COMING THIS SATURDAY!
Saturday! Saturday! Saturday!
The Mother of all Haircuts!!!!!
Well boys and girls, you've had to read enough nose wrinkling and head tipping (whoops, that's me, sorry) heart concerning narratives about recovery and such and, well, everything is terrific so ... THE FIRST HAIRCUT IN FIVE MONTHS!!!
Yes, ladies and germs, I have made an appointment tomorrow with a classical and top of the line male cutters called Shaving Grace! One of the owners will be my snapper, which will also include a straight razor shave and facial treatment (lot's of really, really cool pre and post shave ointments, mmmmmm), ear cleaning (yea, baby!) and then ... the complicated haircut decision.
Here's the deal. I'm not in a position that many head cancer patients (and many, many other cancer patients) have to deal with. Because the Radiation shots were so focused I have a rather strange looking head. About 3/4's of my skull has longer, curly hair. The other quarter, mostly on the left temple, has shorter, grayer and thinner hair, including a partial, semi created thinning on parts of the left top skull region over the left temple. I looked at it closely and spent some time deeply thinking as to what I could do to balance out the follicles.
My conclusion? Not a freakin' clue!
Thus I called the top of the line male cutters and said I was turning over my head (OK, OK, my hair!) to them to suggest the first, decent haircut, completely convinced that it will require a double cut, the next one in 4-6 weeks. Whatever. This place has free tapped beer (which I cannot yet drink,) a beautiful antique pool table and big screens with sports. I trust these guys completely and will also give them the OK, if they are interested, in using my head as an advertising prospect, free of charge.
So sometime soon I will send over a delightful and sighing narrative as to CUTTING THE CANCER HAIR! Quite possibly it will end up as a Tennessee folk song in G Minor ...with a kick-assed acoustic guitar lead.
There have been some ... um ... interesting suggestions:
Dan Collins: "I'd say, layer it, and start experimenting with Grecian Formula." (Sorry, Dan. My insurance only allows a Moroccan Formula.)
g-man: "I’ll pay for the manicure and pedicure if you’d like!" (Well that's swell but no one will offer an eyeliner. *sigh*)
enoch_root: "You're not going to get a brazillian as well are you?" (Mozambican ... or Harry Potterism ... whichever is a good excuse for a lopsided look.)
More to come!!
University of Arizona: T-Shirts Were Meant as Souvenirs
Claim no co-ordination with Obama administration:
University spokeswoman Jennifer Fitzenberger told FoxNation.com "it was our idea to do the t-shirts." She said distributing merchandise at a memorial was appropriate and rejected the charge that the University over-commercialized the service. "Our intention was to have something to remember after the event...something that symbolizes our community's spirit...which would live on." When asked if the University had worked with the White House or any partisan groups on any level regarding the t-shirts she said "no."
Fitzenberger insisted the University made no money from the "Together We Thrive" t-shirts and they weren't for sale. "We took the idea to University of Arizona BookStores and they contracted it out with a vendor." Reports put the cost of the t-shirts at $60,000.
I'm just thinking . . . if it were a memorial event, it might have been better to donate the money to some charity. But, hey, that's just me. Anyway, souvenirs from an event memorializing the victims of an atrocity?
"Hey, dude . . . remember that time in college that little girl got shot by that Tea Partier? Good times. I've still got the t-shirt." Or as someone on Twitter said, "A nine-year-old girl was shot and killed, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt." Weird and ghoulish. Did nobody advise anyone in charge that this was nuts?
Never mind. This is the dipshit institution that let Deb Frisch blackmail them into keeping her on faculty for six years, I think it was.
Citizen: "Oh, my God! Six people murdered!"
UofA: "Together We Thrive!"
I suggest that they change it to Together We All Thrive. Or "Together We Make Total Asses of Ourselves." New tone? I'm sorry. Was that inappropriate?
You'd better behave more civilly, before I try to pin a massacre on you.
UPDATE: PolitiFact sure are credulous. How about a little follow the money investigation? How about asking the student who is supposed to have independently invented the OfA slogan what made him think of that?
These people have learned nothing from the "incendiary rhetoric" scandal.
The New Normal (Update)
Through my hydrocone-induced haze, one of my first significant thoughts following the shooting rampage was from a security perspective. "This is going to drastically change the way town hall meetings are organized from a security perspective." It's going to affect which venues are chosen, how much security is present, and whether that security is armed.
