Monday, June 29, 2009

Collection for Ruth?

According to the Wall Street Journal Ruth Madoff is going to be forced to live on a total of only $2½M - that's $2,500,000 or two and a half million dollars. I just don't know how the bitch is going to do it!

The Journal went on with obvious tongue-in-cheek (I hope) to offer her ways to invest to make the money last through her golden years. They suggested that she turn in her Mercedes for a smaller version auto and move inland from her current winter home in Palm Beach to a more affordable Sunrise City. (And she'll be able to get rid of some of her expensive fur coats living down there in that climate.)

Personally I have a fund that she can invest her cash in that will make her retirement smooth and comfortable. The bitch could send the money to me and I will guarantee her a 15% or more return on her investment! Naturally I would hope that she dies before she collects so I can continue to offer the same rates to other morons and suckers out there.

My problem with the courts leaving her with $2.5 mil is that she would have had nothing - ZERO - if not for the criminal acts of her disgusting scum of the Earth husband. And she was not an innocent bystander in the Ponzie as she was employed by the firm. She knew or should have known full well what was going on! Therefore she should actually forfeit her entire nest egg and go on unemployment or welfare just like her and her husband's victims are doing! Let's see the stoic worm on line at the supermarket with food stamps.

As for the wonderful offspring of the union of Cruella De Vil and the Modern Willie Sutton the children cannot be allowed to continue unscathed. While they may not have been aware of the goings on at Madoff Securities (I doubt that) can anyone actually state without fear of successful contradiction that their education would have been possible without the stolen funds? Surely they would have had to get a job if not for the steady influx of scammed money.

The bottom line is that the Madoff boys made off quite well due to the father's sins and should not be allowed to profit thereof any longer. They can fend for themselves but must be stripped of any money they accumulated while the Ponzi was in action! Had Bernie been honest his kids may have been able to go to the best schools but I doubt it and it's not open to speculation at this time. Their lives were immeasurably better because daddy stole all that money but IT MUST END NOW!

In order to be fair to all the morons who's lives were ruined by their own greed and their trust in our system no one should be allowed to profit in any way shape or form from the Ponzi. And that means the Madoff children must also pay for the mother's and father's sins just like the investors are doing.

Oh, and Ruthie baby - I will be looking for your check to invest in my fund. As the finally late Billy Mays would say - IT'S A LIMITED TIME OFFER SO HURRY!!!
(Don't call it - A porno company bought the number.)

Sunday, June 28, 2009

When Two is One

The Republicans appear to be taking turns showing their true colors these days. Governor Sanford of South Carolina is only the latest hypocrite from the 'party of no' to show that when it came to temptation he just could not say no!

But the list is getting so long that one must wonder if there is not a method to their madness. After all to my knowledge none of these despicable excuses for human beings have quit or been drummed out of the party. The 'wide stance' of the Republicans on hypocrisy is becoming comical and while late night comedians may find it useful fodder America does not, nor should it. Less gets done in Congress when one side can think of nothing but hindrance.

It is a shame that Michael Jackson passed away so young and Farrah Fawcett lost her fight with cancer but who can deny that those 2 tragedies saved more front page humiliation for Governor Sanford? You could almost hear a sigh of relief at the passing of the celebrities from the so-called right side of the aisle.

So what is going on in the Family Values Party aka the Republican party? A list of their news worthy members could be front page juice for Enquirer type tabloids for months. I am speaking of:

Sanford - When your cover story is that you snuck away from your duties as a Governor and as a father on Father's Day to go naked hiking on the Appalachian Trail without letting family or friends know your real story is going to be a whopper.

Vitter - His phone number just happened to turn up in a well known D.C. Madam's phone book.

Gingrich - Who among MANY other hypocritical tasty items was having an affair during the same period he was voting to impeach Bill Clinton for his minor discretion. (Must click on his name for unreal list of good stuff.) And after reading his resume realize that he is the current leader in the GOP 2012 race to run for the White House!

Foley - Senator in charge of committee to keep children safe a pedophile??? When this creep was bending over pages it had nothing to do with books!

Craig - Love comes at the tapping of a shoe. Senator Craig has always denied he was Gay - He's just a very happy guy I guess. Next time he visits Minnesota he should hold it in!

Ensign - This guy is another of those former up and coming hypocrites of the 'NO' party, as in NO CLASS. Not only was he boinking a staffer she was married to another of the disgusting Senator's staffers. I guess the other guy wasn't interested in a threesome.

The list has more names but you get the picture.

So what is future path for this pathetic party of putrid people? Well judging from the way loser - and I mean that word in SO MANY WAYS - Norm Coleman has been holding up the seating of the winner of the Minnesota Senatorial race, Al Franken I can only guess that they feel they can still overtake the Democrats in Congress.

Coleman's Governor Pawlenty has curiously stayed out of the fray perhaps hoping that Kathryn Harris, the ugliest woman on the face of the planet not counting Ann Coulter, will come riding in on her horse or broomstick and declare Coleman the winner.

But I have finally realized the strategy of the Republicans and flawed though it may be you have to give them an A for effort. (Or is that an E for effort? I never understood that phrase.)

They feel that since most of the members of the party are TWO-FACED they should get two votes!!! Counting it that way they can get their majority back and finally get the government back on track - just like it was in the glory days when Cheney, Rove and their puppet Bush ran the place. Let's see, who can we invade next? Lichtenstein?

Friday, June 26, 2009

Farrah & I

So there I was sitting minding my own business at the bar in Lakeville Manor in the 70s hoping to meet a nice or not so nice girl.

Sitting next to me was a rather beautiful looking woman with very long flowing blond hair which was stylish for the time. She was sitting with her back toward me and I was trying to figure out how I could get her to turn my way.

