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The Coconut Telegraph
An Historical Diary of what Keyheads were talking about
Since 2002

Wednesday March 31, 2010

USS Independence
Part 1 of 5 Getting on Board
by Captain Conch Staff writer for bigpinekey.com (Ed: That's me)

My first reporting job was a breeze. I arrived at the wrong place. I looked at the ship there but it didn't look all that modern to me because it was the Mohawk ship museum. I figured it out in time to get to the right place. At least I had the day right.

The entrance to the Mole Pier is guarded by a bunch of people with guns and then there are the Independence security people after that with more guns. There was even a very eager dog smelling everything. Things surely have changed from the days when you could go to Chet Alexander’s salvage yard and look for goodies. (Chet was the last licensed KW wrecker).

There were 3 other media people on this tour and we were greeted by Jim Brooks from NAS Key West and Lt Harrell the liaison for the ship.
 

We were then escorted to the gangway where we were met by Commander Curt Renshaw who told us to call him Curt. It’s hard to call a Navy Commander on a 419 foot prototype Navy warship by his first name, I couldn’t. Commander Renshaw was assisted by his key staff. There aren't too many key staff because the monster ship has only 40 crewmen. Unlike other war ships this elite crew are all cross-trained in other fields in order to reduce manpower. An example of this cross-training is when Cmdr Renshaw got injured and his electrician sewed him up.

The ship had an illusion of smallness because it was docked next to two massive cruise ships. The sides are all angled to deflect radar. There isn’t a ninety degree surface anywhere. It is a stealth ship.

Seeing the ship from the dock almost reminded me of the Civil War ironclad USS Merrimack—but with computers and scary weapons.

Tune in tomorrow for some more of this fine reporting. I like it. I’m going to call Becky Herrin with the Sheriff’s Dept today and see about getting a press pass with the little clip that fastens to my collar.

History > USS Independence

[Census Okay] The census taker showed up at my home the other day.  I was ready to be defensive and belligerent if necessary.  I was disappointed when the census taker was courteous, well spoken, and the questions were brief and to the point, not the intrusive ones that I was prepared to defend against. 

On the 25 of March the DCA and Monroe County held one of three scheduled “Land Taking parties” which were disguised as the “Tier Designation Review Committee meetings”.  These meetings were setup to determine the fate of some 3200 vacant lots in the Florida Keys that were supposedly assigned an erroneous tier designation. Hence a sort of Piñata of now vulnerable vacant lots was formed.

Inside this Piñatas, was of course, all this land to be now down-zoned making them easy pickings for Mark Roush the director of the Monroe County Land Authority and also know as the Ponziman to acquire cheaply.

This Piñata party was orchestrated by a legal challenge to the Tier System by Last Stand and the Florida Keys Coalition, two local eco-theorist groups. 

Within the first innings of the meeting I could see the obvious batting order forming and sure enough the person picked to represent the development side of the Piñata party was dead last in the line-up. After about the 3rd inning I could see Richard Grosso, who without a doubt was the player with the biggest bat in the group, inching up to the top of the line up and starting to dominate the area around the base of the Piñata by introducing his own set of Tier maps.

By inning five it was obvious the Randy Grau, another local bureaucrat-type with bark stains on his teeth, was to take number two slugger slot.

In the following innings you could see that cracks were starting to appear on the sides of the piñata and by the seventh inning both Winston Hobgood and Amy Phillips had taken their positions under the piñata and were slugging away.  Julie Cheon a development representative appeared to be swinging at air.

By the 9^th inning the Piñata was broken and Richard Grosso was given the Most Valuable Player award under the Gumbo Limbo tree outside the Murray Government Center.

This now leaves we the people with an ever-increasing exposure to takings lawsuits and surely an increased tax bill. ~salkeylargo@keylargokey.com

[Free Seminar] Sailfishing with Captain Shelby Bentley. Thursday April 1 at 6pm. Reef Light Tackle Fishing Seminar, 29770 Overseas Hwy, Big Pine Key, 305-872-7679

The sailfish are in!  Come learn how to target, catch and release the big sails of the Florida Keys from a local expert.  Free Popcorn and Sodas, Raffles, Grand Prize every week is a super nice rod and reel. Bring all your friends and neighbors for a fun filled and informative evening.

[See the Navy’s newest ship]  Way cool, Ed!  Hope you took your camera and can post some pictures.

[Sloan] After World War II, Leo Bashinsky and his former brother-in-law, Cyrus Case, purchased Magic City Foods in Birmingham from a couple who had run it for years under the Golden Flake Brand. A small company by today’s standards, it manufactured and distributed 5-cents packages of potato chips, peanuts, peanut butter, cheese crackers, and related packaged snack products.
 
I remember the day my father drove the family out to the plant on Lomb Avenue, not far from the turn over to Rickwood Field, where the Birmingham Barons played baseball in the Class AA league. I remember looking at the brick building and adjacent steel-gray Quonset hut. It was a gray, dreary winter day. I did not feel elated, although my parents told me driving out there that it was a big moment for our family.
 
I would work there in the summers after I entered high school and at the new plant near the City Jail on South 6th Street, after it was built when I attended Ramsay High School situated above Five Points South. During college I worked there in the summers. Mostly I worked in the warehouse, and sometimes I worked in the manufacturing areas, all entry-level jobs, which I roundly did not like and watched the clock, waiting for the work day to be over.
 
After graduating from law school at the University of Alabama, I clerked for a federal judge. Then, unable to make up my mind what to do, I decided to go to work for Golden Flake. I did a lot of different jobs over the next four years, and learned the company pretty well, inside and outside. Manufacturing, purchasing, sales, marketing and advertising. But it didn’t suit me, nor did I seem to suit it, so I left the company and joined a small Birmingham law firm and started practicing law.
 
Before I left the company, a number of long-time employees came to me and we wept together. They didn’t want me to leave, I was the future and hope of the company, they told me. But I knew I had to leave if I wanted to stay alive. My health was destroyed, my marriage in shambles. So I moved on, even though I left a big part of me in the company. A part of me that kept up with the company for decades. Even today, when I go into grocery stores in areas where Golden Flake does business, I find the potato chip section and view the racks for which company has the best position and the most facings, and what the new products are.
 
Let’s go back to the beginning of what I wrote to start this story. Let’s go back to why my grandfather and his former brother-in-law purchased Magic City Foods. He was the former brother-in-law due to the early death of my grandfather’s younger sister, Helen, whose untimely passing caused by galloping tuberculosis or a rapid pneumonia shook the family to the core. So devoted was he to his sister that my grandfather forbade Cyrus to remarry and, because it would dishonor his departed sister’s name. Cyrus remained a bachelor until his death. (Note: Sloan's site is temporarily off line because of malware)

Sears has hired Randy Acevedo.  I am boycotting the entire store.

Yup, we need a Nope. A nun who is pope. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/28/opinion/28dowd.html

[2-Nonenal]  There is a name for it.  If you are given something that has the old lady smell, you should know that the scent will never ever go away no matter what you do to ease the stink.  You know what the old lady smell is about a minute in to the conversation and if the old girl is in your car, it is like that Seinfeld episode after the valet stunk-up his auto.  They do not wash their clothes and their bodies enough.  When they have hot toddies they smell even more rancid. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2-Nonenal

[Spring Break] There's been a lot of people in Key West the past few weeks for Spring Break. It improves the scenery; they're more visually appealing than the average obese cruise ship passenger.

An office chair for Ferrari fanatics, this seat was originally made for the Ferrari F360 Challenge car by OMP but is now fitted to a custom-made carbon fiber office chair frame. No two of the $800 seats look exactly the same as they are used from actual cars so there may be small marks or blemishes on the leather. Each comes with your choice of base color in practically any shade you can imagine. All seats come in smooth black Connolly leather with dark grey stitching and have fully adjustable arm rests, seat height, and tilt. A unique choice for your corner office, (just don't get caught making 'vroom vroom' noises as you wheel between the computer and the phone).

[Give 'til it Hurts] The average professional charity takes a cut from 10 to 90 percent for “administration” costs (yeah, right). They are mostly tax exempt and do not contribute to the maintenance of America or their use of our facilities. Professional religion is exactly the same, but they get to wheel and deal for more goodies. It is time we citizens start thinking what these "businesses” and their employees are all about and why we are getting ripped off. Most who read this will say, "He is wrong", but just wait until your kids cry for food and the charities and holy houses shut their doors to you.

April Gardening Calendar / South Florida Edition. http://monroe.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf/Hort/Gardening%20Calendar/April.pdf

[Canine Kidney Disease] Our pet has also been diagnosed with stage II kidney disease.  I went online to do research . You can buy a downloaded book which has very through information in it.  I bought it, downloaded and printed it, and I refer to it when necessary.  I highly recommend it. It was worth every penny. 

I also got the diet book, to help with preparing a low protein diet for our pet, and was not as happy with it, but still found information and ideas that helped. 

We now only purchase dry dog food that does not use meat by products. I recommend Rachel Ray's dog food. Using that, combined with  freshly prepared meats and vegetables,  we have already seen a great improvement in health for our pets.  Further veterinary tests also show bad blood numbers going down.

Had we known what meat-by-products really meant we would have never fed a single bite to our animals, now that we do they will never eat it again.  Good luck. site http://caninekidneydiseasebreakthrough.com/

[Boring Site This] I have to agree with the person who said yesterday "This site was more interesting when Tarzan, the sheriff lady and the “all services” accountant were scrapping!"  I actually find this site quire boring lately.  I used to read it every day and find myself logging on early to see it today's Telegraph was up.  If I read it once a week now it is a lot.  The posts have become far more tame, are very much edited if not omitted in full and just lack interest.  Do we have the same editor we had a few years back?  Has someone else threatened a lawsuit?  Speaking of lawsuit, what ever happened to that tool who threatened to sue a few years back?

[Stolen Kid’s Bike] Someone suggested we lock the child’s bike. She does when she is out. It was in our garage, way in the back. The only reason the garage door was left open was so my mother (86) could enjoy some fresh air and that's the only paved area without gravel she might not fall walking on. Someone stole my wife’s parrot off our back porch, locked in a cage. Since then we have bolted all appliances to the floor. Even though we struggle financially we do smile a lot because we are happy we have each other and are in paradise. We just had our 6 year anniversary for our small non-profit organization we run providing Christmas for kids in DAS and recovering addicts’ kids. Some of those years my kids got less than the kids we sponsor but it’s a message my kids take to heart.

God bless the person who offered to replace my daughter’s bike. I haven't told her yet and plan to surprise her with it. Its people like you that are part of the reason I smile a lot.  Ed, please phone me when arrangements have been made with Marty (don’t publish my number).

Wife, “What do you think?" Husband, "Tell me what's on your mind so I'll know what to think."  ~The Blind Side

[Titanic] Interesting pictures.  I was a bit distracted by some of the captions, but I suspect the person who put this together is not a native English speaker, so give him a bit of slack. Slide Show

[Commercial Pet Food]  Remember the old film on Twilight Zone that had a crook turned into dog food for export only? That’s a good idea for illegal's and other nasties!

[Save the Trees] More effects of deforestation.

Vancouver 2010 Olympics Slide Show

[Stolen Kid’s Bike] I was sorry to hear. I wanted to pass on something I learned at Monroe County Crime Watch.  Be sure to make a list of all your serial numbers for things like bikes, PCs, cameras etc.  When the Sheriff finds something, they can quickly run the serial number and see if it's in the database.  Your bike may be something you look at every day, but you'll be surprised that you may not even remember the brand name.  Write down brand, model number, color, etc and most importantly serial number.  It will help you get stolen items returned. 

Watch the Collider live!  So far no planet-destroying black holes, but if it happens, you can see it here. LHC First Physics Webcast

[Alabama Medical Centre] I could be wrong, but judging by his hat, this guy ain't gonna make it!

[Bad Dope] I read where the KW cops busted some guys for selling fake cocaine.  I hope the judge throws the book at them because they might have given all the legitimate dealers around here a bad name.

http://www.gunowners.org

[Sewer tax] I wouldn’t be happy if every time I had to use a bathroom in Miami my bills went higher. Wanting to tax people to use a bathroom is forcing someone to pay for doing something that’s natural. What’s next tax someone for crying? Maybe we should start a handshake tax or a nose blowing tax. Taxing people to use a bathroom is a disgrace.

Shopping online will save me the tax money some leech will try and get from me. Firehouse fund drive? Nope, sorry I have to pay to poop. Fundraisers for children’s charities? Nope, sorry I have to pay for my kid to use a bathroom. I know we can add a sneezing tax.

[So many churches, banks and bars as in the Keys] Yes, it's a damn shame; and we are doing all we can to eradicate the churches and banks as fast as possible!

I stopped at the Chevron on Summerland to get gas Saturday.  The cashier (Heavy set woman with somewhat curly black hair) was not only standing outside about 6 feet from the gas pumps smoking a lit cigarette but when I went inside to pay for my gas and buy a Diet Coke she walked in the fully enclosed store where food is sold with the cigarette still in her mouth and was smoking away as she rang my order up.  Aside from being rude as hell is it legal?  What would the Fire Department or their insurance company say about a cigarette near the gas pumps?  From here on in I will buy my gas at Doin's rithg up the street. ~thekeysguy@gmail.com

[The Irish only invented the cork screw] I hope this commentator is kidding] See Ed., there has to be a humor thingy in front of any jocularities so the dummies know which is which. Man, some people are thick!

[Fire Sprinkler Test] Now folks, what we have here is a fire sprinkler test at Ellsworth AFB in South Dakota gone terribly wrong. The plan was to deploy the system for just a short burst to insure its operational capabilities and then clean up the minimal spill.

[12 million illegal aliens are depending on you] Wrong. It's 52 million as of this year. They don't count the undocumented or the people from the far east, Canada, or Africa. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illegal_immigration_to_the_United_States

Space shuttle Discovery is scheduled to begin a 13-day flight to the International Space Station with a launch at 6:21 a.m. EDT on April 5 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  NASA - NASA Sets Space Shuttle Discovery Launch Date

Thank God I’m a country boy! Video

Spot jitterbugs like crazy!

