August 29, 2012

I think Mitt and Ann SHOULD win

King & Queen of the Country Club

and then they should play bridge & go to brunch ..and maybe some golf

and then gas up the jet & go to one of the mansions..


I am finding myself more and more, wishing that when someone loses, they be exiled for a while so we could stop seeing them..

Democrats have the decency to "retreat" when they lose, but republicans NEVER accept defeat..

August 28, 2012

I'm excited about Queen Ann's speech.

I hope she tells us about the time she "beat" typhoid...and how she had brushes with death from:
Argyria
Moya Moya
Crapulence
Smallpox
Inversa
Scabies
Rickets
Beriberi
Dengue Fever
Hepatitis A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P
Impetigo
Rabies
Pubic lice
Leprosy
Malaria
Scrapie

Our Annie is a survivor...

August 24, 2012

"...a 24-year nightmare that ended Friday..."

http://www.chron.com/news/article/Texas-man-freed-after-DNA-clears-him-of-1988-rape-3811865.php

Texas man freed after DNA clears him of 1988 rape
ANGELA K. BROWN, Associated Press
Updated 3:17 p.m., Friday, August 24, 2012



FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A man who spent more than two decades behind bars was freed Friday after DNA evidence cleared him in the rape of a 14-year-old Fort Worth girl. David Lee Wiggins was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 1989, although neither of the two fingerprints found at the scene matched his. The girl, whose face was covered during most of the attack, picked Wiggins out of a photo lineup and then a live lineup, saying he looked familiar. But DNA testing earlier this month excluded Wiggins as the person who committed the crime. Tarrant County prosecutors said DNA evidence demonstrated his innocence.

snip

"I hold no bitterness," Wiggins said in court after the judge's ruling. "I'm thankful to Jesus Christ. He said he could move mountains, and surely this was a mountain. ... And to the victim: I'm not mad at you. I don't hold you responsible."

snip

Wiggins, who wore a blue shirt and tan pants, said his immediate plans included eating a hamburger and spending time with his sister. He will live with a friend he met through his church ministry, according to the Innocence Project nonprofit group, whose attorneys started working on his case in 2007. After his conviction is formally reversed, Wiggins will be eligible for $80,000 a year in compensation that Texas pays to wrongfully convicted ex-inmates.

snip

Wiggins said he agreed to be in a police lineup in 1988 because he knew that he didn't commit the crime and thought he had nothing to worry about. Instead, it led to a 24-year nightmare that ended Friday.
snip

August 24, 2012

I suspect that Isaac will be more welcome in Florida than the GOP convention

Florida is one of many states that have been suffering from the drought, so a slow moving Cat1 with plenty of rain is actually just what they need.

Too many people have gotten accustomed to the Weather Man's scowl when he talks about "rain".. Gee whiz, a weekend might get "spoiled"..bummer..

We NEED rain.. It's not a bad thing..

We drink water.. we wash ourselves, our cars, our dishes, our clothes.

We water our lawns (some do)

We like lush green foliage

We like cheap veggies

Woodland critters need water too, or we end up with bears in swimming pools & cougars drinking from back yard fountains.

Rain is a blessing..not a curse..

If you don't think so, ask a farmer who ends up having to buy water & pay for irrigation machinery..

Deserts might be nice when you want to ride around on adult toys (wrecking the fragile ecosystem there..but that's another story) for a few vacation days, but living in a desert is not as "fun", and it's quite expensive too, unless you like living in 110 degrees-in-the-shade...99% of the time.

August 24, 2012

Secretion Team Delta-GOP....eeee-i-eee-i-oh-my

August 24, 2012

Totally Biased, with Kamau Bell...Any other devotees?

He just did the most hilarious piece about "Moran Man".. Adopt an anti-Obama sign maker for $8.00 a month

It's on FX , in case you have not found it yet..

Rachel was on last week

some samples on you tube

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL466B9A39A5DE99EA

August 24, 2012

Best to Worst States for Women

http://www.ivillage.com/best-and-worst-states/8-a-434913

Not new, but it's new to me

here has been a great deal of talk of late about women and politics: What we want, how we’ll vote, what is good for us. Politicians and pundits love to stir up arguments around the most divisive social and moral issues, but we know what is truly most important to us as women: We want to live in a land where women can thrive; where we can live in good health, get quality care for our kids, and have a government that truly gets our priorities.