At this very moment an abusive drunk sat down next to her and in his slurred voice muttered, "Hey, Farrah Fawcett. How ya doin?"

She did what any sane person would do and turned away from the sot and came face to face with yours truly.
And in order to make it clear that she was not
interested in the other guy Farrah (not her real name but time has robbed my memory of that part of the story) started to talk to me.

By the way the guy may have been drunk but he wasn't blind. The lady had a striking resemblance to Ms. Fawcett that went beyond her hair.

Anyway we dated for a while after that but unfortunately I was as shallow as the next guy and the relationship could not last because I considered her to be GU -
Geographically Undesirable!

Back then GU was a very real consideration. I lived in North Queens and she lived in the farthest Southern point of Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. The distance between us added around four hours to a date.

Looking back I am happy with how things turned out as I have a wonderful family and great kids but for one brief moment in time I dated Farrah Fawcett, sort of.

RIP (Real) Farrah.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Real Insurance Fraud - Warts & All

Insurance fraud when discovered has always been a cause for prosecution in this country. The culprit is brought to justice and forced to pay back the money stolen along with fines. The criminal may even face jail time.

So why doesn't it work both ways?

According to an article in Newsday today insurance companies have been found to over charge their customers and underpay their obligations. Of course there is no one in the world that really ever doubted the practice as we all know what crooks those companies are but now there is proof of their crime.

The article is a must read and you may link to it from the paragraph above.

Personally I have encountered a few of the normal roadblocks these lower than low life bastards throw at their customers. One new way they are defrauding us is by the use of extra holding companies with which to insulate themselves from obligation.

My particular crook is known as Guardian and they use Multi-Plan who then uses Magnacare.

Get the picture?

When you call one of the companies you will not get a complete answer. You will be directed to one of the other companies who will use the same tactic until you either give up or drop dead.

Of course should you die before collecting they are off the hook completely and your Life Insurance company takes over.

The new insurance company will now proceed to note that you died because you raised your blood pressure trying to collect from the health care industry. And since everyone knows that is impossible to collect from that group you must have committed suicide.


One of the key phrases used by insurers to lower their coverage is "Usual and Customary." In case you are not familiar with the term here is the explanation in a nutshell:

It is usual and customary to deny coverage on anything that will cause a payment by the insurance company.

Understand now?

Finally the best example of why these people should be placed in jail and fed bread and water till they die is this story from Texas.

A woman had her insurance cancelled by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas just before she was going in for life-saving surgery to cut out her cancer. The company used rescission to cancel her policy noting that she failed to disclose a pre-existing condition on her application for insurance.

Insuirance companies are always on the outlook for fraud when it comes to disclosure as you may have an illness that might cause higher premiums. In this case the woman did in fact leave off a very important prior condition. SHE HAD A WART ON HER HAND!!!!!

Luckily for this brave woman Congress heard her complaint and Texas representative, Joe Barton ordered the fraudulent company to reinstate her insurance. (And I am sure that at the same time Blue Cross took the congressman off their list for campaign donations.)

A Pregnant Pause

A female police officer on Long Island is suing because she was discriminated against while pregnant. She was supposedly denied light duty assignments while pregnant and then passed over for promotion to sergeant basically due to her gender.

Her attorney is telescoping the charges down to a central issue of job and paycheck vs. having a family like her male counterparts.

She is being treated as though she did something wrong and since the entity treating her that way is our police force are they calling her pregnancy a crime?
If it is a crime should her husband be arrested for aiding and abetting (or bedding) her?

Presumably the woman officer passed all the necessary tests in order to join the force and should therefore be treated in much the same way as her fellow officers.

This is another no-brainer that is brought to you by the wonderful members of the good old boys club. Their stupidity never ceases to amaze and as a male embarrass me.

Service Outage

Here's a quickie and a no-brainer.






America's Got Talent - Unfortunately

If one of your workers is very good at his or her job you naturally try to keep them. But being a shrewd businessman you don't let the employee know how much you like them lest they hit you up for a raise.

But if the worker is not that good or has actually done damage to your business you have an obligation to the company, or shareholders if you are a public company to ease the worker out.

All the above is quite logical and should be standard practice in the world of big and small business. So why is Citi Group, a company which is partly owned by you and I rewarding their employees with a 50% increase in salary?

The answer that is routinely given by all the crooks and underhanded double-dealing SOBs who run companies that have caused so much grief in the world is that they need to pay their workers more money so as to not lose talent!



Could it be the talent to go along with every underhanded scheme that brings in more money to the CEO and Board of Directors while wrecking the company and causing a bailout by tax-payers? Is that the talent?

Does anyone other than Congress fall for this bull shit? And truthfully do they think we are so stupid as to believe them?

Well obviously it does not matter what we think since they do as they please and cannot be hurt by hurting us.

The bottom line is that the same people being rewarded with huge raises are the ones that caused our economy to crash. And their bosses who were incredibly complicit in the wrong-doing are the ones handing out the cash. And that cash was handed to them by Congress. And the cash Congress gave them was ours!

The so-called talent should actually be sitting next to people like Madoff and Stanford waiting arraignment not being rewarded with mega bucks.

If theses 'talented' people decided to leave the companies that are so hell bent on keeping them where would they go? Are they not branded and known for what they are, crooks?
I say cut their salaries and dare them to join the rest of us in the real world they helped to create!

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

The Tapes of Wrath

I attempted to pitch a show to network executives but they said it was too far-fetched. I felt it would run for at least four or five years. In the end they kicked me out of their office even going so far as to accuse me of stealing the idea from someone else. I had to protest and putting up both of my arms in a victory salute I said as I left the office, "I am not a crook!"