[Take-off on Budweiser Commercial] PJTV Salutes Mr. Tax-Law-Writing-Tax-Evader. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UksfV5V7R20

I've stopped wearing running shoes because they were creating too much expectation.

[Leaders and Followers] Working in a club as a cook or server is just fine. Some folks must work their way to the top and be the boss. Working the stern of a boat is fine but, there are guys and gals that are driven to be Captain. They take all the risk and look forward to the reward, when and if, it comes. The folks that don’t get it will remain on the stern of the boat.

Attention IKC members: I bagged a pinkish/red 3 footer yesterday with my trusty German made Diana 35 air rifle. I swear the sucker was wearing fake bunny ears! Alas he was in a tree and dropped into the drink and sank like a stone so I was unable to get some pictures to prove it.

If you see something with long ears it may be the Easter Bunny, but then again it may be an Iguana. The length of the tail is a dead give away.  Does anyone know if tree rabbits are Kosher?

[Follow the Money] I was thinking that if the government took all the money from the folks that worked very hard for it and split it up, in a few years most of the money would be back to where it started.

[Vatican] These people are deplorable. Vatican offers 3 reasons it's not liable for abuse (AP)

[Loser vs. Looser] Cut the original Left wing poster some slack, as in loosen the rope. This poor loser probably went through the Monroe County Public School system.

Speaking of the school district. In 2009, our appointed superintendent said he was thinking about, thinking about, mind you, replacing some members and employees who were unqualified for their positions. Did this ever happen or is the new superintendent still thinking about this? Have the qualifications been lowered to take the training, abilities and integrity of our locals into account?

What gives? There appears to be no end to the felonious revelations of our elected school board members and their employees. I hope the voters will take this under serious consideration during the next election, especially the next time some type of school tax is on the ballot.

I wanted to let all you Big Piners know that Thursday, April Fool's Day is Smirk's 35th birthday party at the Green Parrot from 5-7. Be apart of the largest group smirk photo ever!

[Tourist Poop]  I guess you should pay for "tourist poop" wherever you go on vacation, and not get a free ride.  You people amaze me.

[Fun with Nestles] Nestle Hotline: 800-295-0051. Don't select English or Spanish - wait quietly for10 seconds. Keep going then press 4, then press 7.

[Tarzan, the sheriff lady....] Methinks Deer Ed is getting comfy with his 9 advertisers and his classified ad section that probably provides beer money for him. Ed is dictated by his surroundings and doesn't want to stir up any crap. That's why he loved it when I left. This site is getting boring.
~ salkeylargo@keylargokey.com (Ed: Did you ever consider that after eight years I might be sick of negative crap?)

[Still Hates AA] If you read the stories in all 4 editions of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous you will see that with every printing numerous stories have been removed. If you research the web you will find out the person involved in story went back out drinking again. That doesn’t make for good public relations with the money machine of AA.

NATIONAL POLITICS

[New Political Party] Not Democrat, Not Republican, Not Independent. It's called the Pissed Off Party (POP). This party is dedicated to vote every incumbent out of office in the next elections. If you're Democrat, vote Democrat.

Just don't vote for the incumbent. If you're Republican, vote Republican. Just don't vote for the incumbent.

We need to send a message to all politicians, that we're tired of their B.S. If the country votes out all the incumbents, the new incoming politicians will get the message. It's pretty simple. Nobody needs to change parties and let’s face it, there's plenty of blame to spread around. A few good politicians will lose their jobs but they will most likely have better retirement and insurance then 96% of the American public. I guarantee you that none of them will suffer like this country has.

I was thinking that I could be very wrong about what Americans want. Maybe we want to be taken care of from the cradle to the grave. Maybe we want to be told where to stand and for what and how long. Things change. I guess I am old school and maybe it’s time for me to just accept that I am out of touch. Let’s see what happens in November. God has blessed America so vote!

[Obama Evil] The European Union called on the U.S. on Friday to upgrade trans-Atlantic relations, insisting that when it comes to 'Crafting A New World Order’, Europe is a more significant ally than China and other emerging economies. Oh really, 'Crafting A New World Order'? Perhaps that is why Obama has no interest or fear of America's debt to China. Henry Kissinger is a Nobel Peace Prize winner too and was president Nixon's Secretary of State who opened the door to China. He commented that global upheaval presents ‘great opportunity’.

Conflicts across the globe and an international respect for Barack Obama have created the perfect setting for establishment of a New World Order. Kissinger says Obama is primed to create  a New World Order.  Our leaders have been hiding behind closed doors with union leaders and many other special interest groups making deals. What deals? We have no idea what the real plan for America is. Obama's many out right lies fuel the suspicions.

If this radical, un-American president brings our great country down because you Kool-Aid drinking, uninformed yahoos elected him on hope and change, bet on Hell on Earth in America to follow! http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/03/26/1549421/eu-seeks-better-trans-atlantic.html#ixzz0jcO0cH66

[Tea Party] On Monday night Larry King interviewed two Tea Party leaders, Wayne Allyn Root and Dana Loesch. King rarely plays hardball but at one point he asked them flat out if they would do away with Social Security. Without hesitation they both said yes they would do away with Social Security. I've never accused Tea Party members of being sophisticated, cagey perhaps, but not big thinkers. Maybe this was just an innocent slip of the tongue(s). Perhaps abolishing Social Security is a surprise component of the Tea Party platform that was to be formally announced to the rest of us as an October surprise. Who knows?

I do know this, having worked in politics, and that is the lobbyists who are sponsoring the current Tea Party Express III should have done a more thorough and upfront public relations one-on-one with said Tea Party spokespeople because if the Tea Party is planning to include abolishing Social Security in it's 2010 platform then they're basically finished. The Tea Party is, or soon will be, over. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpiZ3kgBFk0

[From the Right guy] I've read some of your tirades, and I have just one question:  Where exactly do you get all this "factual" information from? I would welcome a list of all your resources. Since you seem to know all about what is happening and what is going to happen to all of us, you would be providing the masses with some well deserved information, instead of just carrying on and on. I have yet to see you post your sources, and that alone scares me. I'm not trying to incite an argument here. I truly want to know where I can get the kind of information you seem to be getting. And it would make us all very happy to be able to access those same sources, so that we, the people, can make better informed decisions, based on real truth, not hearsay. Way too much hearsay here in the Keys, as we all know and some of us even admit to. (Ed: He always sends a link backing up his stuff, but I usually delete them. either you'll believe him or not.)

To fix this world's problems is simple. Just have everyone pay for everything they want in cash. Abolish credit cards. Abolish money lending. Abolish charities. Make every person earn his own keep.

This Tea Party business has lost all the meaning as to what it was supposed to be. Tea Party was a street slogan to arouse the people into another Boston Mass. tea dumping gig, and to alert the government that we the people are tired of their crap. Seems someone on the other side changed all that so we would look like idiots.

[No new taxes] People are so desperate for the government to pay their bills for that they want to tax you for doing what comes naturally out of your body. For heavens sake, these people bring the vast majority of the money to the Keys and you want to tax them more to use a bathroom? I’m amazed at how much more people want the government to intrude into their lives. "Hey he’s crapping, raise his taxes." It’s a new low. What’s next "That tourist is looking at our deer charge him $3.

No new taxes. Support the drive to buy off the internet. Avoid paying yet another sewer tax increase to your sales tax.

[Some New Taxes] I just l found out that it’s not only the tourists that are full of poop. Some guy who thinks that tourists should pay to poop said that Tea Partiers are against the tourist poop tax. Where in the devil did he come up with "knee jerk"?  I don’t know about the rest of my fellow Tea Party players, but I hate taxes, and I hate big government. But I’m for this tax.  Big government got us into this mess and everyone who uses a toilet should have to pay. There are too damn many people now who just poop along all their lives on other people’s dime. Why in the heck should tourists get another entitlement?  Liberals are wearing out my pants’ pockets. You should look before you lip.

I hate all taxes, but this one makes more sense than most. The jerk here has nothing to do with my knee.  Semper Tea.

Transparancy

[From the Right] Hissy fits must be a lot of fun to many left wing CT fans, they must really enjoy them because they throw them so often. Yesterday’s hissy fit was pitched by a poster who fretted about a fund raising slide show that was shown to a group of Republicans at a fundraiser. The slide show was third grade crap. If the RNC paid for it, they got screwed. In fact, it was Republicans that “outed” it. The fit pitcher said that this slide show was the center piece of Republican fundraising. B.S., Bunk, Donkey Dung! It ain’t so Joe. When he learned of the slide show, RNC Chairman Mike Steele (did I mention that Steele is not Caucasian and he’s not old) labeled it crap and immediately shut it down.  Steele was not at the fundraiser and had not seen the slide show before it was used. It is now history and will never be used by Republicans for fund raising or any other purpose. It’s much too scratchy to be used for what it should be used for, nor is it biodegradeable.  Next was the hissy fit about the fact that FTR is a regular poster. That’s really ironic, because if  the dude doesn’t like what FTR writes, why in the hell does he keep reading it? Then he doesn't evrn try to refute anything that FTR had posted. God knows that, I've screwed up and I've always admitted it. He made no argument in support of Mr. Obama and his policies, no slavish worship of the Obama; there was only a snarky demand that FTR’s criticism of Mr. Obama cease and desist. He says only “Shut up and go away”.  I won’t!  On the other hand there was a brief and wonderfully calm assertion that FTR was wrong about Congress being exempt from Obamacare. I think that this poster was mostly right, but a little wrong. It still looks like Mr. Obama, Mr. Biden and other DC heavyweights are exempt from Obamacare and will get special privilege. Plus, it looks like the Congressional staff who actually wrote the document exempted themselves by “weasel wording” definitions in the bill.  The article cited below will explain. http://www.google.com/search?q=no+obamacare+for+obama&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7DKUS

(Part II) Norman Leboon is a terrorist; he is a genuine wing nut. Leboon made death threats and actually shot into the office of a Congressman. He did it because of the Congressman’s vote on Obamacare.  He even went on You Tube and sent a threatening video message to the Congressman:  he said  "liar, you're a Lucifer, you're a pig, a greedy [expletive] pig."  And so it goes.  I don’t know about you, but everybody else  knows that all these damned wing nuts have nothing to offer but “NO”. They all are violent, they are all lunatics full of hate. You can’t believe anything that any of them say, they are corrupt. All the wing nuts are looney tunes, you can’t trust a word they say. They’re all bitter old, mad, white racist men who carry guns to political rallies.  Whoa! Wait a second.  The victim here is  Republican Congressman Eric Cantor who is Republican House Minority Whip.. Cantor was outspoken against Obamacare. This radical wing nut is not a Tea Partier, he’s not a Limbaugh, Beck, or Hanity fan, he’s not even a Republican. He is a left wing nut, a Democrat, a liberal Democrat that threatened to kill a Republican legislator and to kill his family. Left wing Democrat Leboon contributed nearly a grand to Obama’s campaign. He is a fervent supporter of Mr. Obama and his policies. This guy joins the ranks of left wing nut jobs that use violence as a tool to push their left wing agenda. Leboon joins ELF, ALB, Weather Underground, "The Revolutionary Cells-Liberation Brigade", etc. There are plenty of tribes of violent left wing lunatics. The other day a brick was tossed through a window at Republican HQ in Michigan. Just the other day, left wing students staged a violent demonstration at U.C. Davis in protest over increasing tuition costs. Deer Friends, the left wing nuts, and right wing nuts have a lot in common.  Both shout, seldom listen. Both permit emotion to trump reason. Both are nuts and there are a lot of them. Both are flat wrong when they use violence or the threat of it in pursuit of their politics. The Tea Party bashers are just flat wrong when they try to paint Tea Party supporters as being violent. We are not! Even Mr. Obama acknowledges respect for the movement. In fact more Americans believe that Tea Party supporters have a better understanding of legislative issues than does Congress (52-36). You guys should learn before you burn. You could learn a lot by stopping in and having a hot dog with us Lipton Lovers on tax day.

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Wednesday March 31, 2010

Tuesday March 30, 2010

[Stolen Bike] Deer Ed, There was a posting Monday about a bike being stolen from an 11 year old autistic girl in Eden Pines.  I would like to volunteer a replacement bike for her -- anonymously.  I don't know how to get in touch with her family and thought you might be able to contact them.

They can either go into the Bicycle Shop on Big Pine and see Marty about getting this child a new bike (I have spoken to Marty and will make arrangements with him to pay for it) or they can email me. This is just between us, "Ed". I've kept your identity a secret and hope you can do the same for me. Thanks for your help.

(Ed: would the lady needing a replacement bike for her little girl please email me so I can see that you get her a new bike from this very generous Piner.)

[USS Independence (LCS-2)] The Navy's Newest Warship is at the Mole pier at Truman Annex in Key West.

(Ed: Abbreviated Coconut Telegraph. If you don’t see your post today or the pictures suck, it’s because I had to leave early to go to Key West to see the Navy’s newest ship and I wouldn’t miss it for the world. This will be my first attempt at reporting in eight years. I have been invited by the United States of America's Navy. How's that for anonymous?)

This site was more interesting when Tarzan, the sheriff lady and the “all services” accountant were scrapping!

Anthony Bourdain and Ted Nugent shooting machine guns. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_aSglGw88U&feature=player_embedded

[The End is Near] Weapons of mass destruction in America! Schedule yourself more fun and embrace this Paradise. Suspected Hutaree Militia Members Charged With Plotting to Kill Officers - AOL News

[Roofies] If your dinner date is from BPK you won’t need any Roofies. When you lose your girlfriend on BPK the only thing that happened was you lost your turn with her. No matter what happens after dinner don’t agree in the heat of the moment to pay her dentist or bar bills.

[Rules add-on] I dumped the female. I short term lease "booty" now, and make my own rules. It has saved me a ton of money and aggravation.

