .

Ecumenism

I'm putting this joke up to bring some cheer to ein Freund who could use some. Thanks to Wollfie for this bit o'humor. And remember, a good stock answer is always . . .

I was waiting at the train station this morning, and I saw a man standing on the edge, about to jump off as a train approached.

So I ran over and said "Stop! Don't do it!" He said "Why shouldn't I?"

I said, "Well, there's so much to live for!" He said, "Like what?"

I said, "Well, are you religious or atheist?" He said, "Religious."

I said, "Me too! …Are you Christian or Buddhist?" He said, "Christian."

I said, "Me too! …Are you Catholic or Protestant?" He said, "Protestant."

I said, "Me too! …Are you Episcopalian or Baptist?" He said, "Baptist!"

I said, "Wow! Me too!…Are you Baptist church of God or Baptist church of the Lord?" He said, "Baptist church of God!"

I said, "Me too! Are you original Baptist church of God, or are you reformed Baptist church of God?" He said, "Reformed Baptist church of God!"

I said, "Me too! Are you reformed Baptist church of God, reformation of 1879, or reformed Baptist church of God, reformation of 1915?"

He said, "Reformed Baptist church of God, reformation of 1915!"

I said, "Die, heretic scum!"…and pushed him off.

I'se Iz Po'

President Barack Obama signed a series of executive orders Friday that he said should "level the playing field" for labor unions in their struggles with management. Obama also used the occasion at the White House to announce formally a new White House task force on the problems of middle-class Americans. He named Vice President Joe Biden as its chairman.

Of the White House Task Force on Middle Class Working Families, Obama said, "We're not forgetting the poor. They are going to be front and center, because they, too, share our American Dream."

He said his administration wants to make sure low-income people "get a piece" of the American pie "if they're willing to work for it."

"With this task force, we have a single, highly visible group with one single goal: to raise the living standards of the people who are the backbone of this country," Biden said.

Wait, so does that mean I am now officially poor if the task force is to raise the living standards of the middle class?

Or has "middle class" been re-defined? When did it drop from $250,000, as we so often heard during the campaign?

Am I the only one who hears, "if they're willing to work for it," and gets visions of the Soviet worker's paradise and the prison camps for those who weren't "willing to work for it?"

Biden pledged that the task force will conduct its business in the open, and announced a Web site, astrongmiddleclass.gov, for the public to get information. He also announced that the panel's first meeting will be Feb. 27 in Philadelphia and will focus on environmental or "green jobs."

I think he means janitorial work in this new Age of Meanings.

Aloe Chunk Juice!

For those of us who live in the western United States (although I believe TJ's has expanded eastward), a lovely song about that shopping emporium of cheap booze and strange food, Trader Joe's.

And if you have a friend who actually buys goat milk yoghurt there and has to talk about it (see, back when I was a kid, it was just yogurt, but all the cool shops stick that extra "h" in there, claiming it's a closer transliteration to the original Bosnian, or Mongolian, or whatever 3rd World people let their milk go bad), send it to them to piss 'em off!

Hat tip to The Ugly American.

Obscure Music Friday

Song: Sentimental Johnny

Artist: Flogging Molly

Why I Like This Song: Catchy beat and I love the accordion in it. BTW, despite its Onanistic-sounding name (look it up if you can't catch the reference), the band got its name from when it played in a bar called Molly's, or so I am told, and played with such fervor that people were say they were, "flogging Molly's." The name stuck.

I wonder did Jesus, come to redeem him

Save poor Johnny's ol' soul

Tribal Wisdom for the Business Class

As grad student experts have long taught us, Western culture is quick to marginalize and devalue knowledge from the "Other." For example, look at the recent ridicule aimed at the "Egg of Power" sculpture President Obama keeps in the Oval Office. There is a disturbing hint of racism to the ridicule, because that sculpture happens to refer to a traditional proverb that comes from, depending on how you Google it, either Kenya or a 1993 Hallmark Kwanzaa card. Would these critics be so cavalier in their snickering if the president had brought some traditional white art, like a Successories poster or replica Harry Potter wand?