Here is the idea I pitched. I report, you decide.

"The Tapes of Wrath."

A paranoid bigoted secretive deceitful man who has been a number two man for years finally rises to the head of his company and becomes CEO.

He is immediately worried that someone else will do to him what he had conspired to do for so many years. So he proceeds to set up a system to spy on anyone he feels is out to get him, which in this case must be everyone since he is, as noted paranoid.

He spies on his friends and as well as his perceived enemies and keeps his closest allies under strict orders to hide the tactics. In some cases his advisers become so wrapped up in the illusions of the CEO that they start making their own bold moves in his name.

But the man also has a sense of his own greatness and needs to keep records of his achievements for posterity so he records many of his conversations carefully locking them away for future use.

During one taping his bigotry comes out as he rants about some people who he knows have had interracial sex and ponders the efficacy of abortion for the ensuing disgusting offspring. Luckily for him and his company the aids talk him out of saying such things in public.

Looking back I realize that the show wouldn't work anymore. It was played out years ago and then reworked into a new version in 2000. It was finally canceled in 2008 and with any luck will not hit reruns or syndication for decades to come.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Night & Day - Hong Kong Style

Just a short interactive piece to show you.

A friend of mine (it seems I still have a couple left) found this on the web and forwarded it to me.

Click on the link (
Hong Kong ala Cole Porter) then move your mouse from the top of the photo to the bottom slowly and watch the change. It is worth the otherwise wasted minute of your life to do so.

You're Not Worth a Look

In normal day to day situations if someone catches your eye and says "Hi" you would probably say "Hi" back. And if you get a phone call or an e-mail the odds are you will acknowledge it at some point in time.

The above is silly and obvious and really does not need to be stated for normal human beings.

But there are quite a few people who are still walking this Earth who believe that they are above the rest of us and do not see the need to reply to anything. These individuals are generally thought of as despicable egotistical (fill in your own plural expletive here.)

Now I am not talking about those of you who use your "Caller ID" to screen your calls so as not to have to talk to your mother-in-law, or mother for that matter and you know who you are. Those slight discretions or white lies of omission do not harm the ignored person for long and as long as they never find out that you were sitting there looking at the number calling you and thinking, "No way, not now!" they will not be irreparably harmed.

But how about those individuals who put on their pants one leg at a time like the rest of us
but believe themselves to be way above humanity? They visit the toilet facilities on a regular basis as do we but of course their deposits leave no odor.

When cornered and found out to have been ignoring a situation these holier than thou types generally switch gears and become very polite and knowledgeable of the problem at hand as though they were following it all along. They seem to understand the matter quickly and dispose of it with the same speed. You come away wondering if you were wrong about them.
You were not!
This is a tactic at which these people have become very adept. My religion does not believe in Hell but if we did we would expect to see its streets lined with this type of scum. Unfortunately they are generally so aloof that I doubt they would even then notice their personal surroundings.

So what is the point of my rant?
For the past three months I have been patiently trying to get one of these creatures to respond to my e-mails and letters but to no avail. In my life I never ignored anyone to the extent that this 'thing' has ignored me.

Why bring this up now?
For one thing it allows me to vent some frustration at the fact that the 'thing' is still alive and working and prospering way above and beyond its deserving worth.
Putting this on the internet possibly allows others to read it and recognize themselves or others. It may give someone else an understanding of the true evil that exists in our everyday lives.
And finally it sends a message to the 'thing' of whom I speak that this time I am not giving up.

When I first incurred an injustice at the hands of this same being I wrote about it on this blog. The thing never reads these things so it really was not going to help my cause but lo and behold it did read it and called to comment that I was wrong and unfair.

Time passed before I realized how he found the blog. One of the brown-nosing useless IT people in his company came across the article and ran to snitch. "Look what I found! Aren't I good? Can I have a treat?"

After receiving his candy from his superior the back-stabbing moron went back to wasting time at his desk, surfing the web for jokes and porn. (The funniest part of this is that "Brown-Nosee" is a huge "Brown-Noser" of his owner and his owner's father. In fact he has to be but that is a story for private issue later. Call me, we'll do lunch and talk.)

Still I doubt any of the characters in this story will come across the blog this time and it is really being written more as therapy and a reminder to myself that I will not allow them to get away with ignoring me anymore.

Friday, June 19, 2009

Worth a Thousand Words

Tweet this Iran!

Twitter is a force to be reckoned with and feared by small-minded leaders around the world.

Unfortunately the picture makes them look far better than they really are! This ugly duo should get this and more. Hopefully the tweets will not stop until they are completely smothered.

Thanks to John Cole
of the times tribune
for the lovely cartoon.

Too Small for Coverage

All we hear on the news and financial shows these days is, "How can we fix health care in this country? What can be done to help small businesses give their employees health care?"

It seems that a tremendous percentage of businesses are considered 'small' and as such employ a massive amount of Americans and those workers make up the bulk of the working uninsured.

So our law-makers are racking their alleged brains on how to solve the problem. You see health care is very expensive and only large companies can afford to pay for the luxury and thus ensure that their loyal workers are insured. But are the people who work in small businesses and pay large amounts of taxes any less loyal or deserving of health care?

Instead of waltzing around the issue as Congress has done for 16 or more years why not grab the bull by the tail and face the situation? Read that again and understand that I did not choose the wrong end of the animal in my analogy. In order to face the situation you must go to the source of the problem, namely the insurance companies!

These butt-heads are not in business to see to it that Americans are covered and receive adequate health care. They are in the business to see to it that they themselves receive obscene amounts of money with which they can smooth the way forward to receive even larger amounts of money.