[Sewer Tax] Of course we need the dedicated 1% sales tax to help financing our sewers.   "No new taxes" and Taxed Enough Already is the knee-jerk response of the Tea Bagger types who would cut off their nose to spite their face.  Organized society isn't free.

[Word Patrol] censused isn't a real word either.

[Bicycle Theft in Big Pine Key]  Why don't you lock your kids bike?  We lock up valuables because of the large amount of Piner degenerates.  You're lucky that's all they stole.  They have drug and alcohol habits to support.  Maybe you people smile too much.  Haters detest the happy people riding pretty bicycles.  I hope you find the bike and the thief. 

[Peer Pressure Death] The school officials should also be charged] 9 charged with bullying Mass. teen who killed self

[Commercial Pet Food]  One of our pets (kids) may have kidney disease because we feed them all Purina.  I’m going back to Iams and will start cooking the kidney diet to make their BUN go down.  Years ago, I remember reading about how bad pet food is for our dogs and cats and how it does not keep their kidneys healthy.  How many people cook for their animals?  I have been a negligent pet parent because I am not brushing their teeth and have not given them adequate nutrition.  It's a known fact that people and their pets live longer with good dental hygiene.  When the handsome Vet with the southern accent suggests prescription food, the end is near.  Crossing the rainbow bridge hurts as much as losing people.  Order up: hamburger and rice diet for all the “kids”! 

[I've had enough misuse of the English language] If the great illiterate masses offend you easily then I suggest that you just get used to it because down here they don't just mangle the language, but they are proud of it too! People who use proper grammar, multi-syllabic words and don't park on the grass are considered snobs. I heard a term the other day that describes them fairly accurately: aggressive mediocrity. They want everyone brought down to their level and they get very upset by those that they perceive (rightly) as their betters. Heck, in BPK just having good hygiene is enough to arouse suspicion. Remembers Ebonics? It sort of like that, but for white trash too. 

[The Irish only invented the cork screw] Here is a good concise link on this subject that I send along despite my Sicilian father often saying, “We were living in marble palaces with running water while the Irish were living in caves and painting their balls blue!” http://www.pbs.org/wnet/ancientireland/fortress.html

I took my family to the animal shelter to surprise them. I'm sure they'll find a good home eventually.

[From a friend in Scotland]  I had to ask what a numptie is.  He replied, “It’s an idiot.”  What a numptie I am!

Way to go NOAA in letting the commercial fishermen pick up trash at sea for a fee.  Maybe it will stop scenes such as the humpback whale entangled in marine garbage up in Miami.  Why is everyone simply watching this and not taking action to save the animal?  Please manage your trash better.  This is what happens when you teach your trash how to swim.

Some great WWII photos from the late 30s and 40s.  There’s a lot I had not seen previously.  The guy doing the captions obviously couldn't tell a soldier from a sailor in uniform on the big smootch at Times Square on VE Day.  This one is worth saving. Slide Show

[Going to the beach in China] And you wonder why they are yellow-greenish, it's all from pee in the water. Where do they park their cars and bicycles?

[The best doctor to treat your diabetes] That doctor never told you to exercise and put down the pizza, eh?  Your fat kid is next.

In our family, we were not allowed to use the N word, but fat people were fair game.  Now they are all diseased like the alcoholics are.  They think they can eat and drink what they want and suffer no consequences. 

[Irish Inventions] You guys forgot one of the most famous Irish inventions, Irish Sunglasses.

You cannot out-breed the ignorant useless eaters.

[Hit and Run] We are trying to locate an Illinois car. It’s a white Mercury, license plate number 124, it's a custom plate. The woman who drives this car took out 5 motorcycles on Sunday in West Palm and took off. A lady who is a witness tried stopping her by standing in front of her car to make her wait for the Police, she almost ran the lady down trying to escape.

Sissy, who is a great lady and friend, was on the back of her husband’s bike and is in critical condition in the hospital.

We need all of you to help us help the police in locating this car so that the right thing can be done.

He didn't like the casserole
And he didn't like my cake,
He said my biscuits were too hard
Not like his mother used to make.
I didn't perk the coffee right
He didn't like the stew,
I didn't mend his socks
The way his mother used to do.

I pondered for an answer
I was looking for a clue.

Then I turned and
Smacked the crap out of him,
Like his mother used to do.

NATIONAL POLITICS

The RNC plans to raise money this election cycle through an aggressive campaign capitalizing on fear of the black president and saving the country from socialism.  It was spelled out in an incredibly offensive slide presentation. It explains Republican fundraising in simple terms. “What can you sell when you do not have the White House, the House, or the Senate?” it asks. The answer: "Save the country from Socialism!”

The most unusual section of the presentation is a set of six slides headed “RNC Marketing 101”. The presentation divides fundraising into two traditional categories, direct marketing and major donors, and lays out the details of how to approach each group.

The small donors who are the targets of direct marketing are described under the heading “Visceral Giving.” Their motivations are listed as Fear, Extreme negative feelings toward existing Administration and Reactionary.

Major donors, by contrast, are treated in a column headed “Calculated Giving”.  Their motivations include Peer to Peer Pressure, Access and Ego-Driven.

SARAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Keep it up Mr. From the Right, you are on target and educating the masses.  When they finally realize their jobs will never come back to America and all salaries will be less, and business will further downsize, their new utopia will never materialize.  We the owners are not going to work so you bums can sit back and reap the benefits.  Heck, I might just sit back and laugh when they start bitching about how much health insurance costs. It is about time they found out!  They are going to love a 20% VAT tax on every item they buy. Oh well, can't say we didn't warn them.  If you have never been to Europe and seen how horrible the taxes are because of entitlements, you are in for a surprise.  This is going to take a while to really settle in. I hope I am around in 2016-2020 to see the dam burst.   

FTR guy. Please go to page 157, line 16 of this web site. Members of Congress are in healthcare.

http://democrats.senate.gov/reform/patient-protection-affordable-care-act-as-passed.pdf

I wonder how much states will waste on the lawsuit against healthcare reform. So much for the budget crisis. And that's a Conservative action?

[Obamacare] I don’t have the money for $300 a month insurance. I am not paying a fine, I will not go to jail. I will head to the hills with a gun as a last resort!  It will be healthier for me there. It’s a bad health care plan to force the people that can’t afford it to join the pool.

Speech to troops from President Obama in turban land. Obama In Afghanistan: '9/11', 'More Troops on the Way', '9/11' | CommonDreams.org

[About their upcoming tea party] Bring your guns, loaded of course. We want this to be a peaceful protest and nothing says peaceful better than a few white old men with deadly weapons.

Bring your wife and kids. We want to make sure that those socialists know that we have a family. We want to show them that although we can attack Congressmen and their families from the shadows, they cannot possibly threaten ours.

Bring your confederate flags and shredded American flags. Teabaggers are above all about being secessionists. If we can’t take our country back, then we will make our own country. We did it once before, and we can do it again.

Bring your pictures of Obama in whiteface and Obama as Hitler, just because they kind of spruce up the place. Swastikas and aborted fetuses look cool too.

[Mr From the Right guy] Please, give us all a break and take one.  I am so thankful that the editor put you at the bottom of the entries. At least I can read all the others then exit when I come to yours.  Don't you understand?  We are tired of reading your opinionated long crap.  Try typing two or three sentences then go out and get some fresh air. 

[From the Right] Last week was an excellent week for Mr. Obama. Just a week ago he passed and signed his set piece Obamacare legislation. Then he executed a nuke reduction treaty with Russia, and the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan is in the throes of a surge that will likely result in a resounding victory over the Taliban and AQI. I congratulate him on two of the three accomplishments.  There is something seismic afoot in the Obama/America relationship. Rational thought would strongly suggest that his approval ratings would have soared with passage of such society changing legislation as Obamacare. They didn’t. On 3/20, just the day before passage of Obamacare, his ratings were at an abysmal -21 (Rasmussen). During the following week they only improved to -10. Today Mr. Obama’s approval is again heading for the toilet, it is now back on the decline, currently it’s at -14. Mr. Obama, his crew, Nancy Pelosi, and other left wing folks are crowing that America would embrace Obamacare when America found out what it contained. America is finding out, and America doesn’t like what they find. Jobs were promised, but Caterpillar, Valero, ATT, Verizon, Meditronic, and a host of other major employers have reported that they will be forced to either cut jobs or health care benefits as a result of Obamacare. The costs of compliance are so onerous that they have no choice. American employers are finding out that it will be cheaper for employers to pay a fine than it will be to comply with Obamacare and furnish healthcare. Obamacare will result in employees getting hosed.   We were promised that Obamacare would immediately stop companies from refusing health insurance to kids with preexisting conditions. As of Monday, it is being widely reported that promise too is broken. Associate Press is reporting that the insurance companies will not be required to cover pre-existing conditions until at least 2014. It’s been revealed that contrary to the claim that Obamacare care would cost under (only!) 9/10ths of a Trillion dollars, the CBO and Jay Cost of Real Clear Politics report that : “The Democrats crammed a $2 trillion bill into a $1 trillion package by delaying the distribution of most benefits for four years, until 2014. I wonder if the tipping point of Mr. Obama’s credibility has been reached. His remarkable string of broken promises and falsehoods surely will cause even his most ardent supporters to reject anything that he says as being a falsehood.

(Part II) Has anyone heard about “Hutaree”?  The day before yesterday the Feds arrested 9 goons who were a part of a Christian “militia”, self named “Hutaree”. These radicals considered Law Enforcement and the Government to be their  mortal enemies. These fanatical goons planned to kill a cop, then kill more cops with IED’s at the funeral. They believed that the attacks would initiate a wave of anti government resistance. These vicious folks are a self described militia. They believe that Democracy is evil.  Hot damn, that sounds exactly like either left wing nut Charles Manson’s Helter Skelter. Or, Mr. Obama’s old pal William Ayers and his wife Bernadette Dorn’s Weather Underground. The Weather Underground bombed police stations, and were murderers. Ayers participated in the bombings of New York City Police Department headquarters in 1970, the United States Capitol building in 1971, and the Pentagon in 1972. They wanted to overthrow the U.S. Government. You can be absolutely sure that the media will slap the “Right Wing” label on these wanabe terrorists simply because they claimed to be Christian.  In South American some Catholic prelates are staunch supporters of Hugo Chavez. Certainly that does not make the Communist supporting clergy “right wing” simply because they are Christians. All obsessed mad men, Left Wing, Muslim, Right Wing, or whatever religious/political fanaticism that they might follow, should be jailed.  The overwhelming media fueled vitriol that began during the Bush admin must be tamped down. That vitriol is no longer directed at the in power administration; rather it is aimed at those who criticize this particular administration. Expressing political opinion or criticism is as American as (add your own metaphor) but violence and threats of violence as a political tool are starkly un-American and inexcusable.

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Tuesday March 30, 2010

Monday March 29, 2010

Passover begins today at sunset. Passover is the Jewish holy day and festival commemorating the biblical event of Hebrews' escape from enslavement in Egypt.

[Tourist Poop] I read here that there are more visitors to the Keys than there are people who live here. It was about paying for the sewer thing. I didn’t see how that could be. It just doesn’t sound right. So I checked and found out that there are about 73 thousand people living in the Keys. According to the Tourist Development Council and the Chamber of Commerce in 2008 there were  about 3,310,000 “Visitor person trips” to our Keys.

Can anyone explain to me why these three million three hundred and ten thousand pooping people should not pay to poop?  Good Gawd, these people stress the hell out of our environment, they pollute our waters, crowd our roads, and kill our fish and reefs. They should at least pay to poop. Why in the heck should they get even more of a free ride?

[Parting is such sweet sorrow] ] Why can't we get all the people together in the world that we really like and then just stay together? I guess that wouldn't work. Someone would leave. Someone always leaves. Then we would have to say good-bye. I hate good-byes. I know what I need. I need more hellos.   ~Charles M. Schulz

[The Irish only invented the cork screw] I hope this commentator is kidding. The Irish clergy played a major role, along with other peoples (pre-Islam Arabs, Jews, and other non-Germanic tribes) in preserving Western civilization as the world descended into the Dark Ages after the fall of the Roman Empire. Don't believe it? Do the research.

[Good Water] Kudos to the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority which took home the top prize in the Florida section of the American Water Works Association Region 7 drinking water contest in Miami last week.

The James Bond girls. http://www.comcast.net/slideshow/entertainment-bondbeauties/

[Bicycle Stolen] I'd like to send a special note to whoever stole my daughters bicycle from our garage recently. Take pride in knowing that you have made an 11 yr. old autistic girl sob tears for losing her bicycle that she loved dearly and took pride in and great care to keep it in the garage so no one would steal it. We have the neighborhood dog bar out front as a service to our community and our 4 legged friends walking the neighborhood here in Eden Pines.

Apparently, giving is a sign of weakness to low life scum like you. That will not stop us from giving to our beloved community, but it did cause us to install video surveillance throughout our property as we are adamant in prosecuting any further deviants to the fullest extent of the law. Not only did an innocent young girl lose her bike but now we have to keep the garage door closed and her 86 year old grandmother can’t come out at her leisure and enjoy the fresh air and passing key deer.

Your cowardly act hurt more than you know, but I take comfort in knowing  that karma will repay you 10 fold (in a negative way) for your dastardly deed .

It was a purple, girls 10 speed, 20 inch bike with a black wire bracket on the front handlebar to accept a basket we purchased from Marty's Bike Shop. We struggle financially and it will take some time to replace. Return it and nothing will be said, but if I see it cruising about you'll need more than one officer to pull me off the person responsible so do call for backup. How do people like you sleep?

[I’ve never seen so many churches, banks and bars as in the Keys.] Try southeast Texas and areas around Houston.  It's like the city squeezed them out in every direction.  Every time a congregation of more than a dozen can't get along they split and become two more. Divided we stand, Amen.

