Lessons from my Friend - from Miles

"" gimme your love -- so I'll give my love to you--- but please don't ever forget to feed me, okay." Thank you Miles. Isn't this a cute puppy!

I wonder about Republicans...

Hello Friends; I guess I have to confess something to you. A long time back, when Bill Clinton was in office, I would have counted myself as a Republican. I was fairly conservative in my views...still am in many, and I even thought Rush Limbaugh had some really great ideas. Then, some very strange things happened. First, ole Rush lost whatever objectivity he had. I noticed that he couldn't conceive of an idea that the Democrats had as being anything but disastrous, ridiculous, or theft. It didn't matter what the idea was, he downed it. The very inverse was true of Republican ideas... they were all gold. Well, you can't be that partisan in your thoughts. The two words can't coexist; and there died Rush, with lips firmly attached to the GOP's backside. (Someone please pull him to the side and clue him in that he's irrelevant, irritating and polluting the air. Let Glenn Beck and Bill Oriely in on the conversation, too.) I don't know if I consider myself a democrat. I have held such strong beliefs that they are all crooks that I often don't know what to think. But, as time goes, I am finding that there are a great deal of Republican values currently in the news that go far beyond what is ethical or even reasonable. We are in a time of necessary change. The fact that Obama ran on this issue is not escaping me, but not my point. We are moving into a realm of world economy and world workforce conflicting with national interests, technological advancements conflicting with current infrastructure and methodology, and personal greed conflicting with public need. I don't claim to have any even remotely reasonable answers to the problems we face in this country, except to say that if we don't accept the fact that vast changes need to be made we will doom our succeeding generations to poverty and chaos. Right now the Republicans seem to be a pack of rats eating away at the hull of a ship. Intent on becoming fat at whatever the cost, they are willing to sink the ship in the process. The obvious war with the EPA comes very much to light on this one. Why would you choose to allow someone to destroy the environment? It makes no sense in the long run. Do you republicans have some rocket ship to another planet on standby and just need more money to make your trip? Health care. Right now, hospitals will treat someone despite their ability to pay. So, Obama finds a way to get everyone to pay and thereby reduce the costs to those who already have insurance. Ought to be a Republican issue. Nope. Do you suppose the insurance companies, who are now at risk of losing this particular cash cow, have any influence? Do you? Union Busting vs. Corporate greed. Did you see the duplicity exemplified by this issue? The very same words that are being used to back the CEO's getting huge bonuses and other Wall Street bailouts are turned about and used to bash a teacher's expectation to fair wage. I guess the teachers need to buy them some republicans. They are obviously for sale. Energy. There is no reason in the world outside of greed that we do not have windmills dotting the landscape like those dandelions that fill my lawn in the summer. Wind energy is free once the initial outlay is made. Likewise, there is no further pollution. Similar with solar energy. And, what may sound silly: Can we capture lightning energy? Seems like we out to be able to do so. Then also there is the need for electric cars.....Obama should have done clunkers for hybrids. My belief is that if everyone owned at least one electric...and perhaps rented a gas car if needing a long drive...the savings would be huge. We sure wouldn't be worried about where our oil was coming from. All this likely doesn't matter. I don't know enough about political issues. In fact, as I finished this today I felt like a mouse roaring in the dark; who'd notice. But, let me say this: If the people who are so very much smarter than I don't pull their heads out of their asses and start looking farther down the road than their wallets, we are never going to get anywhere but to the bottom of this particular sea.

Rescue Me!

Hello Friends; I was about to post my happy dog pics, a feature that has quickly become enjoyable for me. But, just as I'd found the one that I wanted to post, my own dog caught my attention. Not an unusual event, she's an attention junkie. I have her in a twelve-step program...it isn't working. But, as some of you may recall, I adopted my dog from a no-kill adoption agency for stray dogs; for rescue dogs. I never know if the term "rescue" refers to the dog or the new owner. My little monster has been a constant source of companionship, love, laughter, and the occasional frustration....and in all of that, she has reshaped my thinking and the way I feel about things. So, hot topic for me. Therefore, I sought out a national adoption agency that was no-kill to post the happy puppy dog pics, the Lessons from my Friend posts for today. Please visit http://www.hua.org/ to see these dogs that are posted today and many others. Also, please see the information on puppy mills and the horrid effects they have on dogs. (Come equipped with hanky or tissue.) I've not put any captions for these pictures. The beautiful animals speak volumes all on their own. Please consider adopting or donating to a no-kill agency. In these hard economic times, your help - at whatever level you can give - is so very much needed. Thank you...and I'll get off the soap box now. -randy.

http://www.hua.org/

the Life story of Jordan Brown in Penn?