The main objective of insurance companies is to create massive mazes through which the premium paying insured must navigate in order to be told that he or she is not covered. How long before we are told that anything we need medical care for is considered a pre-existing condition? After all the leading cause of death is actually birth!

Some of our Senators , and I will not name names or give hints as to whom they might be, Republicans, are firmly in the camps of these HMOs and must protect them with every ounce and penny of their hidden campaign funds. But you see these law-makers do not need to purchase health care insurance, we give it to them as a perk for doing the job we elect them to do! The fact that they do not do that job seems to have escaped notice.

A very simple solution to the problem of health care for the workers in small businesses is to tell the HMOs that they can no longer charge them different rates than they charge the larger companies. If they persist in this discriminatory practice they lose their license to sell insurance to anyone!
End of story!

Naturally this would prompt the money hungry SOBs to raise their rates to the large businesses but given the percentage difference between the two classes the amount would not be that great and would allow a very large numbers of voters more affordable access to health care.

It seems funny that the Senators and Representatives who do not pay one cent for their coverage or the coverage of their families, (or perhaps even their mistresses, sorry Senator Ensign) nor for their pension nor their social security nor it seems for their travel costs on vacation should be deciding the fate of health care for the rest of us. Once again it is a case where the people who do not play the game are making the rules! Unfortunately we have no choice so we must beg these leaders to finally get their acts together, shut their public mouths, stop pointing thier grubby little fingers and get it done!

Thursday, June 18, 2009


According to news wire services and the World Health Organization there has been an outbreak of Bubonic Plague in Libya.

The disease dates back hundreds if not thousands of years and has been known as The Black Death. The name is arguably due to either the color of the skin after the body has been ravaged by the disease or the mere fact that it is so deadly as to give anyone with it a 'black' or glum outlook.

Thirteen cases have so far been confirmed all near the Egyptian border to the east of Libya with at least three fatalities. Several other people are also suspected of being infected as of this moment.

The disease is spread by rats and their fleas hiding in the shadows and coming out to feed and infect.

So the disease is spread by hiding rats?
And these disgusting creatures are located in the Arab parts of the world?
And wherever they surface disease and death occurs?
They are repugnant to look at and kill indiscriminately.

Haven't we been fighting this same filthy lower life form since 9-11?

Albany for Sale - Pt. 2

A few posts down you can find my first "Albany" note about elected officials thumbing their noses at the people who elected them.

Newsday was nice enough to print the piece, which was sent in to them as a letter on June 18th. Before doing so one of their nice editors called me to clarify a couple of points and the finished product is what appears in print.

But the paper decided to drop one paragraph before publishing. And the one they chose concerned Billionaire Thomas Golisano. I think it is funny that they edited this part out especially in light of fact that it is completely relevant politically speaking.

At the heart of every issue in politics, the art of the possible is money.

Do we have enough to do what we want to do?
If we lower taxes here how can we raise them there?
How can we increase our take of the constituents cash without them realizing what we are doing?
How can we pander to the wealthy who contribute to our funds while still appearing to be fair?
And finally how can we please billionaires such as Thomas Golisano and not get caught?

This last question, like the ones before it are all unspoken but nevertheless understood. As everyone knows "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" was a fantasy tale. In real life politicians are more like the anti-Smith than we would like to believe.

It is said that power currupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. It is a rare individual who can make a fortune and not be corrupted by it such as Bill Gates and Warren Buffet who are two of the most down to Earth people around not to mention generous. But there are too many Golisanos as well and way too many Golisano wannabes on Earth as well. It was nice of the paper to print my rant even though they left one big rat out of the mix. Unfortunately Newsday doesn't care to go that far. (Golisano is probably a subscriber.)

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Say What You Like

Freedom of speech is not just a word or a phrase in this country, it is a way of life. Unfortunately it can also be a way of death or a path toward it at least.

When Fox News starts a campaign against one group or individual they can instill and install such hate in some of the weak minded people of our country as to be downright frightening. Dr. Tiller's recent murder at the hands of a frenzied Fox News lover and obvious advocate of Bill O'Reilly's right to say anything he wants is a perfect example of how hate speech can kill.

But as bad as the people of Fox News are, and boy are they bad, they have a right to say what they feel because of that aforementioned freedom. It is up to society to see through the veil of stupidity and hate and realize that entities such as Fox only wish to stir the pot in hopes of ratings and advertising dollars. I must believe that O'Reilly and the rest of his group don't really believe half the things they spout. At least I hope they don't. But I have no patience for the weak minded amoral morons of the fringe groups who take to the shadows in order to play God and carry out the agenda they believe they are on Earth to do.

Knowing that such people exist and are citizens of this country and have televisions with which to listen to the dribble on Fox should make that network a little more aware of their power. It should hint to the owners of Fox that they might be a bit over the top and perhaps they should tone down their rhetoric for a while.

Unfortunately they have an agenda as well and theirs does not take into account that they can cause murder. And once again they have the right to spew so all the rest of us can do is monitor their filth and be prepared for the fallout. We must treat them as perverted sex offenders and make sure everyone in the neighborhood knows where they reside. They are an annoyance like any common insect but even insects serve a purpose. Without evil can how can we measure good?

Love it or hate it America is a free nation and the best idea to come along in along time. We are not afraid of our freedom of speech nor the different ways in which it is aired. We get our news from so many directions that there is not enough hours in the day to ingest it all and still we crave more. As of this moment we see how a nation run by leaders afraid of freedom treats the news with reporters being told to stay indoors in Iran. It is for their safety they are told. Right, safety from the leaders who must censor the news of how badly they run their country. The internet and its
newest grass root news source, Twitter is the only thing keeping the world apprised of the atrocities going on that country in turmoil. They fear the mouse!