[Youth-Organized ‘Soup A Bowl’ Funds Food Pantry] It took 10 eight-foot tables to display the colorful bowls created by youth in the Upper Keys for the March 6 “Soup A Bowl” event which raised more than $1,400 for the food pantry and community kitchen run by First Baptist Church of Islamorada.

“We did this because we wanted to go beyond coordinating a food drive and experience the kitchen and the people involved,” said Island Christian School Junior Melanie Meroni.

The event was coordinated by Monroe Youth Challenge Program’s Upper Keys PeaceJam youth whose members are from Island Christian School, Coral Shores High School, and home educated.  The project was modeled after “Empty Bowls,” a national service learning movement and was in response to the PeaceJam Youth Board response to initiate a global call to action project in each area of the Keys.

The bowls were made by students in Coral Shores High School ceramics, art, and leadership classes, The Island Christian School Art Club, a 6th grade art class at Treasure Village Montessori, Wolf Pack Cub Scout Troop #912, and Upper Keys PeaceJammers.

[Tomatoes $3.20 lb] Sorry. Next year we will try to control the winter better. This was a record cold winter. We won't let that happen again.

Jim Wilson-Garrison is leaving the Keys. I will miss his smiling face at the light and hold him in spirit as he finds his own peace.

[No Census Jobs in Monroe] If the census worker on your doorstep us not a Monroe County resident you have the right to refuse to talk to that person and tell them you want to be censused by a Monroe County resident census worker. 

If you can not understand what the census person on your doorstep is saying, you have the right to refuse to talk to that person and tell them to send a Monroe County resident who is a Crew Leader to do your census.

Do not believe the people in the temporary census office in Homestead when they say that "not enough Monroe County residents applied, or qualified". That's not true. Those same people refused to advertise in the papers or radio because they said it was not worth the money. The only ad they did put in The Citizen said apply in Homestead office. They defeated their purpose right there.

[Such a Deal] My wife kyboshed the idea of buying this boat and moving to Sydney, so I'm passing it on. http://micronesia.craigslist.org/reo/
1652235606.html

I too canceled my AARP. I’ve been a member for 20 years, but no more.

No shirt, no shoes, no problem.

Animal lovers - stand up for animals. Go to http://www.bissell.com/mvp  and vote for Bear Rhoo or #1200059, or page 2, he is entered into a contest and if he wins, the charity of his choice is Stand Up For Animals in the Florida Keys, Marathon shelter and Big Pine Key Shelter.

Your will need to create a log in, but this is for a great cause, if you could be so kind and vote for him, so he can give back in return to the ones who need it.  We need a lot of votes. (Lousy Tech Support: Beware. They want your email address to send you spam. That is the reason for the site.)

[Ground Zero] I am appalled that the progress over rebuilding Ground Zero has been stopped due to lack of funds, and that parts of it may never happen because of the poor economy. They are still searching for any remains. Never forget 9/11. Search For Remains To Resume At Ground Zero - wcbstv.com

I’m so happy I don’t have a Facebook or Twitter account for people to follow me around and know when I scratch my ass or water the lawn. People these days want to be famous so bad that they'll do anything.

Silence is affirmation.

[Word Patrol] I've had enough misuse of the English language!  The anti-tea-bagger t-shirt was the last straw with the spelling of "poor loosers".   People, to lose is to not win.  You are a loser if you did not win.   To loose means to liberate, make slack or free up something.   Loosen is also acceptable in certain circumstances.  "Loose the hounds, the fox is afoot!"  "Please loosen my tie."   The proper spelling for the t-shirt should have been "Poor Losers".  AAARRRGGGHHH!

[The IKC]  I have only one request.  Can you branch out to include those big snakes?  Please?  Maybe a sub-chapter or brother club?

[Big Pine traffic light]  I think it was the late 80's when they put it up. I think they should remove it. That would be a real challenge getting out on US-1!

[Painted Chairs] You are cordially invited to attend a new event entitled: seating re-imagined. Chairs are being provided by Habitat for Humanity Restore.  They have invited the artists from Artists in Paradise Gallery to re-create the chairs into works of art.

The event will be a silent auction and the chairs will be on display at the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store Building on Big Pine Key, MM 30. Pre-bidding will be accepted March 16 through April 9, 2010 with the final bidding  at a reception held there  on April 9^th, 6:30 to 9:00.  The final bids will close at 8:00 PM. Come and enjoy the creative transitions and refreshments will be served.

[Loser] Maybe our heavy-duty Democrat who made the tee shirt should go back and study for his GED.  It's spelled: Loser, not Looser, you cretin.

NATIONAL POLITICS

[The Economy] Once again with all this debate on Healthcare it proves that the average American has the attention span of a goldfish. If the economy doesn't get fixed, Healthcare won't matter one way or the other.

"It's the economy, stupid.  ~James Carville

[I want America Back] I agree with the Tea Party members.  They want their America back.  I do, too!  I want my America back the way it was before the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.  I want the money back that we spent on them, and the lives of all our dead men and women who fought in them.  I want the Twin Towers back and all of the people who lost their lives in the 9/11 tragedy.  I want the America back before it decided that torture should be part of who we are.  I want the America back when our elected officials voted yes and no and not simply no!  I want my America back when citizens worked for change by voting, knocking on doors, volunteering, contacting their representatives and running for office instead of shouting, displaying filthy signs, calling other citizens names, carrying guns to political rallies, throwing bricks at windows and blogging insults and sarcasm on Internet web sites. 

I want my America back when news commentators cared more about the news and less about spreading rumors to shore up their ratings.  I want my America back when citizens worked together for the best interest of their fellow citizens and not just for themselves.  I want my America back before CEOs decided they were entitled to billions of dollars in bonuses and Americans thought they were entitled to huge homes and credit cards that they couldn't afford.  I want my America back when people respected diversity, and when our Declaration of Independence was respected, "All men are created equal".  Yup, those were the good old days.

The teabaggers want you to believe that they are patriotic Americans and believe in free speech. Anyone who is a local around here knows the truth. Remember when the peace protesters were at the light at Key Deer Blvd, protesting? The people from the pool place actually called the police to complain about the protest saying it was to noisy or something. Now all of a sudden those very same people want to have their demonstration and all of their worries are gone about the distractions and noise.

I ask any teabag to tell us why you called the Sheriff’s dept about their demonstration that brought the Sheriff’s out yet you thought yours is just ducky? In fact I think a person almost got a ticket for the distraction.

President Obama supporters won’t call the sheriff on you because we really do believe in free speech. Not the dog and pony show you folks call the 'tea party". I look forward to laughing at you hypocrites as we all drive by. And don’t worry we wont call authorities on you we will take the American freedom of protest more seriously. Gog bless America’s President. You folks spit on him -- we won’t.

The TEA bag movement is similar to the now defunct Moral Majority movement of the 80s. Both are comprised of right wing white folks with extreme views. Just look at how history views Jerry Falwell. The same will be true for the TEA baggers.

[Tax Increase] Why didn’t you protest the local government when they added a 4 cent per gallon fuel increase and why are you not protesting another 1 cent sales tax increase when it will raise the cost of everything we purchase and does not hold the snowbirds accountable for their sewers since locals will be footing the bill for them for half the year? Is it only the federal tax increases you hate because it sure does smell like it?

Local tax increases effect you more than federal increases do. If the sales tax increase goes through, I ask everyone that is against higher taxes to shop online and avoid the government taking away more of your money to pay for someone else’s sewers. No new taxes. Don’t be a TIN-man:  TEA-bagger In Name only!

It looks like Palin may have screwed up again politically by showing up to support McCain in his re-election campaign.  One of the founders of the tea party said on TV Sunday that they don't like McCain because he is not Right-Wingy enough for them and is not really a Republican.  No Republican politician can be a moderate anymore.  For them it's be nutsy or be nothing.

Don't forget to pay your taxes. 12 million illegal aliens are depending on you!

[Food for thought] If you were shipwrecked on a deserted island and had to choose Nancy Pelosi or Sarah Palin to be your only companion, which one would you select?

Mr. From the Right guy.  You should take a deep breath, push yourself away from the computer, take a walk, look around and take a break, you have been at it almost a year now. Please give us all a break!

[Spending] I agree Obama has no concept of what he is spending.  He is out of control.  Bush wasn't much better.  I hope we vote smarter next time and get things back under control.  Things would be a lot better if Clinton was still running the show.  That is the trouble with voting for leadership even though he is the least non-qualified person because he fits your personal agenda.  Whether it be race, party or sex, the president should have previous experience.  Obama had none.

Barack Obama is the best thing that has happened to America in the last 100 years. Truly, he is the savior of America's future. He is the best thing ever.

Despite the fact that he has some of the lowest approval ratings among recent presidents, history will see Barack Obama as the source of America's resurrection. Barack Obama has plunged the country into levels of debt that we could not have previously imagined; his efforts to nationalize health care have been met with fierce resistance nationwide; TARP bailouts and stimulus spending have shown little positive effect on the national economy; unemployment is unacceptably high and looks to remain that way for most of a decade; legacy entitlement programs have ballooned to unsustainable levels, and there is a seething anger in the populace.

That's why Barack Obama is such a good thing for America.

Obama is the symbol of a creeping liberalism that has infected our society like a cancer for the last 100 years. Just as Hitler is the face of fascism, Obama will go down in history as the face of unchecked liberalism. The cancer metastasized to the point where it could no longer be ignored. 

Average Americans who have quietly gone about their lives, earning a paycheck, contributing to their favorite charities, going to high school football games on Friday night, spending their weekends at the beach or on hunting trips - they've gotten off the fence. They've woken up. There is a level of political activism in this country that we haven't seen since the American Revolution, and Barack Obama has been the catalyst that has sparked a restructuring of the American political and social consciousness.

Think of the crap we've slowly learned to tolerate over the past 50 years as liberalism sought to re-structure the America that was the symbol of freedom and liberty to all the people of the world. Immigration laws were ignored on the basis of compassion. Welfare policies encouraged irresponsibility, the fracturing of families, and a cycle of generations of dependency. Debt was regarded as a tonic to lubricate the economy. Our children left school having been taught that they are exceptional and special, while great numbers of them cannot perform basic functions of mathematics and literacy. Legislators decided that people could not be trusted to defend their own homes, and stripped citizens of their rights to own firearms. Productive members of society have been penalized with a heavy burden of taxes in order to support legions of do-nothings who loll around, reveling in their addictions, obesity, indolence, ignorance and "disabilities." Criminals have been arrested and re-arrested, coddled and set free to pillage the citizenry yet again. Lawyers routinely extort fortunes from doctors, contractors and business people with dubious torts.

We slowly learned to tolerate these outrages, shaking our heads in disbelief, and we went on with our lives.

But Barack Obama has ripped the lid off a seething cauldron of dissatisfaction and unrest. 

In the time of Barack Obama, Black Panther members stand outside polling places in black commando uniforms, slapping truncheons into their palms. ACORN - a taxpayer-supported organization - is given a role in taking the census, even after its members were caught on tape offering advice to set up child prostitution rings. A former Communist is given a paid government position in the White House as an advisor to the president. Auto companies are taken over by the government, and the auto workers' union - whose contracts are completely insupportable in any economic sense - is rewarded with a stake in the company. Government bails out Wall Street investment bankers and insurance companies, who pay their executives outrageous bonuses as thanks for the public support. Terrorists are read their Miranda rights and given free lawyers. And, despite overwhelming public disapproval, Barack Obama has pushed forward with a health care plan that would re-structure one-sixth of the American economy. 

I don't know about you, but the other day I was at the courthouse doing some business, and I stepped into the court clerk's office and changed my voter affiliation from "Independent" to "Republican." I am under no illusion that the Republican party is perfect, but at least they're starting to awaken to the fact that we cannot sustain massive levels of debt; we cannot afford to hand out billions of dollars in corporate subsidies; we have to somehow trim our massive entitlement programs; we can no longer be the world's policeman and dole out billions in aid to countries whose citizens seek to harm us.

Literally millions of Americans have had enough. They're organizing, they're studying the Constitution and the Federalist Papers, they're reading history and case law, they're showing up at rallies and meetings, and a slew of conservative candidates are throwing their hats into the ring. Is there a revolution brewing? Yes, in the sense that there is a keen awareness that our priorities and sensibilities must be radically re-structured. Will it be a violent revolution? No. It will be done through the interpretation of the original document that has guided us for 220 years - the Constitution. Just as the pendulum swung to embrace political correctness and liberalism, there will be a backlash, a complete repudiation of a hundred years of nonsense. A hundred years from now, history will perceive the year 2010 as the time when America got back on the right track. And for that, we can thank Barack Hussein Obama.

[Uncle Sam doesn’t have to pay]  Uncle Sam never pays.  He doesn't earn a paycheck.  He can only confiscate the paychecks of others to pay for whatever wild scheme he thinks up.  It's called taxes and they don't magically appear in some vast stash Uncle Sam has in the bank; they come from people who work for their living.

[From the Right] Lies and more lies? Recently an Obama fan bragged that Obama, Biden, Reid, Pelosi and Congress in general had been included in Obamacare. The following day I responded that President and the Congress were exempt from Obamacare. Was that a lie? Nope!  Mr. Obama, Mr. Biden, Pelosi, Reid and, their leadership staffs, and many  staffers who actually wrote the Obamacare bill are exempt, they exempted themselves. It’s shameful, but it’s  true and it’s a fascinating story that is very revealing of their character. Don’t you think that if the other Democrats had actually read the bill before they voted for it, they would have exempted themselves? I urge you to read about it in the citation listed below. You can characterize my error as being a lie, or call it a mistake. It’s your choice. Please read the Washington Times item listed below which tells the whole story, learn a little, and then draw your own conclusions. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/mar/23/obamacare-for-everyone-but-obama/.                                     

