I'm a schmuck, after all

For years, each fall, I inevitably see someone in Florida on TV complaining about the depleted stores as a hurricane approaches. The camera will pan to the empty shelves. No water. No canned food. No batteries. No generators. No plywood to board up the windows. You get the picture.

And I always wondered? Why didn't you have this stuff BEFORE the hurricane hit?

I've always tried to make it a point to stock up on a little of everything, just in case there's an emergency of some kind. Four years ago, I had a good supply of cyalume sticks, which provided light after a mega-storm hit my neighborhood. An old tree in my backyard fell, destroying my neighbor's fence and swimming pool. (I was a renter, fortunately.) Unfortunately, the sticks were old, and little good.

Where I live in Kentucky, we obviously have no hurricanes, but do get tornadoes. Hurricanes take time to form and more time to travel, giving plenty of time to prepare and get out. If you're lucky, when tornadoes form in the area, you've got maybe 10 minutes, at best.

So why don't so many of these people prepare for the hurricane season earlier in the year? I guess many do. And many are also schmucks.

Well, I'm a schmuck too, now.

Yesterday morning, I noticed gas was $3.53 a gallon here. I said I need to fill up. Well, instead I sat on my butt, and was forced to fill up at $3.78 a gallon.

Consider my lesson learned.

Reagan returns!

I've been reading up on Sarah Palin.

Reagan's back, and this time, he wears a skirt!

Arrogant, or stupid?

This was the Obama campaign's response to Sarah Palin.

Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency.

Alllll rightey then! OK people, what's wrong with this statement?

Factually, it's true. Gov. Palin has a brief political resume, and sorely lacking in foreign policy experience.

Except for a major point.

Look at the map. Alaska is non-contiguous with the rest of the nation. It borders a massive and important foreign power, Canada. Palin has been working on a deal with the Canadians to construct a massive natural gas pipeline running through Alaska and Canada. Also reconsider left a skip away is the massive and reawakening Russia, and the vibrant Pacific Rim.

What's Obama's foreign policy experience, aside from spending some time as a kid in Indonesia and having a nearly forgotten half-brother living in a Kenyan slum?

Also, Palin is the executive of a state, and before that, the executive of a city. Obama's only executive role was getting a key to a Senate washroom.

Finally, Palin's running for the Vice Presidency, not the Presidency. Officially, her only job is to break Senate tie votes, unless McCain dies, and I don't see that happening yet.

They called Margaret Thatcher the Iron Lady. I think a new one has now appeared.

It's Palin!

CNN.com reports Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will be John McCain's pick for VP.

Palin's quite a character, (I mean that in a good way) and will add a lot of flavor to the campaign. Her only drawback, I think, it a lack of political experience. Aside from a relatively brief term as governor of a sparsely populated state, she was the mayor of Wasila. Not exactly a deep resume. But her personal experiences should add to that.

More in the future.

Who's it gonna be?

Who will be McCain's Veep?

As I write this, speculation is hot and heavy for Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Five months ago, I would say that would be a great pick. Would be, had she not given birth to a special-needs baby a few months ago.

Palin's an impressive lady. Being good looking never hurt either.

My guess, though, remains Mitt Romney. McCain became the nominee only after Mitt bowed out. This way, McCain can smoothe over any schisms in the Republican Party. That's something Obama should have done with Hillary Clinton.

Of course, if Hilary was his VP, Obama probably be checking under his bed and toilet seat every day for the next four years.

We'll see soon enough.

Note: I'm no fan of McCain. I just vote against Democrats.

Losing two greats

It's been a sad weekend for the entertainment world.

First, we get word of the passing of Bernie Mac. I wasn't a fan of Bernie Mac, not because I didn't like him, but because I just didn't watch his gigs. Everything I did see him in, though, I was always impressed. His brief role in Transformers was particularly good.

Now we heard Isaac Hayes is dead at 65. Now, Hayes I knew a little more of. I was probably the only white guy in my high school who had seen "Shaft" numerous times. I pegged him early as the true talent behind "South Park." I'd always get a big laugh from my impersonation of him, "Hello, children! Aww, let me sing you a song about it ..."

It was several years ago late one Saturday night on PBS my wife and I were in bed watching a documentary on blaxplotion movies. Of course, Hayes was featured. I remember watching Hayes on stage, singing "Theme from Shaft." Hayes was wearing no shirt, baggy white pants with orange suspenders shades, and banging a tamborine. Anyone else would look like a fool. Hayes ruled.

They'll be missed.

Taking a well-deserved fall

Just because I'm a libertarian-conservative Republican doesn't mean I have hatred to liberal Democrats. I've got friends up and down the political spectrum. If someone can make a well-argued point from another perspective, I can listen to it, perhaps even change my mind on something.

Naturally, I disagree with the Democratic candidates of almost any position they're running for. Contrary to what some folks thought of me, I don't "hate" Barack Obama, Hilary Clinton, or Bill Richardson. Actually, if the Democrats were truly interested in putting their best foot forward, they should have gone with Bill Richardson. (The Republicans should have gone with Duncan Hunter.)

I just don't want them in power.I don't hate them.

Except one.

John Edwards.

He's always disgusted me. Actually, I respect him on a few points. He was born a poor boy and worked hard in his chosen field, and became rich. More power to him.

But he got rich using bad science and suing doctors involved in dangerous, delicate work. Edwards and the vultures like him have made health care ungodly expensive and time consuming. Love your high insurance premiums? Thank John Edwards. Have trouble finding an OB doctor. Thank you-know-who.

So now I'm salivating over his (permenant, I hope) political demise. I hope he now stays at home, repairing the damage he's done to his stricken wife, as if suffering from terminal cancer is not enough for someone.

Remember the Hollywood nitwits who swore they'd leave America if Bush got reelected. If Edwards became president, I would flee this country. So far, New Zealand was at the top of my list, though England, Ireland, Italy, and Finland weren't too far behind. Thankfully, I don't think I'll need that option any longer.

Scary thought of the week

It's a scary thought indeed when Paris Hilton is making more sense than some of the folks running for president. I found this on Neal Boortz's page this morning.

The Supremes get one right

In striking down the DC gun ban, the Supreme Court has, finally, done something right. After granting habeus corpus rights to terrorists and preventing the execution of kiddie rapists, at least one right of real Americans are preserved. A 5-4 ruling illustrates just how important this election is. While John McCain might appoint another windvane moderate, Barack Obama will certainly appoint raging leftists.

I certainly don't agree with a lot of what Michael Savage says, or how he says it, but he got this one right.

The Arrogant Press

I am now following in the pattern of numerous other bloggers, banning the Associated Press from my site.

This is in response to their arrogant policy proposal to charge individual bloggers who even do as much as link their stories. I can understand they'd want something for wholesale taking, but posting a link? Come on.

I removed the one AP-linked story I had posted. No further will follow.