More Active Posts
Front Page
Whirled Views 4.9
 |
 55 Comments |
Happy Wednesday!
Today’s quote is by the founder of the modern assembly line: “Don’t find fault. Find a remedy.”
 |
Topic: WorldMagBlog |  |
Email a friend |
 |
Keywords: |  |
RSS 2.0 |
 |
Both comments and pings are currently closed. |  |
Share this: |
Politics of fraud
James Watts?
Henry Ford.
Excellent advice, so seldom taken.
Rats! This is the first time in ages I’ve known who the quote was, and somebody beat me to it.
And the virtual cappuccino goes to Samuel.
Enjoy!
For years we’ve heard that the Iraq war was all about oil. The dems have said it as a way to attach sinister movitives to the Bush admin. But now they’re the ones grabbing for the oil. Funny how that worked out.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080409/D8VUB9AO3.html
And I actually think it’s a good idea. I’m sure my republican keepers will scold me for that transgression later.
AJ,
You beat me to it. I was quite amused by that bit of news…
AJ & MiM. I agree.
Concerning a post I made yesterday about Islam and Mommy’s question.
There is an article on Drudge about a tax supported Islamic school in Minnesota. That is part of the thing we all need to be aware of. To give them their due; the ACLU is looking into it.
There is also an article on Drudge about a hand held lie detector. Think about how that would affect the dating scene. I wish I had one back in those days.
Dumb question for those who are more savvy than I (i.e. most everybody):
How do you make words come out in italics on your posts? And in bold letters? Is there somewhere on WMB that instructs us novices in that? (There used to be instructions on the old system, at the bottom of a given thread - but I have forgotten how to do it from those ancient times, though).
Drill,
Victoria can tell you but it has something to do with and i and b and /, but I can’t remember what and never did get it to work consistently.
Drill, the hard thing about explaining italics and bold is that we can’t show you. See the little arrow thingies on the comma and period keys? You’ll use those instead of these [ ], but I need to show you with something else:
[i]text you want italic[/i]
Same thing to make something bold, only use b’s instead of i’s.
CherylD: You mentioned that you lived on the West side of Chicago and attended church there. By any chance, was it part of the Circle Urban Ministry and Rock of Our Salvation?
I am a familiar with the ministry and was curious.
Thanks, Cheryl D. and Mumsee
This opens up a universe of new possibilities in emphasis - now I can be even more annoying than ever; HAH! - WITH THESE TOOLS (ITALICS AND BOLD FONT), I CAN SLAY A THOUSAND PHILISTINES!
Italics and bold font are not as messy as using the jawbone of an ass, you know.
Now, can Cheryl or Mumsee add to the lesson by explaining how to add hypertext (web links) to a comment?
I’ve been copying and pasting the tinyurl link, but some of you are able to underline a word or phrase in your comment with the link.
Thanks.
Oh, and I would just love to see an all-out, BOLD and ITALICIZED flame war between Drill and Victoria.
To quote a dear old friend, “Men lust and women long to be lusted after” and at great personal risk (I may be labeled “insanely jealous of well dressed thin people” and called boring), I offer for your contemplation and even discussion:
High heels came into being in the 1500’s as a way to keep the heel from slipping in the stirrup, think cowboy boots. They were not designed for walking in, just to keep the rider from being killed in a fall. They were taken on by French men who thought they would like to appear taller. Again, the French noticed that it was a sign of wealth and aristocracy (people who did not have to work so could have fancy unuseables on their feet) so they went out of fashion for a time. Meantime, women discovered them and found that they did a number of things: longer looking legs, more emphasis on calves, shaping the derrier in a more comely form. Once again we see men are adding them to their wardrobe. I would suggest that though they started as a practical thing, they quickly went the route of nylons and became a stab at sex appeal. Side note, some say nylons are practical and provide warmth. I say, then why did women, during the depression, paint them on?
Am I missing something? Keeping in mind the purpose of them and the significant potential for long term damage of toes, tendons, and backs, and with the admonition of 1 Peter 3: 3,4, what is a Christian to think and teach her young girls and boy?
RR,
What is a hypertext or a web link?
I’m not explaining it well. You know how in some folks’ comments, they’ll mention a website or blog that they think you should visit, or that otherwise corroborates their point. Instead of typing:
www.miscellaneouswebsite.com
…they’ll type something like “See it here” in their comment, but the “here” is underlined and when you click it, it links you to the site they want you to see.