(Part II) Change, change, change.  The crew Obama demands “change.” Change is what you get back when you’ve broken your buck.  And our buck damned sure is broken. Mr. Obama and his band of not so merry people have seen to that.  A left leaning poster (LLP) exults in change. He welcomes change. To him change is a goal unto itself. Our nation has a history of failed movements that demanded change and abandonment of the fundamental principles of our founders. For example, during the first half of the 20th century the Communist party was widely influential in America and played a prominent role in  the labor movement from the ’20’s through the ‘40’s. I suggest that LLP read their manifestos and report back to us the changes that they demanded for America. I have a hunch that he will not. American patriots resisted and prevailed. LLP is correct in his assertion that “the times they are a’changing”. They always have and always will. The demographics of 2010 America is fundamentally different from 1776 America. One of the primary reasons that so many immigrants have streamed to our shores is to live in the glow of the freedoms guaranteed by our Constitution. They also came here to enjoy the wealth that our vibrant capitalist society provides. Our LLP pal and the Gang Obama are hell bent on changing that Constitution and that economy. That is not a gentle path to change, it is a super highway to perdition. I’m reminded of the post WW1 Weimar Republic. Germany then was a Parliamentary Republic. Germany was then wracked with economic travails and unemployment. The German people embraced the change offered by a charismatic leader, they embraced promise of fundamental change to their democracy that were promised would "take care of them." They were promised full employment. They succumbed to the promise of universal health care. They yearned for comfort.   They sought change, any change. History has recorded the results of the change the Germans embraced in the late '20's and the world wide havoc that it spawned. Folks, the nirvana demanded by Obama and his minions is easily visualized. They demand a society of massive mind numbed mediocrity governed by the manifesto:  “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need”.  A quick read of that slogan would seem to envision a humane and idyllic society in which to live. But it just doesn’t work. I’ll save a lot of palaver and direct your attention to only the most recent of only the 20^th Century failures of that model. Look at Cuba, The late USSR, East Germany, Venezuela, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, and Romania. Each of those nations shared certain attributes. Each had a government that was all powerful. Each had an elite class that was the all powerful government. The elites thrived. The primary demographic of each of those communist nations had  grey masses of mediocrity that were subject to the whims of their masters. The stratification of classes was impermeable; there was no hope, no initiative, no reason to strive. All of those communist governments are now defunct.  None had the American Constitution that has protected you and me since 1787. It is the spine of our nation. In its 223 year history, it has had only 27 amendments. Our founders designed it to be incredibly difficult to modify. They were genius. None of the aforementioned nations had a vibrant capitalist economy.  Now, Russia and China, both communist, have abandoned governmental strangle holds on their economy, both countries have unleashed the power of capitalism, and both are prospering. Mr. Obama was nurtured and groomed by people such as Frank Marshall Davis, if you’re interested, check out his bio.  Mr. Obama sought out the friendship and support of William Ayers and his Weather Underground (the left organization) If you’re interested, check out his/their bio, both are very interesting. We have seen the nationalization of huge slices of America’s economy in just the last few months. We've had universal health care imposed on us against the will of at least 60% of our citizens. We know that Mr. Obama is the champion of the labor movement which is hell bent on passage of legislation that would kill the secret ballot in labor elections. Even here on little BPK, Team Obama cheerleaders demand that the Tea Party shut up. They get so angry that spittle spews when Mr. Obama is criticized. They demonize their critics. And so, LLP insists that those of us who are dedicated to preserving our national ethos are “poor losers” and that we are “people of low intelligence”. Do you find that offensive? Well folks, this writer may, or may not be a dummy, but I will continue to be a piss poor loser. Good losers are used to losing. Please pass the Lipton’s.

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Monday March 29, 2010

Sunday March 28, 2010

They say that we have to get sewers. They say that Uncle Sam has ordered it. I guess that we have to get sewers or get punished by Uncle Sam, but then we’ll still have to get sewers. So I guess it’s true that our government can make us do things that we don’t want to do. Then, they can make us pay for it. So, I wonder, if we have to do it and  we have to pay for it, how in the heck can we pay for it unless we use a sales tax that everybody who comes down here would have to pay.

Doesn’t that mean that if we don’t use a sales tax that every home owner would have to pay a lot more, and the visitors wouldn’t have to pay anything even though more of them will be using our sewers that we will? It doesn’t seem right that Uncle Sam doesn’t have to pay, and it doesn’t seem fair that homeowners should have to pay for visitors to go to the bathroom. After all, there are more visitors than there are full timers. That just doesn’t seem right that visitors should get to dump on us for free. Is it true that we just can’t get out of getting sewers?  

Where have all the Iguanas gone? Gone to the grave yard, every one, when will they ever learn?

I, like you, used to enjoy watching the Iguanas sunbathe on my dock. But when they started shitting everywhere, including in my boat and eating all my plants I decided I had had enough. I asked around the neighborhood and the general consensus was that they were a real pain in the butt. I checked with local law enforcement and DEP and found out it was not illegal to kill them in a humane way. They are an invasive species without protection from any animal rights-huggers. One quick shot to the head with a high powered air rifle is the best way to terminate them.  After shooting a few dozen my neighbors starting asking me if I could rid their property on these nasty beasts? I started charging $10 a take down. Business was dead to say the least. My half twin sister who lives next door suggested that we form a club to eradicate the Keys of these disgusting invasive creatures. The Iguana Killers Club (IKC) was founded with by-laws, rules of engagement and proper carcass disposal methods.  The rest is history and victory. The IKC promotes green hunting (that is, green Iguanas). Preserving the natural habit of the Keys is the #1 priority of the IKC. Membership is free and within 3 months we had over 100 enthusiastic sportsmen signed up. If you would like to become a member just go to their web site and sign up, it’s free. You can also read about and view the great photos of the 1^st annual tournament they had a few months back.

The IKC is currently promoting Iguana hunting safaris in the Lower Keys. 

[Eat Healthy] This new show was on Friday night at 8 on ABC. This guy is trying to teach America how to eat healthy, starting with our obese children. Woohoo! I sure wish him luck. Jamie's Food Revolution USA | Campaign for healthy eating | Jamie Oliver  

[Sloan] (on brother’s suicide) Friday I learned a draft of the now infamous letter criticizing the Golden Flake dividend was found on a flash drive in Major’s abandoned car. Yesterday I was forwarded an Associated Press article in which Major’s father-in-law spoke for the family, and said they are mystified why Major took his own life and wrote the now infamous letter criticizing Golden Flake’s dividend policy. The letter comparing the Bashinsky’s and other company owners (stockholders) to vampires sucking the life blood out of the company. I wrote back to the journalist, who once had interviewed me, and reminded him again that not all family members were mystified.

We who knew Major were not mystified. Like the Heathcliff he was, we knew he had deep secrets, which he told no one. We who knew him well knew this. We knew he was brittle. We knew he would break if enough pressure was put on him. We knew he might run.

(Part II) Sloan, I believe you have done a great deal of damage to the Golden Flake brand. And, if what you say is true about Joann and your father, it would seem that he trusted her more than he trusted you and Major as it relates to the trust. That was as public a rebuke as one will ever see between a father and his two lawyer sons. Your father had every right to live his life in the manner that he saw fit. And it is obvious that he didn’t care who liked or agreed with his choices and decisions. It is also obvious that he thought he had a right to inflict public injustices upon his sons as he saw fit. In that regard, he had a moral and ethical obligation to take good care of his sons and he failed in that regard. He could and should have done many things for you and Major via his will. Leaving you money was only one thing he could have done for you. He could have done much more for you that would have uplifted you. He should have appointed you and Major as trustees instead of Joann, and failing that, he should have appointed all three of you. He obviously was a very selfish, self centered, individual. Your having outed him as such was a good thing.

The only revenge against these injustices is for you to live well for the remainder of your life. Living well means having something to look forward to and to enjoy the warmth of those you choose to be around.

Find some warmth today. I appreciate you Sloan for all of your talents and your brilliance. I want you to be happy and find joy and have fun.

The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

Bright Venus and lesser Mercury form an eye-catching pair low in the western twilight.

[Island Grass Music Festival] Live music today, Sunday, March 28 from 1 - 6 pm. Come out to the Habitat for Humanity grounds MM 30.5 and see the best line-up of musicians you'll see all year:  the Doerfel's, MM 24, Paul Cotton, Terry Cassidy, Pat McCune, Bobby Dee, C W Colt.  No admission, but there will be a Silent Auction with more than 100 valuable items, raffle for a $500 Publix gift card, sandwiches from Bobalu's, beer, wine, Pepsi and 50/50's - all to benefit a great organization.  Bring your cash and prepare to be entertained! Bulletin Board

Composting Classes. Sign up now. Rot on! http://monroe.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf/Hort/Composting/Composting_Flyer.pdf

[Blarney] I've been working on my house for the past few weeks with my Irish wife. Now I know why God put all the Irish on a small island. It’s so they wouldn't hurt anyone else!

The Irish invented the cork screw and that is the only thing they ever invented. Thank you, God!

[The Keys] I’ve never seen so many churches, banks and bars as in the Keys.

[Diet] The Sun is back and it's time for a new diet. I am currently on the See Food Diet. I see food and eat it! Diet Plans, News and Diet Reviews - That's Fit

[Plugged canals] Let's leave them plugged.  Enough septic runoff has made it to the dying reefs already. We need sewers first. Land owners are looking for a quick get rich fix for low valued plugged canal lots. That's what they bought, just live with it. 

[Tomatoes] They always had the best tomatoes at the left corner at the flea market, but the last two times I’ve been charged $3.20 a pound and they are very immature. What can I say, I was very disappointed.

I read that Lube on the Move was out of business. Can it be true?

Carol Ellis of Little Salt Photography will be showing her new exhibit from the effects of the recent cold snap on Florida Bay.

The exhibit will be on display at the Key Deer Bookstore, in the National Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center on Big Pine Key for the month of April.

Meet the artist and hear her stories during the opening reception on Friday, April 2^nd from 7-9pm.

[Press 1 for English] What incentive do the Spanish people living in the United States have to learn and use English - the language of the United States - when advertising and marketing sales people continue to advertise in Spanish?  None. The money grabbers in the United States are perpetuating the loss of US identity. First goes the language, then goes the culture, then goes the society. 

What's left is a population of Jerry Springer-raised people with zero coping skills or ingenuity, who can only respond with anger. No wonder New World Order fans are salivating and their opponents are shaking their heads saying what's happening?

Do you have a rescued animal?  You can send their picture and story here, also a click a day helps feed animals waiting for a home. Click to Give @ The Animal Rescue Site

[Walk on the Wild Side] Friends And Volunteers Of Refuges (FAVOR) and the Key West Southernmost Runners, Inc. are hosting the 14th Annual Earth Day 5K Run/Walk for Saturday, April 10th, 2010, 8:00 AM.

The Start/Finish, day of registration and post race party will be at the pavilion of McCoy Indigenous Park Located at White Street and Atlantic Blvd. This popular race has become a family tradition. The awards are delicious, recyclable, and earth friendly: Cookies.

Winners will be awarded for the following age groups: 13 and under, 14-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, and 60 and over. The First One-Hundred (100) entrants will receive a cool, custom-designed Earth Day T-shirt. If you register before race day, fees are $10 for 13 and under and $15 for over 13. Race day add $5 for both categories.

Early Race packet pick-up and registration will take place at the Indigenous Park parking lot, on Friday evening April 9th, from 4pm to 6pm and at the race start area at 7AM on April 10th. Bulletin Board

[Diabetes] Can someone recommend a good physician from Key West to Marathon for the management of Diabetes.

[AARP Socialist] Recently you sent us a letter encouraging us to renew our lapsed membership in AARP by the requested date. I know it is not what you were looking for, but this is the most honest response I can give you. Our gap in coverage is merely a microscopic symptom of the real problem, a deepening lack of faith.  

While we have proudly maintained our membership for several years and have long admired the AARP goals and principles, regrettably, we can no longer endorse it's abdication of our values. Your letter specifically stated that we can count on AARP to speak up for our rights, yet the voice we hear is not ours. Your offer of being kept up to date on important issues through DIVIDED WE FAIL presents neither an impartial view nor the one we have come to embrace. We do believe that when two parties agree all the time on everything presented to them, one is probably not necessary. But, when the opinions and long term goals are diametrically opposed, the divorce is imminent. This is the philosophy which spawned our 200 years of government.       

Once upon a time, we looked forward to being part of the senior demographic. We also looked to AARP to provide certain benefits and give our voice a power we could not possibly hope to achieve on our own. AARP gave us a sense of belonging which we no longer enjoy. The Socialist politics practiced by the Obama administration and empowered by AARP serves only to raise the blood pressure my medical insurance strives to contain. Clearly a conflict of interest there!  

We do not understand the AARP posture, feel greatly betrayed by the guiding forces that we expected to map out our senior years and leave your ranks with a great sense of regret. We mitigate that disappointment with the relief of knowing that we are not contributing to the problem anymore by renewing our membership.

NATIONAL POLITICS

Okay From the Right guy, healthcare has passed.  It's the law of the land.  You lost.  Get over it and move on.  You're obsessed with it.  You will soon find out that it was absolutely the right thing to do for America.  You are closed-minded and can only see one side of an issue –the money side.  Everyday your posting is the same thing -- no to anything that moves the country ahead. You read all the postings from the day before and refute and attack a poster who voiced his differing opinion.  Do you think that you could come up with a different format?  When will you and all of the conservatives realize that we do not, and never will again, live in a country that is the one that you grew up in?  In 2040, experts say that Caucasians with European ancestry will be the minority in America.  Life changes. The world changes.  America changes.  Our founding fathers never predicted that America would have 50 states and 300 million people when they wrote the Constitution.  Those who fail to change are doomed.  Life is all about change.  Adaptation.  Smart people understand this concept.  People of low intelligence hang on to the past and refuse to change and adapt. 

Change is slow and gradual.  Does anyone think that when we are long gone, in 200 years, that we will still be the way that we were in the 1950's?  Come on.  We need a lot of ideas from both parties.  We have a strong Constitution that has served us well, but everything needs to adapt to changes sooner or later.  We don't need people who hold up signs that say "I want my America back".  That isn’t going to happen.  I welcome change and the challenge it brings. 