One of these days all countries may come to our way of thinking but anyone reading this will most likely be long gone by then.

Hey, I have an idea, let's send Fox News and their values over to Iran and see how long they survive. I mean they seem to hate this country so much. We could be killing two birds...

Monday, June 15, 2009

Only a Mother Could...

Here is our first entry in a new category I'd like to call, "Would you buy a used car from this guy?"

Now before you answer think of the repercussions. The last person to oppose this salesman appeared to have won the prize only to find out that he was mistaken. And all the people who did purchase a vehicle from him are in the process of being rounded up by the Supreme Car Salesman of Iran, the "Ah, I Tole Ya" so.

I value life and as such my answer is, of course I would buy a car from him! Maybe if enough of us do buy cars from him he can finally afford to buy a razor!

(By the way, I looked a the title again and I am not so sure even a mother could love this filthy pig.)


If you apply and are hired for a job but then do the opposite of what the boss hired you to do should you be fired? At the very least you should be reprimanded and called before the boss to explain your actions and replaced if the matter can not be resolved.

New York State Democratic Senators Monserrate of Jackson heights and Espada of the Bronx have done just that by going against the wishes of their constituents and they should be reviewed and possibly replaced before they can cause more damage.

Unlike the move of self-serving Senator Arlen Spector who switched from the dwindling Republican Party to join the majority Democratic Party because he saw a losing reelection bid in his future these two New Yorkers have tipped the scales and may have completely changed the direction of our State Senate.

And the fact that non-resident billionaire Thomas Golisano who is quitting New York and moving to Florida to save some tax money orchestrated the dirty dancing waltz makes the moves even more reprehensible and deserving of investigation.

I cannot and will not make allegations as to how much if any of that saved money will find its way into the pockets of any Senators. By the way is the AFLAC mascot a DUCK???

Albany for Sale

Once again Googls's Blogger is acting up and not allowing things to be published correctly. I will redo this missing post shortly.

Amazing Disgrace

Some of the most contentious political fights these days are being fought by political outsiders. At least they are supposed to be outsiders. I am referring to the church and by church I mean every religious group or institution.

In New York State the debate concerning same-sex marriage continues with the majority of law-makers seemingly in favor. The Governor has already stated that he would sign a bill into law allowing same sex marriages if it should ever reach his desk. One of the many vocal groups who oppose allowing law-abiding tax-paying citizens the same right that every other citizen has, the right to get married in New York State does not actually pay taxes to the state or to the Federal Government for that matter. They have tax exempt status as religious entities or churches.

Ruben Diaz, who not only happens to be a Democratic State Senator but also a minister in the Bronx calls same sex marriage a “disgrace.” Amazing! I find fact that Mr. Diaz was elected to office in a land where we have a fundamental belief in the separation of Church and State to be quite disturbing especially since his religious concerns obviously taint his every day decisions.

The same dilemma comes when we examine the debate between the two camps in the Roe V. Wade arena. The “Pro Choice” group is in favor of rational thought determining the fate and future of a pregnancy while the “No Choice” group states that every possible child must be born. There is no thought given to the well being of the mother or of the child for that matter. If the child is determined to be at great risk of being born with a life threatening disability the “No Choice” group still states there is no choice. Their feelings are religiously based in the belief that both mother and child are in Gods hands.

Aside from the fact that many misguided “No Choice” followers have taken to committing murder in order to allow a fetus to continue to term once again we see the Church meddling in State and Federal law. Blindly following a belief without regard to how it might affect others is what the world expects from religious fanatics such as Al Qaeda and other Jihadists. To think that the “No Choice” people are following that path should be a chilling wake up call to the FBI and law enforcement groups all across America.

Human beings cannot separate themselves from their heritage or their life experiences. We are conglomerates of ‘nature’ and ‘nurture’ and as such we carry our beliefs with us everywhere we go. When one political party argues that a current Supreme Court justice nominee is no good because she has had “Latino experiences” they are showing their stupidity as well as their desperation. Naturally she had those experiences but can she separate right from wrong? Can she uphold the law and make judgments based on the law?

In 1776 our fore-fathers said we should not have taxation without representation. The converse must be true as well and citizens who eschew their tax obligations should find themselves facing penalties and jail time. Church leaders should try to work within our system if they wish to continue reaping the benefits of our free society. However if the Church wishes to get into the political game then they must start paying the price of that ticket, namely taxes! The cost is the same for all attendees wishing to have a seat and the IRS has all the forms needed for them to get a turn at bat. No umpire should be allowed to call balls and strikes from outside the park.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Executive Over-Compensation

It has always been a pet peeve of my brothers that top executives make too much money when compared to the average worker of their company. This is a fact in America and it is hard to dispute since most of these far from deserving cretins are in public companies and must disclose their pay rates.

But it is so well known as to be mainstream these days and even appears in Dilbert comics.

In simple terms the Board of Directors for a company meets a few times each year to determine a course of action supposedly intended to increase business. However one of the main points that comes up at every meeting is executive compensation.

Since the meetings are open to shareholders the procedure has the air of legitimacy since it is not behind closed doors. So when it comes time to decide how much of a raise the board should give themselves they put it to a vote. However anyone with a first grade math course can see that the total votes in the pocket of board members will far outnumber those of the shareholders. In other words these men (usually) decide how much to rape, pillage and steal from your company without hopefully killing it. In this way they are quite similar to the lowly parasite! Also first grade biology - a parasite lives off the body but dies with it so it behooves the thing to at least keep the body on life support.

And the best thing about this whole process is the fact that most of the board members have nothing to do with the particular company upon which board they sit! You see the CEOs and higher ups of each company bring "smart" businessmen onto their board with the full knowledge that they in turn will be invited to sit on the other guy's board. Then when it comes time to vote on compensation it is a"one hand washes the other situation" or as the street term goes, a cluster f**k.