This article talks about this angle a little bit, with the added twist of local law enforcement cuts around the country. I think the gap is going to be filled by private security, so we can now look forward to a few added news items in the future.
"Private Security Agents Detain Protester at Local Rally"
"Hypocrisy? Pelosi Hired Armed Security Guards for Town Hall"
"Man Injured By Security Guard at Boxer Rally"
(edited to add title, thanks Bob)
Loughner Aftermath: Finally We Know Whom Not To Blame
Douchebag Sheriff's department did all they could do:
On Wednesday, Kastigar said Loughner had previous contacts with law enforcement, but none so alarming that authorities were concerned about what he might do.
Speculation that law enforcement had enough information about Loughner to stop the shooting is "completely untrue," Kastigar told CNN's "John King USA." "I couldn't underscore that more."
"The events that led up to what happened Saturday as they relate to law enforcement contact really do not add up in their totality to anything that would cause a police officer to say. 'This guy is going to go out there and shoot 20 people.' There's nothing there," Kastigar said.
Palin, though--she really screwed the zeitgeist.
So did you see Obama’s speech at the memorial service last night? [UPDATED]
Well, I did, and he didn't disappoint the crowds or most of the punditocracy judging from the immediate, gushing, reactions on both sides of the spectrum that I saw and read afterwards. In his usual mellifluous voice, with his usual eloquence, he delivered a lovely speech full of platitudes and aphorisms which is his usual style; and the adoring crowds got t-shirts with slogans on them too!
The only problem was it was a speech he should have delivered days ago, when his cadre of political brownshirts, and the media (forgive my redundancy), chose to go on a hateful rampage and try to turn a horrible shooting to their advantage politically and use the opportunity to move in for the kill on their ideological adversaries. He should have made this address from the Oval Office on Monday. He could have stressed all of the same themes, and by speaking out sooner one would presume that his cult-like followers would have been forced to stop trying to pin blame for the shooting on everyone from Sarah Palin, talk-radio personalities, and the Tea-Partiers to the paper-boy on the corner. Call me cynical, but his choice to use a public memorial service, complete with t-shirts bearing the slogan, "Together we thrive", no doubt the 2012 campaign's version of "Yes we can!", has me wondering whether last nights address was part of a larger, Machiavellian, more calculated, construct.
Here you have a President that has suffered a mid-term shellacking in a manner similar to Clinton in 1994, in the wake of which Mark Penn noted:
Comparing Obama’s current situation to the aftermath of the 1994 “Republican Revolution,” Penn noted that it took the Oklahoma City tragedy in order for President Clinton to “reconnect” with the American people.
He then stepped off the cliff by saying that President Obama needed a “similar event” to achieve that reconnection following his party’s midterm losses.
Jarring, isn't it?
At any rate, the Tucson shooting last weekend outwardly seems to provide such a moment, or at least is perceived that way by Obama's cadre, who sprang into action and proactively begin vilifying their political opponents for creating the climate of hate that fostered the attack; regardless of the inconvenient lack of even of a shred of evidence to substantiate their claims. And after letting the MFM and Looney left give his opposition a thorough, savage, going over for the last few days, the "good cop" swoops in to say that everyone should be playing nice, that no one should be blaming another for the actions of a lunatic, and gosh darn it all, can't we just all get along ?!? Add to this a heart-string pulling anecdote of the wounded congresswoman opening her eyes for the first time since the attack and an invocation to make America all it can be for the sake of a murdered 9 year old and you have an emotional, filmworthy-nay-Academy award winning, scene that would have made the great Frank Capra jealous.
And, voila !, Obama has the "Oklahoma City moment" that he needed. But as I said, perhaps I'm just being cynical...
I still believe this was a carefully orchestrated charade, a crisis that wasn't allowed to go to waste. I'd like you to pay attention over the next few weeks. See of Obama delivers a follow-up address over the next few days where, like Bill Clinton, in a less than Presidential manner he essentially joins the nutroots in calling out "the right wing extremists". Listen to hear how many times the MFM relives this event; and especially how many times they tell you both that this is Obama's Oklahoma City moment and just how well he's managed to reconnect with the American people. Note also when folks are scolded for not living up to the standards of comity and cooperation Obama spoke of last night, especially when the same folks are merely opposing the President's agenda or trying to roll back parts of the 111th congress' liberal ideological wish-list spending splurge. And, kind reader, as the 2012 campaign begins to gear up, listen for my prognostication to come to pass; for the collectivist slogan, "Together we thrive!", to replace, "Yes we can!", as the nutroot's Obamist mantra.