Hi Friends; Meet Jordan. Jordan Brown. 11-years old. Jordan was pulled from his class and questioned by the police, with the presence of another state worker, his guidance counselor acting in stead of his parent or lawyer, and is informed that his step mother has been shot and is dead, does he know anything about it? Oh, don't worry, the police also questioned his 7-yr.old sister. Same way. Jordan has been in jail since shortly after that. Yep. They believe he did this act. Evidence? A shotgun....he hunts and shoots, a typical activity of mid-western youth. Splattered with blood? No. It needed to be cleaned, as he and his father were shooting that weekend and hadn't cleaned it yet, but no blood. Evidently Jordan was smart enough to keep the blood off of the gun from a close range shot, but didn't think to clean it. Oh, well, surely he was peppered with blood, right? no. Gun powder residue? no. They found two small specks....and remember, he was shooting just that weekend with his father at targets. What is the evidence against him? Well, his story is not fully consistent. Yep, a kid of 11 isn't sure what happened when after being told that someone who not only lived in his home was shot and killed, but that it happened in his home. You'd think he'd know exactly what to say. Oh, and the 7-yr old thinks she saw him with the gun that day and that she heard a bang. This only after extensive questioning by the police, actually a second series of extensive questioning, and all after being told her step-mother was dead just down the hall from her bedroom. Surely her memory of events would be unshakable, right? Ok, well, she didn't bother to check on her step mother after supposing to have heard a big bang after supposedly seeing her brother with a gun, but surely that's immaterial, right? Oh, also she said that she noticed he dropped something on the way to school....an empty shotgun shell was found near where she said she thought she saw him drop something. Yep. That must mean that he did it. We won't consider at all the fact that the shell could have been there from some other time. Nope, completely irrelevant. Why is this an issue? Why hasn't the guys from csi come riding on the scene with loads of evidence? Well, there doesn't appear to be any. He is expected to prove that he didn't do it. Further, he is being charged as an adult.....at 11. Why, because the judge doesn't feel he is showing enough remorse - for what? He said he didn't do it. What sort of remorse is necessary then? Isn't the definition of remorse sadness due to guilt? Don't worry, they only had him in the adult jail for a few days....5. Then they transferred the boy of 11 years old to a juvenile placement after getting a judge to ok that. Seems appropriate... he is a juvenile, right? I can't believe you hadn't heard of all of this! Surely it's in all the papers. Oh yeah, maybe it was because that was two years ago and he is still in jail.... without trial, evidence, and with a life sentence hanging over his head if convicted as an adult. The prosecutor seems fairly intent upon that. - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - So, here come the questions.

• When did it become acceptable for the authorities to circumvent the rights of the child by questioning him without a parent or lawyer?
• How is it that an 11-yr old boy is expected to know enough to commit such a crime without getting a realistic degree of particle evidence on him or his clothes and yet be so dumb as to be seen carrying a gun to the stepmother's room? And, why is that information only due to considerable questioning of a seven year old girl after the shock of learning her step mother is now dead? Further, why is that information so compelling when it is obviously suspect, at best, for idea planting by the police to a traumatized and impressionable 2nd grader?
• Why is it that bond is not available? Do they feel he would be a flight risk? How far can you get on a Schwinn?
• Why does one need to be remorseful about something to which he is pleading Not Guilty in order to be given the appropriate protections of the law?
• How much evidence and reason is appropriate to determine that a child, who is not able to get into movies with strong language, has the other adult faculties necessary and should be tried as an adult?

There's no denying that a woman and her unborn child is dead. There's no fact that takes that away. I hope you will investigate this further. I'm sure I didn't do the best job here. It is even possible the kid did it. But, is it unreasonable to expect that the state have some evidence worth of the name before trying to take away the life of an 11-yr old suspect? Is it just a word of convenience that calls an 11-yr old a 'child' - to be removed and listed as an adult at the state's whim?

Some Cuties

Hi Friends;

It's been a while since I added some cuties, or some naughties. I guess I just got caught up in other things that seemed more important at the moment. How? got me. Well, here are three that caught my attention. I hope they do for you as well.

The first and last pics are obviously professional model pics. I really like the relaxed and warm nature of this first one, and the last has just wonderful lighting. I got a thing for chests and abs....and butts and..... ok, maybe I should stop here. But, this second pic; I need to find this beach!

Everyone have a great day, think warm thoughts. ;) r