And guess who is at the other end of that cluster? The shareholders of each company. And then by extrapolation the entire country because little by little the top earners pull away from the rest of us and leave such a gap between the two classes as to be comic if it were not so tragic.

Congress is about to take on the problem of executive compensation in America. Is anyone actually fooled by this? Don't get me wrong I am as naive as the next guy and I actually hope that something can be done but I am also realistic. There is no way on Earth that America can slow down the rise of the wealthy let alone stop them.

The more money they have:
The more Senators they can buy.
The more TV air time they can buy.
The more stations they can buy (Fox etc.)
The more nations in which they can hide their money from the IRS in.
The more Americans they can lay off and replace overseas in the name of profit.

Can anything be done? Only if we the people do not allow them to deflect the issues at hand all the time. Only if we the people stop them from changing the subject all the time. Only if we the people insist that our elected officials stop being such dim-witted self-serving stuffed-shirts and actually do the job, THE ONE AND ONLY JOB for which they were elected. They must stop blaming each other for the past and start working with each other toward the future. (Talk about naive! The future is only important to these phonies as it relates to their re-election status.)

The myth of "Mr. Smith goes to Washington" does not exist. There will always be a Willet Creek to stop the idealist in Congress, not that there are any left.

I sound like a defeatist but that's only because I have been defeated so often. But there is always tomorrow. Hopefully it will be the tomorrow of "Annie" and not the "Macbeth" one!

Friday, June 12, 2009

Class Warfare by the Classless

There is an e-mail that periodically goes around in defense of the wealthy business owner and rich right wing Republican that attempts to use the words of the beloved President Abe Lincoln as a warning against helping those less fortunate than themselves. It is also sent to silence the masses by making them see the light.

Generally the masses are quieter; tamer and more docile and as such will be silenced by an intelligent campaign such as this. As proof I offer the Democrats vs. the Repugnants, sorry I meant Republicans in recent history. Every time there is an issue that divides the two political camps it seems as though the Dems are less vocal and less mean in their rebuttals. While there is passion on the fringes of both sides the fanatics of the Democratic party arm themselves with words while the religious right arms themselves with guns. (Tiller - Holocaust Museum.)

Getting back to Abe Lincoln the words being sent around sound very wise. Below is the actual quote attributed to the 16th President. The paragraph following his words is an opposing view of their meaning.

I report, you decide.

You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.

You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.

You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.


You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.



.....Abraham Lincoln
.....Different Take








Monday, June 8, 2009

Doctors and Compassion

I had an operation to repair my wrist that involved the removal of some calcium and the grafting of bone to essentially make a new joint. As a result I have a cast on my right arm. The cast extends from the base of my fingers up to and past the elbow by about four inches. The cast has been there for three weeks.

While going through the pre-op phase of the procedure I was asked how much pain I could handle on a scale from one to ten. Bravely I said I could take an eight without complaining too much. Most women would argue that if men say they can take an ‘eight’ then women could handle sixteen. Be that as it may in the weeks since the fiberglass monstrosity has been in place I have experienced sporadic eights with a very rare and short-lived nine.

But what no one tells you is that the pain you may go through is not the problem. Nor is the fact that you may not be able to do anything you are used to doing in an easy way, or at all for that matter. What they should ask you is, “On a scale from zero to ten how much can you take of an ‘un-scratch able’ itch?” Trust me your answer will be lower than the pain number. OMG does it itch!

The compassion one gets from doctors and their medical staff these days is, if I may continue to use the ‘one to ten’ scale for the most part a two. I know some of you may claim that your guy is better and there is always an exception to any rule but I have lived through an unfortunately large number of doctors and I can tell you that the two is generous.

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of waiting with my son to see a specialist. We sat in the waiting room for almost an hour and a half as new patients arrived and were taken ahead of us. We were informed that they had emergencies and in two of the cases the poor patients had not been able to sleep the night before. I would like to point out that if you have to see a specialist then anxiety is going to be part of the process and sleep will be lost all around. In other words this particular doctor should try to take them as they come, they are all emergencies to the party of the first part!

That brings me back to my current orthopedist (the wrist guy.) He shows much compassion when he speaks to, at, or with you but he surrounds himself with a staff hired to make you feel somewhat lower than road-kill. On a recent visit when I was disappointed to learn that the doctor would not be removing nor even shortening my cast I had to make a follow-up appointment for two weeks hence. The lady in charge of that desk would not do so until I paid the day’s co-pay. She would not even listen to me and check availability and actually stopped me in mid sentence to say, “Are you going to give me the co-pay?” I threw my credit card on her desk and Brumhilde’s grubby fingers picked it up and ran it through the machine. It was only after I signed, with my left hand that the moron would schedule another co-pay, I mean visit. It is fitting that she be involved in my situation since she rhymes with itch.

And that next visit was to be this morning (or at least the morning of the day that I am typing this.) Unfortunately someone close to our family passed away over the weekend and the funeral conflicts with my appointment. I called the doctor’s office at 8am and asked if I could come in early or even later in the day. I guess my emergency is not one they care about. Some of the answers the compassionate appointment desk person offered were,

“You should have called Friday and maybe we could have rescheduled.”
(I know, it was truly inconsiderate of the woman to pass away AFTER your office hours!)

“I have nothing today or tomorrow or Wednesday, how about Thursday?”

“No we cannot call you if someone else cancels even though it would help you because that would involve an effort on our part and cost a phone call and frankly compassion which we do not have because we really don’t give a shit about you or your health. What we really want is your freaking co-pay and a chance to have you sign a paper that allows us to send in an inflated bill to your health-care provider so that we can continue to rape the system without skipping a beat.”