To help American women make the best decisions in those voting booths come November, iVillage examined the quality of life for women in our country today -- and we found that all states are not created equal. So, we made a list of the 50 Best to Worst States for Women.

See our rankings below. You may be surprised

snip

August 23, 2012

If we (as a nation) really cared about voting

SoCalDem Donating Member Mon Apr-11-05 01:27 PM

It involves a minor switch, which would not matter much anyway, since most states run elections every year anyway for this and that..

The main elements are :

Nationally held office elections in even years.

Proof of district (for house) would be as easy as providing a bill or letter addressed to the voter at the listed address

Senate would require only that you prove you live in the state

No propositions, local candidates.. just the congress/senate, and every 4 years... president

The ballot could be 5 x 7 card stock with just those 3 offices on it.

names alphabetically with a check-box immediately in front of the name..indelible sharpie pen..

mark your X..

Counting would be a breeze..it would be cheap to print, and easy to store in case of a recount.

I would prefer to hire extra humans on election day, than to spend billions on unverifiable vapor machines owned by republicans..

I know that "states run their own elections", but it's high-time that we admit that states should not be allowed to manipulate "their" elections to mess with what ends up being of NATIONAL importance.

If they want to play games with their city council/governor/state-legislators' races,...let them.., but when their manipulation & chicanery turns a dem majority senate into a minority, or we end up with another 4 long years of "W" , it matters to me in California, how Ohio votes, how they count their votes and how they disenfranchise voters.

August 23, 2012

This is going on your permanent record, Missy.

Shame..Guilt..

This is what's behind the "forcible rape" wannabee-legislation.

Rapes are all different, even if the end result is pretty much the same in each case.

A male coerces/overpowers/drugs/intimidates the female and uses his power to take from her, something that she alone should be in a position to "give".

I have known many women who have been raped, and to a women, NONE have been "officially" reported to the police.

It's a humiliating experience, often not even acknowledged fully for a while after the fact....and often kept as a secret for a long time... and only divulged when the time is right, and to only a few trusted loved ones.

The whole "forcible" thing is a way to force a woman to officially "come out" into the glaring light immediately, to "confess" to strangers/police that she was raped. Forcible rape pretty much presumes police involvement.

She must make sure that her story is "forcible enough", and then she must prepare to endure months/years of explaining away days off work for court appearances, to endure the lost wages (since many/most women are NOT in high powered jobs where they can just take a leave of absence.)

She must prepare herself for the constant questioning and doubt from the people who she seeks help from.

If there is a court involved, she will be dragged through the mud and her life will be turned inside out, even though she is the victim..Why? Because she will not be believed, and by the time this all happens, she will be months/years beyond the experience.

In a perfect world, she would just make an appointment with her own doctor and be tested for the various possibilities, and the decisions would be hers to make.

It's nice to think that a rapist will be found, prosecuted, and jailed, but many rapes don't happen that way.

They often happen when a Daddy violates his daughter, or when a date decides that sex is her "share of dinner", or when a wild party gets waaay too wild or when a flattered younger girl gets herself into a dangerous situation with a solicitous older guy.

It can also happen with a stranger , but I suspect that is pretty rare.

In any case, not all women want to "widen the trauma". They want the confidentiality of one women and one doctor, and together THEY will decide what happens next. With so many women lacking health insurance, the ones who need assistance will probably be the ones who will be required to prove "forcible".

By making "forcible rape" a special legal entity, different from just plain old rape, they are adding a level of scrutiny...an extra dose of shame..especially if a pregnancy occurs.

As counter-intuitive as it may sound, confidentiality and empathy (as well as medical treatment) is more valuable to many than police involvement.

disclaimer:

I am NOT talking about serial rapists who break into homes .. Obviously that is a different thing altogether. Those victims are rarely asked to prove "forcible".

August 22, 2012

The RNC Convention will continue as planned.. No worries

Everyone knows that there is a special secretion that will appear in time to prevent the hurricane from reaching into their "special place".



Secretion Team Delta is on the matter, and there is no worry.