Ah, I think somebody mentioned you have to go to a tiny url site and it does it for you.
A heartwarming story about religion in the public school.
(I speak sarcastically … and I only wish to point out that our friends who want Christianity back in the schools have no grounds to oppose what’s described in the article … it is we “secularists” who support separation in all cases who have the case against it.)
(And lest there be any doubt, I am against what the article discusses. Completely.)
RR,
Using square brackets in place of the correct symbols, as Cheryl D. did in #11, I think it works like this.
[a href=”http://www.muscatinejournal.com/”]This is the local newspaper in my town[/a]
This is the local newspaper in my town
To include a link in your post:
<a href=”http://www.whateversite.com”>The Text You Want People To See In Your Post</a>
For example:
The Best Bank in the World
Drill, not only that, but now you converse with Victoria.
OOPS!
The Best Bank in the World
Thanks Pauline and Thomas.
And I mean it.
Chas at #8: There is an article on Drudge about a tax supported Islamic school in Minnesota. That is part of the thing we all need to be aware of. To give them their due; the ACLU is looking into it.
Well why wouldn’t they? They are consistent.
I read the article Drudge links to and it’s appalling. I would just point out: Those of you who think Christianity should be openly taught in the public schools really don’t have a leg to stand on to oppose the Muslims. It is we eeevil secularists, who support separation across the board, who have credibility on the issue.
Since this is an open thread, let me point out a discussion of print journalism occurring this week on Britannica’s blog. Are Newspapers Doomed? (Do We Care?): Newspapers & the Net Forum
Some interesting things have been said about the current and future state of newspapers and existing news organizations, as well as some whining from old schoolers. I expected World to link to this, but maybe it really is a boring topic to most people–which I’m starting to wonder. I mean, if your metro newspaper went under this year, would you care? If USA Today declared their print operations pointless, would you even have an opinion on it?
FYI, the link SteveG has in #20 is the article I was referring to in Drudge. Steve and I agree. If prayer isn’t allowed in one school, it shouldn’t be allowed in another. Neither should doctrine be allowed. Doctrine was never allowed in any school I attended. However, we did stand beside our desk and pray for the boys in Guadacanal. I can’t imagine who (athiest, agnostic, jew, etc.) could be offended by that.
It’s a grey day (we were promised sunshine by the so-called “chief meteorologist” on the local news), so allow me to give in to my desire to be a grouch and complain.
Electronic billboards: Not only are the regular billboards now over-sized computer screens, but one location I drive at night is annoying! Just before the intersection is a dark area and slight curve in the road, so for a brief moment the billboard is directly in front of the car. When there are bright colors on the thing, it is blinding! Plus, the advertisers have so much on them that one cannot safely read all the info while passing by at 35-40 mph. It may look great on a computer screen, but on a billboard, less is best. Add to these all the banks, restaurants and whatever else that have animated message signs now, and driving has too many distractions.
Overused words: simply, powerful and hot. It seems ever new product is hot now. And lots of self-help programs are described as powerful. Puh-lease! Then, instructions always begin with “simply”. Why?
I feel better now.
PhilW,
Your site was too crowded for me to make heads or tails out of it. I like a newspaper. It is homey and comfortable. You can turn back to a story or read it to a spouse later. The kids see you reading and start to pick it up. It talks locally about local people and places. It ends up in the compost, or the garden, or the worm bed, or as fire starter for the stove. Except the inserts, I detest them and they go straight from the mailbox to the trash. The news is a day or more old by the time I get it but it is like people said in the books thread, hands on is good, and the smell and inkstains.
Anyway, they will probably disappear and that makes sense environmentally but we will lose something as people continue to think in shorter and shorter bits.
I hate to answer any questions, since that would get rid of the trend so far to have almost as many subjects as there are posts.
But…Metanoia, sort of. Our pastor had been an assistant (associate?) pastor at Rock, and we sort of considered them a sister church. (I attended Judson Baptist in Oak Park.)
Mumsee, on the heels thing–I grew up in flats or very short heels, and never considered heels comfortable. Humorously, when I was leaving Phoenix to go to Chicago, I knew I’d need boots, but had never considered that there might be different kinds of boots. So I bought a pair of cowboy boots, since they were a little more readily available than snow boots. The first snow, I looked at my boots, and knew without trying that they’d never work in snow!! (Partly because of the heel.) I was 22 years old, but had simply never needed to know what footwear to wear in snow.