A very funny posting comes from Iowahawk, in offering "LEADages, [an] exclusive line of exotic motivational leadership proverbs from around the developing world. "

Designed for the executive on the go, these power-packed primitive catchphrases let your co-workers know that you're the kind of leader who stays two steps ahead in the sensitivity game. Drop one into your next PowerPoint deck, and you're on the fast track to the HR multicultural committee! Look for the complete line of limited edition desk sculptures, coming soon to SkyMall.

They include:

"Beware the eye of the tiger, for he is a survivor, and he knows many power ballads."

Mulleti

"While the polar bear bickers with the seal, that fat asshole walrus snarfs all the fish."

Inuit

"Do not curse the crow who has stolen you chili; tomorrow his rectum will curse the dawn."

Thai

"Do not waste your time talking to the yak. Because yakkity yak don't talk back."

Mongolian

"Remember that the egg of power will drop if held too loosely; and an egg cannot break a rock. Okay, maybe if it's some sort of crazy unbreakable super-duper-power egg. But then you can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs, and neither can you make an omelet with broken rocks. It would taste like crap, and be hella hard on your teeth enamel. That is why you should probably just order the waffles."

Luo

"The single lotus blossom that brushes against river jade can defeat an army of steel fire-dragon. Well, okay, maybe that's just the opium talking."

Chinese

Orchids in the Oval Office

Oh, just go and read this - it's too damn funny!

(HeadMistress SondraK is my hero . . .)

A Man's Take on Abortion

Well I do know. And I stand condemned. I’ve paid for three of them and was responsible for probably several more, I’m not really sure. But it breaks my heart. Because I’ve been convicted in my soul. It took years after the fact, but I was shown the Truth. And not to get mumbo-jumbo, oogly-boogly on you, but it was a spiritual awakening that did it. It happened unexpectedly, and it threw me to my knees in sudden tearful epiphany of what it meant for a man to be with a woman, what sex was really designed for by our Creator and… what abortion is.

Powerful article brought to my attention by The Curt Jester. At the Walk for Life, it was gratifying to see how many men came out for life. Too often the "right to choose" ignores the other half of the equation and a side effect of abortion is the emasculation of our brothers.

On You, It Looks Good

Wasn't there a time when "fashion" meant glamor?

The men's fall line was previewed this week in Milan. Crimson (!) is the new hot color!

I Feel So Represented

But for Rep. Loretta Sanchez her yes vote [on the stimulus bill] didn’t come easy.

Sanchez agonized all day about what to do. I spoke to her this afternoon and she said she didn’t like the way the spending was organized; that there wasn’t enough money for the kind of road and highway infrastructure projects that would be most likely to bring federal dollars to Orange County.

When she got to the floor she voted no, making her one of a 10 of Democrats who had voted that way.

But just as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was going to announce the vote, Sanchez went up to the desk and changed her vote. The clerk announced that Loretta Sanchez of California’s vote went from no to yes.

Nothing comes easy for sweet Loretta . . . like spelling. Parking meters. Word jumbles. And those pesky little caps on prescription medicine bottles.

My Congresswoman, folks.

Hail to the Ch-Ch-Ch-Chief

In honoring our 44th US President, the Chia Pet company presents this Special Edition Chia Obama.

On the side of the Chia Obama planter are his famous words: '"YES WE CAN."

Can you grow one?

YES YOU CAN.

Is anybody's birthday coming up? At $19.99, it's a steal! And if I order before midnight tonight, it comes with its own stimulus package . . .

Kegger at Barry's!

President Barack Obama was welcoming House and Senate leaders from both parties to the White House for drinks Wednesday night as he continues to lobby lawmakers to pass his economic recovery bill despite stiff GOP opposition.

The getting-to-know-you-better session was to get under way after the House voted 244-188 to approve Obama's $819 billion stimulus bill. It was a swift victory for the new president, but it was achieved without a single Republican vote despite Obama's heavy push for a bipartisan show of support on the measure.