Sarah Palin is going to have a show on the discovery channel. Can I get a moment of silence for knowledge?

[Immigration] This Presidential Administration scares the living daylights out of us. Not just for ourselves, but for our proud and bloodstained heritage. Washington has rendered Soylent Green a prophetic cautionary tale rather than a nonfiction scare tactic. I have never endorsed any militant or radical groups, yet now I find myself listening to them. I don't have to agree with them to appreciate the fear which birthed their existence. Their borderline insanity presents little more than a balance to the voice of the Socialist mindset in power. Perhaps I became American by a great stroke of luck in some cosmic uterine lottery, but in my adulthood I choose to embrace it and nurture the freedoms it represents as well as the responsibilities it requires.      

Someone has broken into our 'house', invaded our home without invitation or consent. The President has insisted we keep the perpetrator in comfort and learn the perpetrator's language so we can communicate our reluctant welcome to them.  Websites generously offer us the opportunity to receive all communication in Spanish. Please explain why foreign lawbreakers can enjoy privileges on American soil that Americans do not? Why do some immigrants have to work hard to be welcomed and others only have to break and enter to gain citizenship?  They have destroyed their own countries and next is ours!

I don't choose to welcome, support, educate, medicate, and pay for their food or clothing.  I am mad, scared, and disappointed as hell. Fix it Mr. President or step down, so someone who still loves America, can!

[Nobody sent Bush shredded flags or committed terrorist acts in protest. They marched peacefully] I suppose books and movies calling for his assassination don't count?  Burning him in effigy, along with the flag?  Selective memory is a dangerous thing.

[Lies and more lies] The FTR guy says, "Congress and The President are expressly exempt from Obamacare. Yep, it's a fact."

Please explain to me how this is a fact. The relevant portion follows. Another 1/4 truth bites the dust.

 (i) REQUIREMENT- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, after the effective date of this subtitle, the only health plans that the Federal Government may make available to Members of Congress and congressional staff with respect to their service as a Member of Congress or congressional staff shall be health plans that are--

(I) created under this Act (or an amendment made by this Act); or

(II) offered through an Exchange established under this Act (or an amendment made by this Act)

[Oral Office] Someone here wanted a person to give Obama a BJ so he could be impeached. Of course then the Party of No would scream that he would be getting a socialized BJ if he didn’t pay for it. They hate socialized BJs. But then they would want one if it was included with their Socialized Medicare plan. And yup that would, as usual, be different as long as they’re getting the benefit. Of course the insurance company would only cover hand-jobs and you can get those from any teabagger.

[Who voted on healthcare bill] See how your representative voted and who passed this health care bill. The MSNBC site reflects all voters. You can just  pick your state at the top of the page on the left.  Know who to vote out of office in November. Truth be known, all incumbents are on my list.  News has it that the Texas Attorney General (plus several other states) have  filed suit against the bill's Constitutionality.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35955736/ns/politics-health_care_reform/

[Threats to Congressman] The FTR guy is trying to sell us on the fact that the people spitting on politicians, using derogatory language and shooting thru congressman’s homes because of their failed plans to stop healthcare were all just figments of the media’s imagination. Its nice to know the Easter Bunny’s been informing him of all of these so-called "imaginary things". That’s up there with "Obama’s not even an American” and "I’m a teabagger, but want anyone that comes to the Keys to pay for my sewer" and wants taxes increased. Everything we buy will go be higher to purchase because of that. Great fiscal responsibility. Raise the cost of everything we purchase so he won’t have to pay his own sewer bill. Stay out of my pockets FTR; pay your own bills.

The Party of No and Tea baggers are obstructionists. They serve no other purpose.

Has Republican-speak confused you during healthcare debate? You're not alone. Learn more at http://SpeakRepublican.com/

I worry about this country when even a small sector of Americans think Sarah Palin is the answer

Dude, that was one angry post about the Tea Party folks. You might want to consider some counseling. I find it interesting that you claim to know what is motivating the Tea Party. You claim we are all racists.  How could you possibly know that?  I am not a fool and I’m sure there are some folks that are racists is the Tea Party, as there are in all parties and movements. But to claim that all Tea party folks are racists, or the Tea party is a racist movement, is just plain ignorant.

I welcome you to come to the demonstration on Big Pine. I welcome a friendly conversation with you.  The truth is, I believe we are both patriots, we just have a different thoughts as to what role our government should play.

Bring your camera. Post the photos everywhere you want. I have nothing to hide, and the publicity will be beneficial. Peace, brother!

Top ten indicators that your company has changed to the government's new proposed health care plan:
(10) Your annual breast exam is done at Hooters.
(9) Directions to your doctor's office include "Take a left when you enter the trailer park."
(8) The tongue depressors taste faintly of Fudgesicles.
(7) The only proctologist in the plan is "Gus" from Roto-Rooter.
(6) The only item listed under Preventive Care Coverage is "an apple a day...."
(5) Your primary care physician is wearing the pants you gave to Goodwill last month.
(4) "The patient is responsible for 200% of out-of-network charges," is not a typographical error..
(3) The only expense covered 100% is "embalming."
(2) Your Prozac comes in different colors with little M's on them.
(1) You ask for Viagra and they give you a Popsicle stick and Duct tape.

Paying for healthcare is simply a matter of payroll deductions from every working person in America. New long term care deduction on everyone's paycheck. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jH0WIKedab

[Tea Party] I hope you teabag haters all come to the tea party April 15 at Tropical Pools. Maybe then you can see for yourself how full of shit you really are. bring your camera so you can document how many white-hooded-racist-old-white-men there really are there. How many did you see at the last one? I must have missed them, I was only there a few hours, I had to go back to work so my taxes can help support your socialist scams. I will be the first one to give you my name although you probably already know it. I have an idea who you might be too and it will be really funny if it is you. I'll be the guy without the white hood. Please come out there and remove every bit of our anonymity. Bring your tape recorder too so you can document how many racist epitaphs you hear shouted.  Maybe you can make a Michael Moore-type propaganda expose on the secret brotherhood of the tea bag. I'll even tea bag you if you want, just for special effects.

[From the Right] The left wing owns the patent on violent demonstrations. I’m confident that we will all remember the liberals extolling the notion of the assassination of Bush. For God’s sake the liberal elite even extolled the virtues of a movie that celebrated the idea of his murder. It was all the fashionable chatty left elite buzz for a couple of weeks.  To refresh your memory, simply search the term “USA violent anti bush demonstration” or “death to Bush demonstrations” or you might want to take a look at the web site listed below for an incomplete list of fairly recent vandalism/violence against Conservative causes. Does the name Rahm Emmanuel sound familiar? Emanuel is Mr. Obama's Chief of Staff, he also is (in)famous for his rages and thug tactics. In one instance he sent a dead fish to a political opponent's residence during a political dispute. I’m stuck in trying to find the best adjectives to describe the wrong headedness of the Tea Party hating poster. It beggars belief, but while he was extolling the virtues of civility and non violence, he threatens. How very left of him! Let me restate it, violence in pursuit of political posturing is wrong, it’s always wrong, it’s wrong from the left and wrong from the right.  It is stomach curdling, but he compares the Tea Party to the KKK. Hey gang, you and I know that KKK was a Democrat institution. It was Democrat to the core. History is crystal clear. Racism drove the Democrat party. To their everlasting shame, Democrat leadership filibustered against passage of the 1964 Civil Rights act. One of the filibusterers is the current Senator from W. Va., Robert Byrd (D).  Incredibly the poster actually suggested that during the Bush years, those who demonstrated against his “forestry law” were kind and gentle, law abiding folks. Give Me a Freaking Break. That falsehood also raises the term absurd to new levels. Please simply use the search term “ELF eco terrorism” to refresh your memory. How many of us remember left wing arsonists attacking new high end residential developments and auto dealers. What about liberal eco terrorist Ted Kazinsky, the UniBomber. The Tea Party basher tells us that liberals are the epitome of gentility. I’s bizarre, but in the next breath, our angry friend threatens Tea Party folks with a form of violence. He promises to hunt down the employers of Tea Party folks, apparently with the goal of causing us to lose our jobs. He threatens to “expose” our identity while hiding his identity. He rails against anonymity in an unsigned posting on an anonymous website. I welcome the angry dude’s attendance at the Tea Party, I’m anxious to meet and greet him. All he has to do is show up and seek out FTR and identify himself. I look forward to making his acquaintance. I’m confident that he and I can pose for pictures together. Perhaps we can get photographed together for publication in the Citizen. Is it possible for him to shake hands not fists? It will be amusing being up close and personal. We’re so proud of this rally that we intend to video, audio, and photograph the entire goings on. The angry dude will be welcomed and he need fear nothing from any of us old/young/middle aged white/brown/yellow/calico folks. He’ll notice that Tea Party folks support free speech, but renounce racism. Tea Party types believe that if the best you have to offer is racial slurs, you should stay home. Racists and racist slurs are not welcome. We can’t stop them from demonstrating, it’s their right. But they won’t be a part of the Tea Party and all who view them will know it.  He’ll get a chance to chat with managers, waitresses, plumbers, and folks from all walks of life who show their love and fealty to a free nation in a peaceful rally. I’m confident that he will be impressed with the comity of the group. Perhaps, if the anonymous but angry poster would consent, we might prevail on Deer Ed to furnish each of us with the others e-mail address so that we might exchange our views in a more personal setting.

(Part II) It is common for Obama supporters to point out that Clinton and his Republican Congress had managed to reduce the federal deficit to -0-. In fact they managed a surplus. 9/11 ended that.The Obama supporters then cite the fact that Mr. Bush and the Democrat Congress of his last two years managed to start the deficit heading for the sky. These folks suggest that because the deficit was too high when Mr. Obama took office that it is somehow excusable for him to continue growing the grotesque deficit. The end of term Bush deficit was too high, no doubt about that. But, Mr. Obama and his Democrat Congress have managed to more than quadruple the diminishing deficit of  6 years of Bush/Republican Congressional spending and 2 years of growing  Bush/Democrat Congressional spending in just a little over one year. That is astounding and frightening. It’s kind of like saying “look, she was raped once, it’s OK to keep raping her”. If you want this nation to retain its character and its society, this spending has got to stop. Now.

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Sunday March 28, 2010

Saturday March 26, 2010

(eD:  No edIT SatuRDAY!!!!!!......b-cuz u assd 4 iT!!!!!!!!!

[No-Edit Saturday] For those of you visiting for the first time, don’t judge the Coconut Telegraph by today’s un-edited episode. This is the Editor's day off. Tune in tomorrow for the edited version. You’ll find its' format and graphics more pleasing.

Saturday March 26, 2010

Friday March 26, 2010

[Plugged Canals] The three questions for the commissioner candidates were right on but I would add a fourth.  Where does the candidate stand on enforcing the Monroe County 10 year plan which mandates that all plugged canals be opened by the year 2010!

Actually there is a growing movement in the Cahill Pines and Palms area of Big Pine to get the canals opened.  In recent years there have been several strong initiatives on the part of these neighbors to lobby the existing commissioners to assist in getting the plugged canals open but there has not been much response.  Just a cordial “I’m all for it.”  In any event, getting the plugged canals open won’t be easy.  Believe it or not, all the agencies that would have to approve it are basically against it.  The county says it’s up to the Army Corp of Engineers and the Army Corp of Engineers say they are not against opening the canals but they are too deep and too wide, blah, blah, blah.  Then you have the selfish land barons on the open side of the plugs who do not want them opened because they do not want the increased boat traffic in front of their pristine “got mine” properties.

For a start, for all who would like to see the canals opened, log on to the Monroe County website.  On the home page you will see a search option on the left side of the page.  Enter “plugged canals.”  You will see a number of documents that are displayed.  Click on the fifth one down “Comprehensive Plan.”  A PDF will then open entitled “Monroe County Year 2010 Comprehensive Plan.”  You can do a search within the Adobe reader for “plugged canals” and go right to the section about how they are supposed to be open this year.  Then, let’s put our heads together and communicate in this forum and see how we can convince our leaders to get this thing done.

http://www.monroecounty-fl.gov/Pages/index

[Human Peace Sign] Dream big! YouTube - Human Peace Sign of the Florida Keys

Immigration enforcement at work. http://www.dhs.gov/files/enforcement/immigration.shtm

What is street address of Senior Center? (305) 872-3990. (Ed: I know that one: 380 Key Deer Blvd, behind the fire station.)

Sing in tune or don't sing. That guy should be a judge on the TV talent shows. Video

[Spring Planting] It's getting warmer. I planted peas and green beans to fill my freezer. I  also just got some of the wild Florida Everglade tomatoes. We shall see how these buggers grow. At almost $8 a packet, they better do well! If they do, I'll be sharing seeds with anyone who would like to try them.

[Does anyone know a good design landscaper]  Call Gillian Seifert at Green Dreams.  They are located on Big Pine at 25822 US1.  305-522-3605

[New Windows] I'm looking to replace 2 windows in my home in Key Colony Beach. The windows are both roughly 4 feet high and 8 feet wide.  Can anyone give me the name of who to contact to both purchase and install them?

[Big Pine 29 Pot Bust] “Signal 31." I used to love to hear that on my scanner, remember the Gunsmoke! History

Did anyone else feel the Earth shake? I think it was Tuesday morning, early.

[More bar wisdom] Do people really wait ‘til 5 o’clock to start drinking in real life?