I also bought a pair or two of dress shoes with heels, and was determined to wear them. I practiced walking in them, broke them in, finally wore them to class. (We dressed up at my school.) But I began to notice a pattern–every time I wore the heels, I got sympathy. “Are you OK?” I’d nod and say yes, and wonder why they asked. Then I started realizing that I only got asked, “What did you do to your leg/foot?” on the days I wore heels. Try as I might, I simply couldn’t walk in them without seeming to limp.
Since I don’t like heels anyway (they aren’t comfortable), didn’t like the look of them, and at five-foot-six I’m the right height without heels, I simply made a decision: No matter what is in style a given year, no matter how hard it is to find flats, no matter how geeky other women find me and how unsexy men consider me, I will wear flats or only low heels. (Now, I do have one very silly, bold exception to that rule: a pair of bubble-gum pink sandals with chunky heels. I bought them because they’re the cutest shoes I’d ever seen, not because I had lots of things to wear with them or actually needed a pair of bright pink sandals that make me five inches taller.)
I know that they say that heels help a woman’s shape, but not being a man, I see only that they tilt a woman up and forward at an unusual angle. Four-inch heels simply seem absurd to me, unnatural and probably uncomfortable.
Since I won’t be here on Friday (off to speak at a women’s retreat in Portland–pray they get their money’s worth!), I want to post my rave early.
Cheryl D,
I was raised in tennis shoes but as a mil wife, learned to adapt and wore the heels for the mil balls etc. Some can be comfortable for a period of time but generally not very long. Anyway, we got to thinking about why I was wearing them. Seems I dress for my husband and since he likes me just fine without them (or anything) it appeared to be dressing to impress other people. We agreed that was not the best reason so I was able to give them up, whew! Not to mention the price paid with pain and limiting the ability to work and play with the kids.
Michelle,
Well, that explains the two inches of snow this morning…
Speak well and may He be glorified and the women blessed through your words.
SteveG, Chas told us the ACLU was getting involved, and that’s a good thing! If this is a public school, this should not be taking place, and I am more than surprised that the Dept. of Education there ever consented to this! This is far more than anything we ever did in school. When I was a kid, we said the Lord’s Prayer for the Christian kids and read from the Old Testament for the Jewish kids. This took all of 5 minutes. Both sides had to respect the other. I realize this could not take place today. As you know, I like the idea of school vouchers, but I have to admit that I don’t like the idea of a voucher being used for an exclusively Islamic school, which, of course, couldn’t be avoided if vouchers were used. So that’s the problem with vouchers. This is one time I hope the ACLU wins — and just so you know, the ACLU isn’t all bad. If you google pro-religion ACLU cases or something like that, I know there’s a list out there that surprised even me.
Glad to hear about the ducklings. The eagles I watch online from Maine are still thinking about things. No eggs yet, and they’re late… At least some birds have it together! I’ve seen so many robins this year it isn’t even funny.
I recall my mother telling me that stockings were rare during WWII because they needed the nylon for other stuff related to the war.
I still have two pair of truly high heel sandals, cute little shoes, just can’t part with them, but for many years now, due to one bad knee, I’ve followed CherylD’s excellent advice regarding low, sensible pumps or flats.
Sure, Mumsee, and that explains the two feet of snow we got last weekend and the winter snow storm warning for Friday and Saturday. Spring?
Our little chicks are starting to get their feathers already, fun times for the kiddies. I have also seen an extraordinary number of robins, they usually appear in flocks but the flocks seem big this year.
Cowboys, no matter how poor, had two pairs of boots. Work boots, usually ropers, that made your feet stink because you worked in them every day and they were usually pretty old. Then there were boots you wore for the ladies that didn’t make your feet stink - just in case they came off later.
CherylD: Thanks for the info. I’m not familiar with Judson Baptist.
Strangely, I haven’t seen a robin yet. It’s 73 outside.
As for stockings in WWII, they needed the silk for parachutes. I don’t think nylon had been invented yet. It wouldn’t have mattered, they would have taken that too. We all wanted to win that war.
I mentioned this before on another thread, but do you notice the girls in beauty contsts? They model their bathing suits in heels. There must be a reason.
My wife used to wear heels all the time, but can’t anymore -She wears some special shoe. She wore the spiked heels that put dents in lenolium floors. (None of you remember that. Some of you weren’t born then.)