Okay I may have paraphrased that last one but you get the drift. She even told me that I should have called earlier because the doctor gets in around 7am.

“I did! I’ve been calling since 7am but no one picks up your phones until 8am!”
“Oh, right.”

So now I will have to endure the over-sized cast with its over-sized itch producing capabilities for another three days. But at that time I can say that at least this doctor does the work before the Gestapo demands the co-pay.
That shows great compassion.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

My Summer - 1969

The summer of 1969, with apologies to Charles Dickens was the best of times it was the best of times. And for me it was a life changer. I turned 20 that summer. My life was based in and around Long Island but I was starting to see the world in a different light.

Men wore leisure suits and women were not afraid to sport fur coats in the evening. I was in style with my “Mod Squad” – ‘Linc’ afro and occasional green leisure suit. (The suit was retired to a landfill years later.)

My mom and her friends went to the beauty parlor every weekend and took turns hosting Mahjong and Scrabble nights. In December they would listen to the calling of birth dates for the Viet Nam draft lottery. (I was # 336!)

Family was important with personal and verbal interactions the norm. At least one weekend a year we went upstate to Kutschers Country Club for a vacation ala “Dirty Dancing.” 1969 was no exception.

I worked every summer before 1969 but mostly in summer camps. This summer I had a real job working at the old Silvercup Bread Factory in Long Island City. I told the interviewer that I liked the aroma when I was driving over the 59th Street Bridge so I stopped in for a job. He told me that was probably the first honest answer he had ever heard and hired me on the spot.

I worked nights and weekends because those offered the highest pay rate and I was on the job on the historic evening of Sunday July 20th. My shift was almost over when something fell on my foot and I was hobbled. Unable to walk I was carried out to the curb where my dad was waiting to drive me home. In the car I listened to Neil Armstrong’s famous words about walking on the moon. I had to laugh that I couldn’t even walk on the Earth!

I recuperated with my friend Lenny in Puerto Rico spending the money I h
ad just saved from the job and returned home in plenty of time to watch the Mets make their pennant run.

I was an avid fan of the Mets since they were born. They filled the void left by the Brooklyn Dodgers, a team my grandfather taught me to root for in the 50’s and then against from ’58 on. I even have photos with Gil Hodges and pitcher Clem Labine from Ebbets Field and a pretty good condition stub from Don Larson’s perfect game 5 in the 1956 World Series (I was still a Dodger fan.) Also in a plastic protective bag is the scorecard from that game and a baseball personally autographed by the entire Brooklyn Dodger team.

Ball players did not make the utterly ridiculous salaries they make these days back then so most of them had off-season jobs. Clem Labine worked with my dad selling textiles in the winter to make some extra cash. Imagine the likes A-Rod having to earn a living without baseball today!

Although the Mets had never even had a winning season I somehow felt this
was going to be their year. I even kept a detailed daily diary of Met game results for 1969. My cousin’s company had season tickets and his seats were great. He sat between Home Plate and first base in the first Loge box above field level. Since he couldn't get to every game I was given many weekday tickets. My boss back then always asked if I was feeling better the day after I used them. “Yes sir thanks for asking.” (I hope he doesn’t read this.)

I was at the doubleheader against Montreal on September 10th when the Mets won both games and moved past the Chicago Cubs into first place for the first time ever!
The ticket price on the stub says $3.50! You can't watch an inning for $3.50 now.

I was also lucky enough to be at Shea Stadium for the Monday October 6th game
against Atlanta and watched destiny continue as the surging Mets sweep past the Braves in the first ever NLCS.

But the Mets were going to have to win the ‘Fall Classic’ without me at Shea because my cousin wouldn’t relinquish any tickets. I am about ready to forgive him.

We knew the World Series crown was inevitable if the
groundskeepers could ever repair the infield. What a celebration we had after disposing of Atlanta!

But who could blame us? Like me, the Mets had come of age in the summer of ’69.

A Car Trip Down Memory Lane

Now that the auto industry has been forever altered it might be a good time to hearken back a few years to better times.

Click here for a 3-D video showing how a Chrysler was made back in the day. This is an ad shown at the 1939 World's Fair in New York's Flushing Meadow touting Chrysler's superior workmanship. You can see the video without the glasses but if you have a pair try them on. Unfortunately the correct 3-D glasses are not the common "red-blue" ones but rather the Polaroid version. Luckily I don't part with old things that easily so I found a pair.

And check out the "new" models from the Fair! Don't you wish you owned one of them now?

On the right:

A post card image of the Chrysler
at the 1939 World's Fair.
On the left:
A depiction of the Fair's famous symbols,
the Trylon & Perisphere

Reversal of Fortune

We just received a letter from Bank of America concerning a change in their fee schedule.

The fee that was discussed was the NSF or "Returned Item Fee for Insufficient Funds." In other words a bounced check. Banks seem loathe to call a spade a spade lest regular humans understand them.

This most recent note however was a reversal of a previous increase.

Go ahead, read it again, I'll give you a moment to let it sink in.

The bank had raised the "bounced check" fee to $39 per incident but decided to once again lower it back to the $35 level most likely thinking that the old amount is obscene enough.

Perhaps someone in the main office realized that if you bounce a check it might be because you do not have the money to cover the check let alone the fees that are tacked on afterward.

So you see the banks are not always against you! Of course if they make a mistake and that error causes a check of yours that w
as covered to bounce they will merely fix the problem but not pay YOU a fee.

Some things never change.