[Sloan] Letter to Sloan on penis envy: Lets talk about your brothers death for a moment.  I think you have serious mental and emotional issues, involved with your brother, that have tormented you your whole life.  Maybe you always thought “Daddy loved him more,” or “Mommy always picks Major over me,” or even “How comes Major has a bigger penis than me?”  I can’t exactly figure on why you have so much resentment for your brother, but it is glaringly obvious that you do.  I can think of no other reason, a brother would verbally tear apart his own flesh and blood after his death.  Bygones should be bygones at that point.  I can only come to the conclusion that you have always wanted to confront your brother about possibly being  “more endowed” than you, or whatever your crazy cranium has taken issue with him for, " Major was very bad, please love me more", but never had the guts to do so, because deep down your a scared shitless 6 year old boy crying out for attention, using any means necessary to get it.  Now with his death, Sloan Bashinsky can go ahead and pick his brother apart in front of the whole world, show them how bad Major really was and “Look everyone, Mommy, Daddy, I’m a good boy”  without fear of rebuttal.  I believe you have always been scared and intimidated by your brother, full of hate and resentment, never having the balls to say anything to him about it. 
The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

[Holy Pedophiles] It amazes me that people still believe in these holy criminals. Vatican axed trial for priest accused by deaf boys (AP)

[Say What?] ˙noʎ ǝsnɟuoɔ ʎןןɐǝɹ ןןıʍ sıɥʇ http://www.sevenwires.com/play/UpsideDownLetters.html

[Standoff] He withstood the tear gas. It seemed like it didn’t even faze him. He’s a pretty tough gentleman. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Marine veteran said he had been asleep during much of the standoff. Houston vet, 84, after standoff: married 'too damn long' | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

American Pie. Buy American. Video

Every time I send a message they don’t print it.

[Plugged canals]  Give it up; you’re the one who bought a house with a community salt water pool! 

[Aged victims] As we have read here on bigpinekey.com and in the papers and in the arrest records there are people who prey on those that are in need of help at that age. The aged can be swarmed on by buzzards.  There should be a facility or some agency to help our older family members.

Being somewhat in the middle of this takings mess, I have heard through the grapevine that soon there will be a challenge to the county's new Tier System and comprehensive plan, which not only has blighted private property but has also has deprived U.S. citizens of their right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, which over the years has been sucked right out of this place by a bunch of eco-theorist groups like Last Stand and Florida Keys Citizens Coalition.

Once this lawsuit is won, maybe vacant property owners can enjoy their property like the multitudes of I-got-miners who have elected commissioners the likes of George Neugent, Kim Wigington, Sylvia Murphy and Heather Carruthers, who seem to enjoy depriving U.S. citizens of their constitutional right to own and develop their private property in the Florida Keys.

We vacant land owners also would like to one day enjoy the expansive vistas featuring mangroves draped in nesting egrets, soaring eagles and ospreys, pelicans gliding in formation, diving cormorants, and kingfishers perched at the ready, highlighted by breathtaking sunrises and sunsets over sparkling turquoise and azure waters from our homes. Just like your editorial board does.  ~salkeylargo@keylargokey.com

NATIONAL POLITICS

Sean Hannity and FOX news lied.  They stated that President Obama and his staff are exempt from the healthcare bill.  Who would ever believe that?  FOX News is the most unbalanced and unfair news station among all of the others. They are so anti-Democratic and anti-Obama that they say anything that comes to mind that degrades them.  The statement above has been proven to be absolutely false.  In fact the bill subjects the White House, members of the Congress and their staff to the same reforms and requirements as the rest of the American people.  I hope the poster feels better.  Now he can vote for President Obama again.  All he has to do is switch off FOX News.

[Health Care Reform] If anyone else is reading this bill, please post your take on its effect on small business.

Reading up on the Health Care reform act just passed and signed into law there sure are going to be a lot of companies firing people to get down under the 50 employee minimum. From what I am reading, I do not think small business has to provide insurance if you hire under 50 employees (including part time), but this thing is changing all the time and it is going to be awful for the employment numbers to see this huge layoff (blamed of course on the recession) that is going to take place to get under the magic number of under 50.  Heck, the taxes in this thing, 3.8% on interest, dividends, rents and the $2,000 penalty per full time employee if you don't pay for 72.5% of their insurance.  Then taxes on Capital Gains automatically goes from 15% to 20% Jan 1st, 2011. And it looks like, until the states have time (2014 deadline) to set up the SHOP( small business health options programs), you have to pay an additional 8% on all payroll and from what I could tell the 8% was entirely paid by the business and nothing by the employee.  Can you just think how much it is going to cost each state to set up this SHOP thing and they will be dealing direct with the insurance company of their choice (think heavy lobbying of your state gov't).  What is going to happen to the people selling health insurance now?  Is this another huge layoff in the small insurance companies looming? Can you imagine the paperwork that is going to be associated with this on a federal and a state level?

My questions are what about the employees that sign on and work for two or three weeks and then quit, does that count towards your 50 minimum.  Lord, seasonal business is going to be hit big time since part timers are counted now as full timers are counted.  The other question is does the 8% tax on all payroll begin last Tuesday when the bill was signed into law so they can get some money saved up for all this influx of health care? Does the 8% pertain to business with less than 50 employees?  From what I read it looked as if the 8% added tax was on all employees no matter what size the business?  I just cannot imagine how much each week 8% of every payroll check in America could total.

Where on earth are all these doctors going to come from? 

For all those laid off with no chance of those jobs returning, it looks like you get Medicaid and just in time for all the hospitals and doctors who now are refusing Medicaid,  I don't know a single doctor who accepts it and there are big signs in the offices that they do not accept it so is the government going to make them accept those patients?

All small business have a good lawyer, and an in-house accountant, and now they are all going to have to hire an insurance specialist just to handle the paperwork and keep them away from crippling penalties!  Good luck all of you budding entrepreneurs.

The one thing I do not understand is why anyone who is working the usual 80 hour week owning their own business would want to keep on working hard and growing larger and employing more people if you are going to be punished with all these new taxes.  It looks like you should all lay back and let the government do what it wants and take care of everyone.  Just knock along, go fishing more, travel more and don't try to make those extra bucks.  If you save and earn interest and dividends or have houses that are rented out they are targeting those for huge tax increases.  Just sit back with the money in the bank at 1% interest and live like those on welfare; no worries, mate!  If you die with any money or property you just give 50% of that to the death taxes, so spend it and enjoy life. If you run out the government will take care of you, like Nancy Pelosi said artists and writers now no longer have to have other jobs to have health care and they can paint and write with no fear. The government is there to give them health care.

Here are a few items I got from the bill, but they could be amended  or changed from the Senate as this is a bill very much in flux right now.  I was mostly interested in small business applications.

You must pay the Health Choices Commissioner (the head of SHOP in your state) 8% of the average wages paid during a predefined period of enrollment. They charge you a lower percentage if your annual payroll is less than $400,000.

If you are caught not paying the fine, the charges are 100.00 per day not paid and other interest and penalties. The company or business will not be penalized if you have less than 50 employees

Companies with more than 50 employees–you will not get any tax credits.  Cadillac health insurance will be taxed at 40% starting in 2014.  

The business will be penalized $2,000.00 per full-time employee if you have over 50 employees and do not auto put them in health insurance.

I cannot believe I saw Castro yucking it up on TV and proclaiming how wonderful it is that America finally saw the light and came over to his side of the street.  And it was a bloodless coup.  I suppose Obama will be down there smoking a celebratory cigar with him soon.

[United we stand]  Yeah, we who stand and work together carry those who ride along on benefits.  I don't think so.

Here is the way the Republican Party operates these days in their attempt to protect the profits of the health insurance industry:   Before the healthcare debate even began, the Republicans unleashed their propaganda attack trying to scare the American public with constant talk of death panels, Medicare cuts and rationed care.  Remember Sarah Palin’s claim that her parents and child would have to stand before Obama’s death panels.  Purveyors of these falsehoods are the talk radio terrorists and the Tea Party organizers.  The gullible are out there and many of them believed the lies and the spin. They want to believe it.

After the false claims had poisoned the populace, the Republicans polled their followers and said, “The people don’t want healthcare reform.  They love their health insurance companies the way they are.” Then the Republican mantra became, “We have to oppose healthcare reform; the people don’t want it.” 

They then convinced a large segment of the population that the only reform needed was so-called tort reform that would keep doctors from being sued.  What that really means is they want to protect large insurance companies who insure the doctors.  When you go in for lung surgery and the doctor removes the wrong lung, the Republicans don’t want you to collect from the doctor’s liability insurance company.  That is Republican Party healthcare reform.

The Republican Party is a dishonest organization; a shadow of its former self.  It should follow Rush Limbaugh to Costa Rica where they would all be covered by Costa Rica's national health care system.

There’s always an agenda with the From the Right guy. He started off saying that he thought the threats to Democrats for passing healthcare were reprehensible. I was impressed. Then as usual he went back to running down a litany of threats and other deeds that were every bit as bad that happened to the Right when McCain was running for office years ago. He can’t stop himself. He started off taking the high road then in the middle he veered off into a version of "but they did it first" mentality. I almost thought he was above that. Oh well, I’ve been wrong before. Its hard to get out of the mud when you’re buried up to your axles. He cannot just say someone from the Right is wrong and leave it alone. He has to find a time in history where someone else did the same thing as if that justifies the current screw up. That’s not progress that’s regression in its purest form. Welcome back to the past. 

The cannibal called the waiter over and asked, 'Why such a huge price difference for the politicians?' The cook replied, 'Have you ever tried to clean one? They're so full of shit, it takes all morning.'

My mother needed care I could not provide. I just could not afford a fulltime nurse. She received good care from Medicare/Aid for her last few years. I don't know what I would have done with out that help. Health care needs some help. It's sick.

This being the greatest country in the world I can't help but think when the smoke clears we will find the center again.

"Baby killer”, death threats, racial slurs and spitting on Congressmen. Our founding fathers must be so ashamed.

[Healthcare Bill] The hysteria from the Party of No is settling down now that they’ve actually read the bill and found that all their fears aren’t real. Now they’re just worried about the cost. Let’s see what fear they can try to instill about the cost. Income tax going up 75% according to one TV show.

Ann Coulter's speech was cancelled because she made a remark that a local Muslim should take a camel instead of the bus.

So much for freedom of speech in Canada! http://www.bing.com/news/search?q=%22ann+coulter+speech%22&FORM=EWRE

[From the Right guy gets it wrong again] Ann Coulter's event was cancelled by the organizers. She wasn't "banned" from speaking by authorities. And the "threat" was interpreted as such by a spokesman for the organizers: "A spokesman for the organizers said Coulter was advised against appearing after about 2,000 "threatening" students crowded the entrance to Marion Hall, posing a security threat. 'It would be physically dangerous for Ann Coulter to proceed with this event,' said conservative political activist Ezra Levant inside the hall."

There are blatant threats of harm for members of Congress and you're bringing up William Ayers? If people ask what you do, do you say you're the GOP spin doctor for a website in Big Pine Key? Hell of a hobby in your autumn years. Why don't you take up gardening instead of twisting facts? Yammer to the tomatoes about your fears of "Mr." Obama. I'm sure you'll get an appropriate response--silence.

[Tanning bed tax] It has been announced that the FDA is conceding a 10% excise tax on tanning bed use. The tax should bring in approx. $ 2.5 billion in 10 years. So now they want to tax you for sunning your buns in a saloon. No doubt someone from the FDA will be there to play cabana boy and slather you with lotion or hand you a towel. What the collected tax will be used for is anyone's guess, but one thing I'm sure of, if they say, "It's for the children",  it will pass. 

I love all of you health care experts out there (including Nancy Pelosi). You don't know what this bill will eventually cost the average hard working American. Wait till the IRS raises you tax rate to 55-65% then you'll wonder why you can't afford to buy groceries. The average working American still won't have inexpensive health insurance; only the lazy, resource sucking people will. Good work Democrats.

It's a shame the teabaggers have hi-jacked the republican party and made them look just as looney as any Liberals have ever made the Democrats look. I hate to say it, but the far left looks almost sane compared to the teabaggers. Those folks still believe the President’s not an American and that we should be able to carry firearms into town hall meetings. The Tea party is done. Put a fork in them.

I noticed that some on here are talking about the crowing some Democrats have been doing concerning healthcare and saying that’s not very dignified. I think the Republicans crowed just as much and wrote long political comments on here about the Mass. victory for Republican Mr Brown. In fact some on here made comments such as, "Now do you hear us teabaggers?" like it was a monumental time in history. Both sides crow, its not reserved for one side only.

[Healthcare] I did not volunteer to be the breadwinner/wage earner for unlimited numbers of welfare moochers.

[From the Right] It’s memory testing quiz time! It’s multiple choice. The winner will get a free hot dog at the Tax Day Tea Party. (all entries must be time stamped,  one winner only.) Finish this sentence:   Mr. Obama repeatedly bragged and guaranteed us that his Obamacare bill will: (pick only one)

1. Cure cancer.
2. Make Ann Coulter be permanently infected with laryngitis.
3. Turn fat ladies thin.
4. Prohibit insurance companies from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions, beginning immediately, immediately, immediately.
5. Stop Joe Biden from dropping the “F” bomb.

If you picked #4 you’re a winner. If you believed him, you’re a loser.

It just isn’t so.  There will be a special prize if the winner can tell us how many times he made the promise. I know that our liberal sneak readers will cry BS, so I urge them to read all about it at: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/Whoops-ObamaCare-doesnt-cover-pre-existing-conditions-after-all-89007962.html

(Part II) Want to have a lot of fun with Tea Party folks? Just come on over to U.S.1 and Key Deer on April 15^th.  You’ll get a chance to meet and greet a passel of your neighbors and locals from Marathon to Key West. There is no real organization in operation, so everybody will be a stranger for the first 5 minutes. About the only thing that these folks have in common is an abiding love of our nation and deep concern for the direction it is being steered.  