I was once bridesmaid in the longest wedding ceremony I’ve ever attended (more than an hour). They had the questionable wisdom of allowing two different preachers to speak. Anyway, the church was three stories, and all morning long I’d run up and down stairs, and probably back and forth to my home a block away. (It was my church, and my roommate getting married, so I was the best errand girl.)
I’d taken a pair of flats to change into if I needed to–the wedding shoes were heels, but fairly comfortable ones. I don’t remember whether I ever remembered to change into the flats during the pre-wedding activities, though I did so at the reception. All that I remember was that by the time the wedding started, protocol or no, staying in heels–standing in heels, at the very awkward angle at which heels force you to stand–was more than just uncomfortable, it was literally impossible. Fortunately the dress was floor length. I very discreetly took off my shoes, probably during a prayer, and left them hidden under the hem of my dress while I stood barefoot for the next hour. I seriously don’t know what I would have done if the dress had been shorter–I probably would have fallen over.
(In another wedding, as a junior bridesmaid when I was nearly 16, the dresses were made by a relative of the bride. When I had my fitting, the seamstress determined the bodice was quite a bit too large for me, but that I’d “grow into it.” Not that that was relevant–it needed to fit for the wedding. Unfortunately no one asked her to alter it, because I discovered the day of the wedding that I could barely move and still be modest. I stood in the receiving line greeting 400 strangers in a completely frozen pose–since the groom, my brother, was on staff at the church, the receiving line was literally hours of discomfort, and I knew only my immediate family.)
NJLawyer at #35: This is one time I hope the ACLU wins — and just so you know, the ACLU isn’t all bad. If you google pro-religion ACLU cases or something like that, I know there’s a list out there that surprised even me.
Well I know that, and I’m glad that you know that. The ACLU is always on the side of civil liberties, applied fairly to all Americans. They have taken the side of Jerry Falwell and other conservative Christian leaders in some cases, and opposed them in others, all depending on the specifics of the case.
But some Christians believe that the ACLU is an inherently anti-Christian organization that will always side against Christians. Not true at all.
Mumsee, I don’t know about drawing lines up the leg to look like stockings during the depression, but I know it was done during WWII for style. A woman didn’t feel dressed up if she didn’t wear stockings, but nylons were not readily available at that time, so they drew a line up the back of the leg with an eyebrow pencil. This was, of course, before pantihose were invented. I don’t know what the nylon was being used for, but I’d guess parachutes.
These days, young women don’t seem to wear stockings no matter how dressed up they are.
Kayvee,
The lines, that was what I was thinking of, just got the dates wrong. Seems to me, drawing a line on one’s leg to simulate stockings would not provide much warmth so the stocking must be there for some other purpose, which Chas alludes to in his post about swimsuits and heels.
Daughter went to college at “that school” in Florida where it is mandatory to wear nylons. I always thought it odd. I know it completes the look and all but wonder why we are trying for the look in the first place.
Interested pray-ers,
Looks like we may be getting a couple more kids in a week, young ones, preschool age. Should be fun, interesting, and challenging. Meantime, we need to prepare our home for a two year old, and the minds of our three kids for new (temporary) sisters. They will be excited but need to get some grasp that the attention they are getting will need to be shared and they will need to be vigialant on their things. We would like the Lord’s wisdom on how to prepare and His help at preparing hearts to welcome new “damaged image bearers”. And we are old.
Karen O,
Sugar cookies? I like sugar cookies…
Don’t get carried away, SteveG! The ACLU has done its best to insert something that ISN’T in the Constitution — the separation of church and state, and that’s why I find them often offensive. Let me say it again: that is not in the Constitution! And they often single out the Christians in their zeal to remove religion from our society — something NOT INTENDED by the Constitution. In so doing, they have harmed our society greatly, in my opinion. I am actually surprised that they took up this case, but it’s so blatantly unconstitutional on its face, it looks like an easy win. The ACLU has often turned a blind eye where the Muslims are concerned. To say the ACLU is not anti-Christian kinda sorta defies the truth. They are now countered by pro-religion legal groups who can expend the money to defend against them, so it’s better than it was. The ACLU was more than willing to use intimidation and the threat of bankruptcy to get people to cowtow to them and settle, so much so, that even though the Supremes have ruled that certain things are permissible, schools are still afraid to do them. That’s not fair either, and that’s why people think they’re anti-Christian.