The Anti-Curmudgeon

Occasionally something happens that makes even curmudgeons sit up and take notice. Such was the case this week when a Shirley, Long Island convenience store owner turned the tables on a would be robber and treated the guy with respect!

Mohammad Sohail from Lahore, Pakistan was confronted by a masked man (not the Lone Ranger) demanding the cash from the register. Mo as he is known to his regulars quickly picked up a shot gun and forced the man into a submissive position on his knees.

While on the ground the perp reverted to reality and begged for leniency stating that he was out of work and in need of money for his family, etc. Mo was so taken by the tale that he handed the man $40 and some bread and was actually getting some milk when the man fled the store.

Now as a card-carrying member of the Curmudgeon league I refuse to extrapolate this one story to include all members of Mo's groups (that would be profiling) but I will give the devil his due!

Way to go Mr. Sohail. I salute you!

And Daddy Makes 3

Newsday reported that two sides of the Long Island Lighthouse project will be meeting this Friday to discuss the plan's future.

Charles Wang, who has been pushing for the project for various reasons not the least of which is personal gain, will sit down with Nassau County Executive Kate Murray who arguably does nothing without a thought of personal gain.

Why would I say something like that about Ms. Murray? Well for a long time I actually liked the lady and thought she was doing a fair job. Naturally I am not that naive and realized that many of the projects she backed would not exactly hurt her while they did some good for the citizens of the Island. However it came to light that she hired her father for a job with the county at an obscene salary after he had retired and was collecting a pension. The money the man was collecting was tax payer dollars and he was getting a double dip of it at that. Many are out of work and not making any salaries. Why should we allow this Nepotism?

After Newsday broke the story about Ms. Murray's retired, rehired dad once again retired (should that be re-retired?) and backed out of the job. So now the question comes back into the foreground. At Friday's meeting with Mr. Wang will part of the conversation be, "Hire my dad or I block the project?"

This is a mean allegation but hey, she started it!

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

GM & You

Hey everyone, guess what, I own General Motors.

Well I own one - 306,569,713 th of the company. This is according to current estimates of the US population before the Census updates the number later this decade.

As a part owner in the failed company I share in the shame and would like to state that I had no idea how badly the company was being run. I did not realize that while the rest of the world was making smaller more economical cars and selling the Hell out of them that my over-sized gas-guzzling monstrosities would fall out of favor.

I could not find the words to describe my dismay. And of course since I didn't know the words I hummed. And that brings me to one of my favorite models, the Hummer. When I first test drove this ridiculous vehicle the dealer boasted that it could drive up the side of a one-story building. His pride diminished a bit when I asked, "You get a lot of call for that on Long Island do you?"

Government Motors is being saved so that the vast number of union members do not join the rest of us on the unemployment line. Of course the cost to keep them off the line is dramatically high and as a part owner I have mixed emotions.

I would like to unburden myself of those mixed emotions by offering my 1/
306,569,713th share in the company to the highest bidder. Anyone interested please contact me quickly - I could use the cash.

(PS - In the time it took to write this there were 8 more Americans born so the above number is no longer accurate - Damn you Octo-mom!)

'IT' Wins for Now

Now that Bill O'Reilly (Billo to normal humans) has gotten his way by getting some brainless criminal follower of his to kill Dr. Tiller the question remains what will this despicable excuse for a life form do with his on air time?

It is obvious that Billo will not quit nor, it seems will the excrement known as the owners of Fox News fire him so what's next?

As we all wait for 'It' (I will now call him "It" with apologies to the Addams family member of the same name) to pick it's next target I wonder if Rush Lamebrain and Newtered Gingrich are vying for his support.

The GOP is not getting it's hands dirty by calling Justice Sotomayor any names as they have their current non-elected henchmen doing their bidding. These bastions of bull-headedness are using terms such as racist to demean her record. Aside from showing their stupidity and desperateness they are wrong but have no one to tell them so. The party leaders love these attacks so there will be no reprimand coming from people such as John BONER anytime soon.

The fact that they are using the nomination of this qualified judge as a rallying cry to their base for more funding is to be expected. The shame of the matter is that they are getting the funding! What does that say about the base? I guess they are baseless!

But back to 'It.' Who to attack next? Hmmm. So many humans, so little air time.

Monday, June 1, 2009

GOP Agenda Revealed

In previously hidden documents leaked to this reporter it was recently revealed that high ranking members of the GOP have an agenda when it comes to the Minnesota Senatorial battle.

An anonymous backer of the fight to get Norm Coleman placed in the Minnesota Senate seat that was won again and again and again by Al Franken has hinted that after they wear down the, "Democrat Socialists on the left they are going after Obama."

(This is not Norm Coleman.
It's Ron Coleman
Sorry but I Couldn't find a
good photo of Norm.)

It seems that they have found a loophole in the law that allows them to go back in time and actually change some votes. He reminds us that they were able to bamboozle old people in Florida into thinking they were voting for John Kerry while actually casting support for a brainless moron. They continued this practice in Ohio four years later to reach another seemingly impossible goal before being trounced in 2008.

"But we can't let a little thing like a mandate stop us. After all Darwin has been taught in the schools for years and our movement has been able to get intelligent design into many a school curriculum. Our plan is nothing short of brilliant and nukular."

He goes on to state that the old adage about, "A black man becoming President when pigs fly" is not true merely because Swine Flu is in the air. "If that were the case Cheney would be President since he is the closest thing we have to a pig in the party."

This reporter found it hard to argue with that last bit of information since Ann Coulter is not really a member of the GOP.

On a final and personal note I truly hope the Minnesota Supreme Court will take a page out of the court rulings of 2000 and stop this silly on-going recount. The forgone conclusion of the vote should be put in the books and the Honorable Al Franken should be allowed to get on with the business at hand.