Listen for these things. The "Tells". The unmistakable marks that this "Oklahoma City moment" of Obama's is an attempt to draw straight from the Clinton playbook. And when you recognize them, resolve to see this poseur who, like his followers, would capitalize on other's death and sorrow fired in 2012.
What do you think dear reader? Am I barking up the wrong tree? Jaded perhaps? Too far into tin-foil-hat territory? Did you catch anything I missed? Please weigh in with your opinions and observations of the speech, the service, and my post.
[UPDATE] : One of the more arresting moments in his address, at least according to pundits, is the near-miraculous eye opening of congresswoman Giffords as recounted by The Won and corroborated by Senator Gillebrand of New York. I hate to pick at nits, but have cause to wonder about this based on a story I read in a local Tucson paper:
Giffords is in a drug-induced coma in intensive care. Doctors frequently awaken her to check her responsiveness, and she could open her eyes and respond to simple commands Sunday – an encouraging sign, said Rhee said.
Now let me make perfectly clear that her survival itself is a miracle as well as a testament to her caregivers, both at the hospital and on the scene; thank God she appears to stable and headed for a recovery.
That said though, which is it? Were the doctors lying to the Tucson Sentinal over the weekend? Did Obama and Gillebrand mistakenly discribe the event, intentionally or otherwise? Or is it something else alogether?
Because I have to tell you, my intuition says that if this had been Republican President making the very same remarks last night, under the very same conditions, and in the identital context, that today the "BOOOOOOOOOOOSH! LIED!, PEOPLE DIED!" crew would not only be rending their garment, gnashing their teeth, and demanding TRANSPARENCY! and DA TROOOOOOOOOOOOF!, but that they'd already be manufacturing the giant paper-mache heads to wear and the effigies to burn and hang when they stormed the White House in righteous protest.
Me? I'm not planning on marching, burning, or paper-mache-ing. I just wonder which version of the truth is, well, the thruth; becuase I have it from a very good source that it will indeed set you free...
Demography is Destiny: the Animation
As a followup to my previous post on the demography of China, Greece, Japan, the U.S., etc. comes a link via Instapundit this morning:
Visualization of world fertility and life expectancy over the past 50 years.
[Dan, if that could be embedded in the post, that would be super-awesome]
This post notes China falling off the cliff, but I want point out a few patterns [I'm using the colors from the Business Insider link... not the original Google]:
1. In general, there's a line/cluster where falling fertility tracks with increasing life expectancy.
2. At the end, almost all the crap life expectancy countries w. high fertility are in sub-Saharan Africa. Except for Afghanistan. Yay, Afghanistan.
3. Watch the following big circles: China (big and blue, jumps off the cliff), India (purple, and more slowly decreasing fertility), U.S. (a light blue circle that falls a little bit in fertility, but started out low to begin with).
4. "Countries" that have high life expectancies relative to fertility: Israel and West Bank/Gaza. Hmmm. [Yes, Israel is a country. The scare quotes are for the other "countries".]
5. Keep an eye on which countries have centers about the 2/woman and which are below. 2.1 is about the sustainable rate (i.e., the population won't drop over time). In 1960, almost all countries are above this. Except Japan. At the end, all of Europe has joined Japan, as well as Russia, a lot of South and Latin America (surprise!)...India is still well above.
Anyway, China has some issues, to say the least.
Catching Up
Sorry I've been scarce here over the last few days, but I've been under the weather. Monday I started feeling fluey and I slept a lot. This morning, I'm feeling stronger, though the kittehs decided to wake me at 3:50, probably just to see whether they could get away with it. Don't know how much posting I'll due, because I've got copywriting, but we'll see.
Meanwhile, you can go over to RightNetwork and check out my latest posts about the EPA's SmartWay program and about Lougher, language and schizophrenia. I saw this morning that Rich Horton of Blue Crab Boulevard is pretty much on the same wavelength (apologies for the EEK! metaphor).
At Wizbang, Rick posts on The Anchoress' righteous indignation at the Palin Derangement Syndrome manifesting itself in the MFM, and Da TechGuy points to the same column.
Jim Geraghty rounds up some of the positive reaction from the right commentariat about the President's speech, though not the behavior of his supporters at the venue where he delivered it.