"Someone reported that this was a celebration party for passage of the bill in the House," Boehner joked to reporters before joining his Republican colleagues in a unanimous vote against the president. "If so, I don't know why they'd want the skunk at the garden party. But I'm going to go and smile."

If I was Boehner, I'd make sure me and all the other GOP invitees left with full bottles in both hands.

Word is that at around 9 o'clock, Pelosi was seen dancing with herself in the corner. That shirt's comin' off tonight, I tell you what . . .

Sooooooweeeeeeee!!!!!!!!

When Congress opens up a gusher of money, every special interest in the country reaches for a bucket.

The House passed its version of the bill Wednesday evening, and a host of oddball recipients from ATV riders to TV viewers preparing for the digital conversion stand to benefit.

But critics question why such narrowly tailored add-ons -- which have little, if any, prospect of creating large numbers of new jobs -- are in an emergency bill aimed at stimulating the economy and creating jobs.

Among the funding measures included in the proposal are $25 million for new ATV trails; $400 million for the National Endowment for the Arts; $400 million for global warming research; $335 million for the Centers for Disease Control to combat sexually-transmitted diseases; and $650 million coupons to subsidize TV viewers for digital television conversion.

House Democratic leaders reluctantly removed two programs that had drawn fire: $200 million for new contraceptive service and $20 million to renovate the National Mall.

We're so f**kin' screwed . . .

I'm in the Pope's Corner

After he ended a ban last week on federal funding to international groups that perform or promote abortions, Obama is taking heat from the Roman Catholic Church, that political powerhouse based overseas.

How this will affect Obama's appeal to Catholic voters remains to be seen. According to exit polls, the president got 53 percent of the Catholic vote in November -- 13 percent more than John Kerry, a Catholic, got in 2004.

That's a sad statistic for Catholics. The assumption at play is that American Catholics will care about what Rome has to say, and I expect to hear among the "social justice" set that the Pope "can't mandate" for whom they can vote. And they are right - His Holiness cannot. But he can mandate that Catholics follow the tenets of the faith. And if failure to do so means excommunication, then accept the consequences.

In my opinion, I do not believe it is morally defensible for a faithful Catholic to have voted for Obama. The issue of life and the protection of the unborn is an integral part to all support for humanity, whether it is to feed the hungry or shelter the homeless.

I'm Gonna Plant an Acorn

House Republican Leader John Boehner issued a statement over the weekend noting that the stimulus bill wending its way through Congress provides $4.19 billion for "neighborhood stabilization activities."

He said the money was previously limited to state and local governments, but that Democrats now want part of it to be available to non-profit entities. That means groups like ACORN would be eligible for a portion of the funds.

Then count me in! The way I see it, my neighborhood here in Floral Park needs some "stabilization." We are considered to be a "white" neighborhood, surrounded by "poor" neighborhoods (read, Mexican). Thus, it stands to reason and logic that as the economic crisis grows, we could be seen as the target for more crime, such as home robberies.

So! I think I need to marshal my neighbors into starting an ACORN chapter right here - after all, being in the minority I figure that makes us disenfranchised already. We would get us some of that gravy they are handing out and use it for "stabilization." A Sig Sauer in every household sounds like a good start. We could create jobs by hiring locals to engage in neighborhood patrols - sure, you could argue that we would just be paying ourselves to walk our dogs, but that activity is actually a vital part of security, so the federal funds would also help to subsidze vet bills and dog food. And pedometers.

I gotta start filling out forms . . .

The Cheerleader Who Smiled at Beloved Leader Without Permission Was Hung, I Heard

A DRUM major who waved at President Barack Obama was brought to tears today over his six-month suspension from an Ohio marching band.

"Six months is pretty harsh, I think," firefighter John Coleman told Newsnet 5.

But the Cleveland Firefighter's Memorial Pipes & Drums bandleader said even a glance is out of bounds for marching bands in a parade marking the inauguration of a president.

