drifting away

i know i wrote that i would now write differently. i guess the more accurate view is that i am no longer enthused to write so much as a juvenile. i can't seem to find the energy to write about politics, either - all the players are just screaming idiots. finally, as much as i enjoy the process of writing well, it drains me. and all that energy is going into my book.

so, without energy or enthusiam to write poorly or well, i guess i am on hiatus.

been real ...

the times they are a-changin'

This post marks a line in the life cycle of this blog. Above this line and going forward in time, I will be attempting to write with the talents I was given. They may not be impressive or good, but they are mine. Time to use them. Below this line are the writings of my yesterdays.

We'll see if a silk purse can be made from a sow's ear.

they are people, too!

I was rather pleased to watch the video below. Yes, it is a tad foul. But freedom of speech, right? Guess not, seems her employer, Air America, has suspended this commentator for commenting. So very odd, methinks. Calling pub presidents and vice presidents racists is ok, but taking Herself's name in vain warrants censure. Funny (pathetic) standard.

Anyway, enjoy ...

Herself should play by pub rules

Started playing with some numbers. It struck me how different the dems and pubs are in choosing delegates. Is one system better? One party is campaigning for the general election right now, including foreign trips already completed. The other party is gnawing off its own leg below the knee to try to free itself from the predicament it put itself into. You can talk amongst yourselves and come to a consensus answer: It takes a village to _________?

I came to a conclusion: If the dems used pub rules, Herself would win the nomination with ease.

A couple of avenues to explore …

First, the pubs have 5% of their total delegates designated as “super-delegates,” those amorphous beings with PACs waiting to receive contributions from presidential campaigns are they contemplate their endorsement. The dems? 19%. Funny thing, too (like “funny” pathetic, not ha-ha), is that the majority of the dems supers are unelected party figures.

So, first, let’s recalculate the delegate totals by state to 95% pledged and 5% super. The 794 present supers (until the page is turned in the client list book) drops to 202.

Next, let’s switch to the winner-take-all approach of the pubs, as opposed to the proportional allocation the dems use.

Before any changes, the pledged delegates are: O'bambi, 1,677; Herself 1,515.

Recast existing pledged delegates as described above: O'bambi, 1,529; Herself 1,659.

Roles reversed. Who’d be calling for O’bambi to drop out, eh?

Future contests: O'bambi - Guam, Indiana, NC, Oregon, Montana, and SD. Herself - PA (my home state), WV, Kentucky, and Puerto Rico.

Expected pledged counts: O'bambi, 1,851; Herself, 1,991. So very close to 2,024.

Of the 202 super-delegates, O'bambi would need 173, or 86%. Herself would need just 33, or 16%.

The last adjustment is one that just befuddles me. Both pubs and dems rule books provide for a 50% hit in delegate counts for violating scheduling provisions. So Michigan and Florida both violate the scheduling dictates of both parties. The pubs say, “OK, 50% hit!” The dems say, “OK, no delegates for you!”

Hunh? They can’t write a rule and a sanction in advance and uniformly enforce it? if the sanction wasn’t good enough, then change the rule book. Duh?

Presume they merely enforced them: Give Herself half of Florida's recast pledged - 95 delegates. Clinched.

Poor, poor Herself. What a remarkable way to run a party.

Not sure why, but I feel like adding this note. This website has the draw of an impending train wreck. Claims to be a completely anonymous way to send e’s to people. I detest finding things like this. I know I won’t use it, but it is soooo inviting.

pass the popcorn!

This seems to be the movie that has Muslims with their burkas in a bunch. I have no issue with it whatsoever. You may need to log in to You Tube first - not sure.

But first a trailer!



And now for our feature presentation:



Why should it bother me? Below is a movie with a real Muslim speaking his mind.



If people can portray Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell as extremists and thereafter declare that they are not condemning all Christians, then I have no issue with condemning some acts by some people done in the name of Islam.

Pretty clear to me.

Post Script - been spending a little on the net searching over FITNA issues. Seems the screamers are screaming loudly. Like they can actually control information? Are they from the Dark Ages? Oh, yeah. Dumb question. Withdrawn. Well, just in case ...

Here’s the Wikipedia write-up. Good parsing of the movie.

Wikileaks will probably ensure access to the movie forever, but just in case, here is the link to the torrent.

I have downloaded the movie and will post it on my own if needed.

betty windsor throws out the first pitch

I think Cricket is like the Queen’s Baseball. I have no idea. In fact, on this topic, I am blissfully clueless. I think they have flat bats and seem to run around bases. But teams get their asses handed to them with scores like 284 to 6. I think sometimes they score 100 points at a clip, but if that is true, why waste your time getting 6? I think games go on for days, too. I know they break for tea. It doesn’t seem that strenuous so I am unclear why they take such long breaks.

I watched this film to try to understand more, but I kept it muted because sometimes I get angry. It felt like listening to the narration would not be a good idea. So mute and watch:



Did you learn anything? Yeah, I agree, it was kinda long. But when I saw the credits mention Fleetwood Mac, I was very pleased that I kept it muted. I saw FM 3 or 4 times in the late 1970s into the 1980s. Mick Fleetwood made my skin crawl. Stevie Nicks made my pants tight. But now she looks like Mickey Rooney. Go figure. Next thing she’ll be selling Medigap Insurance.

Did you notice that the credits included a copyright claim of MMXIII? Methinks someone needs to go back to Roman Number School. Someone wrote or told me that the reason Roman numerals failed as a system was because it lacked a zero. It’s a good point, but incomplete. I think it failed because MDCCCLXXXVIII is a lot longer than 1888. Plus you have to do math to figure out the number. It’s more of an equation than a number.

I still don’t understand Cricket. And I care even less to understand it now than I did just 30 minutes ago.