Stacy reviews conspiracy movie Zeitgeist, another alleged Loughner influencer:
This is the Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test of Zeitgeist where, if you’ve gone along with the Jesus-Was-a-Myth stuff and the 9/11-Was-a-U.S.-Plot stuff, you’re going to find yourself throbbing helplessly in spasms of conspiratorial ecstasy, covered in kook-splooge. The U.S. government and “international bankers” scheme behind the scenes to control every damned thing in the world — and plant computer chips in your brain, to boot!
We hope that he's able to post while he undergoes decontamination.
On Tumblr, the ever-stimulating Kaching! registered its 7000th post.
Here in small-town Vermont, we were supposed to be on the edge of the latest SnOMGeddon, and receive 2-4". Instead, I'd estimate we got somewhere around 14".
Via Iowahawk on Twitter:
CSI: Hitchcock
I watched CSI: NY on Demand this morning (love my cable), and one of the episodes I watched was "Point of View," an homage to "Rear Window." From a "caregiver" named Stella to the girlfriend (or "ex", as Peyton would be) signaling the protagonist from the antagonist's apartment, there were plenty of correlations to catch. It was a well done tribute, IMO, and made me want to watch Rear Window again soon.
If I were prone to man-crushes, Gary Sinise would would be at the top of the list.
Sheriff Dupnik-Inspired “Art” – with Sub-titles
Deflective Mirror
Context & National Dialog
Public Pension and Finance roundup 11Jan2011
It's time to balance that budget!
An extended sports metaphor applied to public pensions. A Hail Mary pass ain't going to fix this one. Who is the patron saint of public pensions? There should be one, as a miracle is needed to keep some unchanged.
Robert Samuelson frets that these cushy benefits for Boomers will suck resources from the younger generations and thus recommends cutting retiree health benefits since the pension benefits are legally untouchable. Oh, Robert. Rest your weary head. Doesn't matter that those benefits are "legally inviolate". If they can't be paid, they won't be, just like the health benefits. Doesn't that make you feel better?
In New Mexico, public employees will have to contribute more to their pensions. The intention is to have this addition to be in effect for only one year, but we shall see.
Some pension plans have tried to scrape back from losses via lawsuits over the past several years. Having a big money pot there is just an enticement to corruption and al sorts of bad behavior. Especially when there are only a few trustees or all the trustees are politicians, not numbers/investment people.
A little info via an Instapundit reader as to federal workers' pensions. Looks like that yes, there is a defined benefit portion that ain't too shabby. And they've got a defined contribution piece on top of that.
People ain't loving on public unions. Not horrible, but not terrific. Looks more in line with Obama's approval rating, it seems to me. So just middling.
CALIFORNIA
A year in review of California pensions from Ed Mendel of the Calpensions blog. Very thorough review, and there's more to come in 2011.
Remember those Univ of California execs from the last news update? They had better ready their lawsuit. Not much support to give them more money. I don't see how they thought anyone would have sympathy for them. Just give up now.
Jerry Brown will be putting his budget of cuts cuts cuts out there soon. Funny, I don't see anything about pensions on that list.
NEW YORK
President of Teamsters Local 237 claims NY is okay, pension-wise. It is true that NY has not been as remiss as NJ or Illinois - they actually have been making contributions. The question is how sustainable the pensions are given early retirement ages, double-dipping, and salary spiking. If those behaviors are not factored into the actuarial valuation, the plan can look better than it actually is.
But I agree, NY isn't going under -- before California, Illinois, or New Jersey does.
TEXAS
People have gotten their panties in a twist saying look! look! Texas has a deficit problem! Then Kevin Williamson explains how Texas finances works. Looks like zero baseline budgeting to me. That deficit ain't any more real than CBO projections. Anybody want to depend on those? Also, Texas has a rainy-day fund larger than many state deficits. What a concept....how did they manage to do that, hmm?
EUROPE
Looking across the pond, we see the Irish bank bailout (and others) ain't going so well. The main cash-supplier, Germany, is not doing well due to these desperate attempts to keep the euro together. Some lessons obvious to everybody, except those who think trickery can save their hash:
[Edited to just the bullet points]
1. Bailouts Don’t Work
2. Excessive Government Spending Is a Path to Fiscal Ruin
3. Low Corporate Tax Rates Are Good, but They Don’t Guarantee Economic Success if other Policies Are Bad
4. Artificially Low Interest Rates Encourage Bubbles
5. Housing Subsidies Reduce Prosperity
Just Say No to Build America Bonds 2: Electric Bugaloo, Porkulus 3: The Reckoning, or whatever else is being cooked up. I think the Republican House will prevent any/all of these, but one can slip past any who feel like "cooperating" in the name of "civility".
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