"We had gone over and over time and again with everyone in the band that this was a military parade. Protocol and proper decorum had to be followed at all times," bandleader Mike Engle told the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

"Unfortunately, John chose to ignore that."

And he will PAY for his insolence!!!

WTF?

¡Ai, Esta Puta!

Ola, this is Rosa. I am blog you again today because I am look for the job. Because the pinche puta gabacha Senora Kennedy she fire me.

Forgive me Guadalupe for to talk like this but I am very very angry. When I blog last time it is because Senora Kennedy, she say "Rosa! Make the blog for my Senator campaign, I have the gown fitting." I say, "but Senora, I no know how to do this blog and have many towels to fold." And then she is angry and say, "I no care, just do this. I am late for appointment at Saks."

Okay so I write the blog because I no want to make her angry. I blog you how much Senora Kennedy is make good Senator and how she is good to Rosa. I work hard on the blog, and even miss my late bus home to the Bronx and then I have to sleep on the extra cot in the servant wing.

¡Leen más!

America Won't Adopt China's One Baby Rule

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi drew the ire of the conservative-leaning Drudge Report Sunday when she defended House Democrats' efforts to include family planning funding for low income Americans in the planned $825 million stimulus package.

Now it looks like House Democrats are backing off that effort: The Associated Press is reporting that they are "likely to jettison" plans to include the family planning funding, "following a personal appeal from President Barack Obama at a time the administration is courting Republican critics of the legislation."

Dang! There goes the market on my "Keep Your Pelosi Off My Ovaries !" t-shirt!!

2009 West Coast Walk for Life - Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

It depends on us . . . NOW!

No waste of tuition at Stanford

Linda and Robert from my group

Love in Action!

They are tough in Redding, CA!

"Papa? It's me - agent Rosselli. No sign of Pelosi, Boxer, or Feinstein yet!"

You either want them to be your daughter or you want them to date your son!

Missionaries of St. Maximilian Kolbe - represent, Jill!

She's got it right!

Teen Angel for Life!

Linda (Bea's sister); Robert Brito; and his mom, Bea Brito, representing St. Joseph Church

We are family!

To quote a song: "Isn't she lovely?"

Patriot

On Dad's shoulders

Beautiful faces for life!

Got their sights on Heaven

Survivors of genocide

A short distance from the start, the counter-demonstrators came out

Every time I popped out of the crowd to take pictures, Fr. John and Brian were my landmarks back to the group

One of the "Raging Grannies" pro-choice group

One of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence - "Sister Lolita Me Into Temptation"

2009 West Coast Walk for Life - Even More Pictures

Simple warriors for life

The Dominicans were magnificent! I spoke with one of their number, Fr. Steve, at length

Do you think he Daddy is still sending checks to pay the tuition?

Katie doesn't always like her Ma sticking a camera into her face (yes, it is intentional that the sign is placed so)

Note the contrast between the two sides

This guy kept screaming about priests enjoying "diplomatic immunity"

How do people spend their lives so angry? Pray for him . . .

I hear she works for the San Francisco Tourist Commission

We were told, "Don't engage - just keep walking and praying"

This is why I can't call myself a feminist - we look nothing alike! BTW, that's a condom stuck behind his "crown of thorns"

At one point, it seemed like they were following my particular section. We started joking that their band was giving us a decent beat to march to!

Onward!

Amen!

Sweet gal - she was the one suggesting to some nuns where to put their Rosary beads - and it wasn't a polite suggestion

Their bullhorns did not deter us

Note the sign: "If you're so pro-life, how come you're not working to end the war?" The pro-choice folks brought a mish-mash of issues: the war, Prop 8, immigrant rights, and basic hatred for capitalist hegemony

I guess being pro-choice means having a limited vocabulary

And for you dog lovers - Maggie the Pro-Life Weimaramer!

One word seemed popular among the protesters, in all its varied spelling

Another one putting a lot of effort and creativity into his protest sign

A common response to the jeers of the counter-demonstrators was to simply hold up a set of Rosary beads.

Huh, I didn't know Nancy Pelosi made it to the march . . .

Versus the liberal ones?