Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Maybe real and fictional comments about the Iranian nuclear talks.

United States:  I’m negotiating, but I don’t trust you to do what you say. You cheated in the past.

Iran: I’m negotiating too, but I don’t trust you either. You spied, you hacked, and you cheated in the past.

Great Britain: This is a sticky wicket. Can anyone séance Maggie?

France: un aller-retour pour Paris, s’il vous plait.

China: This agreement must have one from column two and two from column one.

Russia: Dah, Nyet, Tseluyu!

Israel: (Not at the Negotiations)  Oy!

God: Are you watching this? Who made these people?”

American MOS: Iran? You did? What was your time?


Germany: Dummkoph!

Monday, March 30, 2015

Robin's Song

Robin’s Song
©2015 Rolland G. Smith

I finally heard the Robin sing
And yet, the clime seems not like spring
It’s been a winter harsh and hard
And snow still covers half the yard.

Do you suppose it’s climate change
Denied by those with minds deranged?
The souls of science keep a track
And Congress says it has our back.

So worry not ‘bout dying bees
And ice-shelf melt and rising seas.
A snowy East and dry out West.
It is not true we’ve fouled our nest.

So as I hear the Robin sing
I hope her song will bring on spring,
We then can put our heads in sand

And rest assured our future's grand.

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Are we a waning empire?

A man I respect once said to me that every empire collapses under its own weight.

I did some research and came up with a number of collapsed empires besides the Aztec, Inca, Roman and Greek empires of old.

The realms of Akkad, Assyria, Babylon, Hatti, and the Ur empires represent human civilization's first experiments in empire building. Each in their own way
gave birth to the political, judicial, religious, and military systems that would influence the administration of subsequent empires.

Each incarnation steered societies on a course that would eventually lead to our modern world's intricate system of nations, states, and countries; and each played key roles in episodes in ancient history, such as the Babylonian captivity, the Trojan and Peloponnesian wars, and the eventual rise of the Greek and Roman empires.

Then I thought about the American empire of today and where we stand early into our third century.

We, as America and Americans, have a distinct possibility, in the next few hundred years of collapsing under our own weight. Greed and selfishness and the inability to compromise for the greater good will bring us down.

The partisanship of our elected members of congress is a contributing case in point. These trusted and elevated members of our society, whom we send to represent us, are attached to personal and political power and not attuned to the gift of service.


Their health care is different from the average citizen because they voted themselves to be special. Their retirement package is different from ours and extravagant. Congress and other Federal authorities should be required to live under the same rules and entitlements as their constituents do. How else can a controlling authority identify with the needs of a nation?

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Hearing Aids

To all my readers who are hard of hearing.

To anybody who is hard of hearing.

I have been hard of hearing for at least fifteen years and have resisted getting hearing aids until recently.

I was thoroughly tested by a technician at the Costco store-hearing center near my area. I understand that Costco has these centers in their stores all over the country.

Through the years I have been tested by other hearing centers and never to the extent that I was at Costco. Obviously I never did purchase anything before my test at Costco, but truly this test was the most extensive and professional I’d ever received.

I didn’t need a test to tell me that I needed hearing aids; that was very clear to my family and friends. I did need a test to tell me in what frequencies my hearing lost of most acute.

Anyway, I now know and I am delighted with the result. I’ve been wearing the aids for a day and half as of this post. I am hearing things I had forgotten long ago: the heater fan in the car, the sound of water running, rattle’s that I must check out, the sound of my feet on the gravel as I walked the dog, the typewriter keys as I type this post, The television and precious conversations with friends and family.


If you are hard of hearing go and check out the options. I know they all are expensive, but it is worth it.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Ted Cruz

OMG, Ted Cruz wants to be president of the United State.

Let’s put him on the right list.

William Jennings Bryan

Alton B. Parker

Charles Evans Hughes

James M. Cox

John W. Davis

Al Smith

Alf Landon

Wendell Willkie

Thomas E. Dewey

Adlai Stevenson

Barry Goldwater


 
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