Chas: Maybe your robins are way up here in northern MN. They have been here for about 3 weeks now. I watch them everyday eating the apples left on the crabtree. They have to share with the grouse, chickadees, bluejays etc. These apples must be the least liked by the birds, because out of three trees they are the last ones always left. Nature provides a nice freezer to keep some apples for them and the deer until spring. It was quite fun to watch them when we got another two feet of snow and the trees were covered also. We may get another ten inches on Friday, so maybe they will get wise and move on down to your place.
Ah, NJLawyer, I see.
Well, I disagree. The ACLU very often takes cases siding WITH Christians. And they do it even when they can be pretty sure the Christians are going to continue demonizing them even after taking their help.
Here are a few examples:
ACLU argues for the right of Christians to protest a Gay Pride event.
ACLU argues in favor of Seventh-Day Adventist high schools to take part in basketball tournaments without violating their Sabbath day.
ACLU argues on behalf of free speech rights for Shirley Phelps-Roper
ACLU defends the right of a second-grader to sing “Awesome God” in an after-school talent show.
ACLU argues that Christain inmate should not be prohibited from preaching.
ACLU supports right of a Christian to protest at Wal-Mart regarding Wal-Mart’s alleged support of gay marriage.
ACLU files a lawsuit to overturn the denial of a permit to a Baptist church.
ACLU defends two teenaged girls who wanted to wear t-shirts bearing anti-abortion messages to school.
There are a lot more, listed here.
The point being, the ACLU will fight for Christians — and members of other faiths — when their freedom of speech and freedom to practice religion are imperiled, and will fight against them when they seek to limit the rights of others.
The record speaks for itself, whether you acknowledge it or not.
NJLawyer:
I disagree. The ACLU very often takes cases siding with Christians.
Here are a few examples:
ACLU argues for the right of Christians to protest a Gay Pride event.
ACLU argues in favor of Seventh-Day Adventist high schools to take part in basketball tournaments without violating their Sabbath day.
ACLU argues on behalf of free speech rights for Shirley Phelps-Roper
ACLU defends the right of a second-grader to sing “Awesome God” in an after-school talent show.
ACLU argues that Christain inmate should not be prohibited from preaching.
ACLU supports right of a Christian to protest at Wal-Mart regarding Wal-Mart’s alleged support of gay marriage.
ACLU files a lawsuit to overturn the denial of a permit to a Baptist church.
ACLU defends two teenaged girls who wanted to wear t-shirts bearing anti-abortion messages to school.
There are a lot more, listed here.
The point being, the ACLU will fight for Christians — and members of other faiths — when their freedom of speech and freedom to practice religion are imperiled, and will fight against them when they seek to limit the rights of others.
The record speaks for itself, whether you acknowledge it or not.
We have seen robins here in Maine, now that the snow is melting off the lawn. And my crocuses bloomed this week.
Well I’ve tried twice now to post a list of cases where the ACLU sided with Christians and it keeps getting eaten. Maybe it’ll appear later. Maybe it had too many external links. Maybe WoW has a filter that blocks positive comments about the ACLU. (Just kidding about that last one … although I tried to post something similar a little while back and it too never appeared.)
SteveG-I’m sure you see that your posts arrived and I agree that the list is impressive. They probably got stuck temporarily in an internet hole. I think religion needs to stay in private schools regardless of which religion it is. I would also support a voucher credit to the parents to support the private education as long as the school teaches basic education. But I think it is wrong to support religious schools indiscriminately with government money.
MTCON: Yes, now I have to apologize for double posting. But it was an honest mistake!
Robins.
Ah yes. I grew up in Phoenix where, believe it or not, robins don’t mean spring. They mean fall. The robins have to go somewhere, you know. I had a vague understanding that robins meant spring in other locales, and once had a substitute teacher read a poem about robins in spring. But I was an adult before I ever heard a robin sing. (Interestingly, I’d heard its song before–from Phoenix mockingbirds.)
Well, in college in Chicago I saw robins in the spring, and had to readjust my focus on the proper season for robins. But some of them stayed all winter. My college had a group of trees on the plaza that bore red berries in the winter. One winter day I was having a hard time with figuring out how to pay my bills. I walked out onto the plaza, crying, to find a flock of about a dozen robins eating red berries in the snow. I smiled through my tears and said, “God, if You can care for robins in the snow, I guess You can take care of me too. Thank You.”