Yesterday a poster mockingly suggested asking Tea Party folks’ questions that he thinks would embarrass them. Let me be the first to answer a few of those questions. I can’t speak for a single soul other than myself, but as to the sales tax to pay for sewers. You bet I’d vote for it. The whole damn project was forced on us by an overwhelmingly powerful government. We have no choice, we have to do it.  Just for the record, most Tea Party folks abhor powerful government. I think that the mocking poster does too.  Whether or not sewers are a good idea, the project must go on because big government says so. To be up front, I too think that it is a good idea, but small local government did not decide the issue. That is flat wrong. There are only about 70K people who actually live in Monroe. But, on any given day it’s likely there are well over 150K people in the Keys. Now we all know that the snow birds are full of poop,  so it’s got to go somewhere.  Everybody uses the sewers, everybody should pay. A sales tax is the perfect vehicle. If you poop you pay, no means testing there, no redistribution of wealth, only pay as you “go”. As to Social Security. You bet I take my Social Security benefits. I'd take more if I could. Big government has robbed me of about 6% of everything that I have earned since I was about 14 years old to fund Social Security. Those dollars have been misused and wasted by big government. I figured it out recently and learned that if I had gotten that money instead of big government and had I ladder invested it at minimal return, I would now be a multi millionaire. So, you can be rock sure that I’ll take all I can because I’ll never get back what was taken from me by big government. Neither will you. As it now stands I get a tiny monthly benefit that dies when I do. Today it takes 3 people working full time to contribute enough so that I get my benefit. It will get worse; SS will go broke very soon, possibly within a year or two. Bye Bye benefits. Socialist government bites again.  I made decent money, but it would be nearly impossible to live on my Social Security benefit. No swine flu shots for me this year, our big government refused to give me one because I was too old. Big government stopped me from even buying one. It was big government that screwed the pooch by not making enough vaccine to go around.  Some big government bureaucrat made the decision to slam the door on old farts like me. Socialized medicine bites. Did you know that Medicaid refuses twice as many claims as private insurance? I most sincerely invite the questioning poster to the Tea Party, come on out and have a hot dog that was paid for by someone who had to work of a living. Be a liberal, grab a freebee. We’ll chat. I think we have a lot in common.  It will be fun. You’ll recognize me -- I’ll be the old fart.

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Friday March 26, 2010

Thursday March 25, 2010

[Season] The mercury’s dropped dramatically up north, the TV shows us nothing but a scrim of freezing white blizzard-blown flakes piling up, and here we are, just a few hours away – Paradise!  And, voila, Season arrives. A long, rocky road. 

Some may say inconvenient at best but the truth is a majority of us see a rapidly-repeating dollar sign, the cha-ching at the register that only a tourist has the power to produce.  In the end, our lifestyle continues because, yes, and suddenly it’s Season!  Some of us grin and bear it.  Others embrace it.  Either way, here it is.  May the happiness and joy of those who’ve come to visit rub off on all of us.  What a privilege it is to be the caretakers of such an incredible part of the world. 

The next meeting of our computer club is coming up this Saturday, March 27, 10 am at the Senior Center.  Hope to see you there. Bulletin Board

[Plugged CanalsNow that we know that No Name will get electric, all of us that live on plugged canals should have learned something. No matter what you knew before you purchased, if you whine loud enough, you get what you want.

So let's start whining and open these damned canals! 

[Old Folks Home] Considering that there are many seniors in the Keys and definitely in the state of FL in general, you'd think there'd be more assisted living facilities.  As your loved one’s health declines, his or her independence may follow. At this point, people will consider alternate living arrangements and oddly enough, our Middle Keys does not have any facilities.

Assisted living is aimed at helping residents remain as self-sufficient as possible with the assurance of assistance when it's needed. Jobs would be generated if our Middle Keys had any.  These residences usually provide a combination of housing, meals, personal care and support, social activities, 24-hour supervision, and in some residences, health-related services. It’s all conveniently gathered in a homelike setting.  

[Ignorant Kids] All Parents should be working with their children at home everyday to make sure that those children complete and know and understand everything covered in that day's homework from school.  What a wonderful world it would be.

[Census]  Can anyone explain to me why we are counting legitimate tax payers?  Is it to let the government know how may illegals we can support?

[Sloan] Just before dawn today, I had a dream that, on waking, would turn me toward a Birmingham couple I have known most of my life. But just before I came out of the dream, I heard a person’s name. A woman’s name. The same name mentioned by Major’s old girlfriend, who told me about him having a severe case of Peyroine’s disease, which prevented him from having sexual intercourse with her. The name of an even earlier girlfriend of Major, according to the woman who told me about the Peyroine’s disease. The name of woman I had known only on sight and by reputation, but I had known people pretty well who knew and ran with her.

Before I turned in last night, the woman of the couple my dream would turn me toward, forwarded a news update on Major’s suicide and his attempt to disguise it as murder. This was the first email I’d ever gotten from her. We have not seen each other in years. Even longer since we had any kind of conversation. I wrote back saying I felt it was time for me to find out who pushed Major over the edge, and over what.

This couple used to live across the street from me in Birmingham. The husband has been receiving my posts for years. I’m pretty sure, no, I’m more than pretty sure this couple know this even older of Major’s girlfriends. That’s why I am asking them to go have a talk with this woman. In the spirit of friendship and respect for the dead and the living, I ask then to talk with Scout Carr, and then report back to me how she handled being told that Sloan Bashinsky said there is a special place in hell reserved for her, for threatening Major with public exposure of his Peyroine’s disease.

Someone indeed did kill Major – Scout Carr. His attempt to make it look like someone else killed him was based in fact. No way could Major have coped with the effect such a disclosure, accompanied by likely further disclosure that he was bisexual, would have on him, and on his two wives and his and their children. No way could Major have coped with that. No way.  

His brother

The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

Say no, no to nano. Nanotechnology Bringing Foods, Regulated or Not, to Grocery Near You - AOL News

[Candidates] I would like to see anyone running for the Monroe County Commission state right up front, in no uncertain terms, whether they are for or against 3 fundamental issues down here.

1. Illegal and legal downstairs enclosures of stilt houses.  
2. Short term vacation rentals in our neighborhoods. 
3. Incorporating anymore areas of Monroe County into cities or anything else.

[Real Estate] Zillow is absolutely worthless for valuing home prices in the Florida Keys. They do not differentiate between dry lot homes on one side of a street and open water homes on the other.  What ever has sold last in a neighborhood is what they use for a comparable price. In the Keys it is the land first and the home second.  Zillow only goes by square footage and nearest home to sell for their pricing.   

Zoo and circus animals live a long, healthy life.  Every need is supplied by their keepers. They have their security, but only at the expense of their freedom.  Many Americans are choosing to follow their example.  Pray that our keepers keep our best interests at heart.

[Good Landscaper] Organic Accents is a local company that I have used for many years. The owner is Tim and he is very knowledgeable in all areas. His prices are reasonable and best of all he shows up when he says he will. If you want to see his work just drive by Boondocks. He did the entire install and maintains it as well. That lawn is the most beautiful I have ever seen down here. You can reach him at 872-9185.

[Is there anyplace left in the world where I can be work hard, earn as much as I want] The only place left in America that you can do that in is Galt's Gulch. Unfortunately I can't tell you where that is located, you will have to find it on your own.

[Reliable Landscapers] Alex Landscaping in Marathon is great. They are always on time and do a wonderful job.

[Poker Run] Southernmost ABATE will hold it's annual March Madness Poker Run this Sunday, March 28. $5 per hand.

Starting from the South:
First stop Hogfish Bar & Grill (mm 4), last bike out at 12:45
Second stop Geiger Key (mm 10.5), last bike out 1:45
Last stop Sugarloaf Lodge (mm 17) arrive at 2:00.

Starting from the North:
First stop Caribbean Club (mm 104), last bike out 10:30
Second stop Island Grill (mm 85.5), last bike out 11:30
Third stop Hurricane (mm 49.5) last bike out 12:30
Forth stop Looe Key Tiki (mm 27.5) last bike out 1:30
Last stop Sugarloaf Lodge (mm 17) arrive 2:00.
Bulletin Board

[Reliable Landscapers] Alex Landscaping in Marathon is great. They are always on time and do a wonderful job.

[Demolition] How about a little local news? If there's nothing going on now, what will it be like this summer?

I see where they are tearing down the nursery building on the highway. Guess they'll be building a building for the Fish and Foul Group.

Got a few minutes to kill? World’s longest train. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LsuNWjRaAo

[Big Pine Moose Lodge] Yes you do need to be a member or guest of a member to attend these activities. A small price to enjoy the Lodge and its functions and help the community at the same time. Simply ask or find a friend who thinks you are a nice fellow or lady and ask them to sponsor you. It's not like the old days here at the Moose. You can visit our web site at www.bigpinemoose.org and see for yourself.

[It is not for them or you to choose who I help] Have you forgotten what made this country great? The mindset of “united we stand”. That does not only apply to war. It is our strength.

Children write about the Ocean.

1. This is a picture of an octopus. It has eight testicles. (Kelly, age 6)

2. Oysters' balls are called pearls. (Jerry, age 6)

3. If you are surrounded by ocean, you are an island. If you don't have ocean all round you, you are incontinent. (Alex, age 7)

4. Sharks are ugly and mean, and have big teeth, just like Emily Richardson. She's not my friend any more. (Kylie, age 6)

5. A dolphin breaths through a butthole on the top of its head. (Billy, age 8)

6. My uncle goes out in his boat with 2 other men and a woman and pots and comes back with crabs. (Millie, age 6)

7. When ships had sails, they used to use the trade winds to cross the ocean. Sometimes when the wind didn't blow the sailors would whistle to make the wind come. My brother said they would have been better off eating beans. (William, age 7)

8. Mermaids live in the ocean. I like mermaids. They are beautiful and I like their shiny tails, but how on earth do mermaids get pregnant? Like, really? (Helen, age 9)

9. I'm not going to write about the ocean. My baby brother is always crying, my Dad keeps yelling at my Mom, and my big sister has just got pregnant, so I can't think what to write. (Amy, age 6)

10. Some fish are dangerous. Jelly fish can sting. Electric eels can give you a shock. They have to live in caves under the sea where I think they have to plug themselves into chargers. (Christopher, age 7)

11. When you go swimming in the ocean, it is very cold, and it makes my Willy small. (Kevin, age 6)

12. Divers have to be safe when they go under the water. Divers can't go down alone, so they have to go down on each other. (Becky, age 8)

13. On vacation my Mom went water skiing. She fell off when she was going very fast. She says she won't do it again because water fired right up her ass. (Julie, age 7)

14. The ocean is made up of water and fish. Why the fish don't drown I don't know. (Bobby, age 6)

15. My dad was a sailor on the ocean. He knows all about the ocean. What he doesn't know is why he quit being a sailor and married my mom. (James, age 7)

Navy exercise may effect traffic in the Keys. Scenario: a terrorist attack. Navy drill may affect traffic | KeysNews.com 

We are a dive center looking for an enthusiastic person to help us with our operation. No dive experience is required, but must have excellent customer service skills. Duties would mainly be working in our shop, booking dives and helping our retail customers. This may be a good opportunity for someone who would like to learn to dive or an experienced diver who would like to dive more. Please call 305-872-2319. Classified Ads

If Alcoholics Anonymous claims to have saved millions of drunks with the Alcoholics Anonymous 12 Step program over the last 70-odd years, then there must be people walking around who have had all their character defects and shortcomings removed by God. That’s what steppers do in step 6 & 7. Step 6 states that “you were entirely ready to have God remove all your defects of character (sins).” Step 7 states that “you humbly asked Him to remove your shortcomings.” That's two of the points of step-work, isn't it? If the Steps work and millions of people have been really working the Steps, there must be thousands of people out the in stepper-land who have had their character defects and shortcomings removed by God. I’m not talking perfection here as no one is perfect.

I want to see these defects-less people. How many are there? Where are they? They obviously aren’t any in the AA meeting rooms. If there aren't any, it either means the Steps don't work, God says "no" all the time or no one is working, or can, really work the Steps. In the Big Book it states your God can be anything you want him to be. If you’re God (higher power) is the Golden Gate Bridge or some dead movie actor or the AA group as a whole, which is suggested in the Big Book then you are praying to a false God. Do you really think that a deceased actor can do this for you from his grave?

And when God denies your request to remove your defects that kind of blows the whole 12 step program doesn’t it? Remember in Step 3 you turned your will over to God so now you have no will and your request has be denied. Now your working the steps is really screwed.

NATIONAL POLITICS

[Obama Stronger] It seems Americans are starting to see that our President can fight back when he’s pushed up against a wall and will stand his ground when making principled decisions that benefit the American people. The results are Obama’s popularity numbers are on the rise and I don’t think the landslide the repubs and the wacky teabag swingers are predicting in the next round of elections will come to fruition. Americans are tired of working to help every other country in the world and it seems we are glad to help others here in the United States. Imagine that, Americans helping other Americans.

[Obama Out] Boy, there sure are lots of liberals and socialists on the Coconut Telegraph. They can’t stand that this so-called president is not going too be reelected. He’s all done. That’s a fact, Jack!

[Senator Boehner] I used to vote for whom I thought was the best person for the job. I will no longer vote for any Republicans. They have shown me just how much they are interested in the American people's welfare. I wish I had a picture of that Boehner guy for my dart board. He makes me mad every time I see his slicky-boy face and every time he spews out another set of lies. He is the poster boy for everything I hate about the way the Republicans are conducting themselves.

[Recipients hate Social Programs] Another right wing lie is spouted about people being forced to buy health insurance. First of all, it was a republican idea. The republicans didn't want free-loaders, they want people to pay. Look it up. Secondly it does not apply to poor people. It only applies to individuals making more than $44,000 a year or families making more than $200,000 a year. Chances are that a lot of people in that bracket already have employer paid health insurance. Last, it does not take effect until 2014. Finally I am sure the people complaining already are, or soon will be, collecting Social Security, Medicare, and other forms of government benefits and will be bigger moochers than anyone they complain about.

Your payments into Social Security years past do not begin to cover the benefits that are being paid out to you these days.

[Healthcare] Mr Obama and his top staffers made sure that they and their children were exempt from the health care bill. I guess good enough for us, but not for them. I regret voting for him.

[Healthcare] Shit is hitting the fan. Now the ones that voted for Obama are pissed. If you don't buy insurance you will be fined. If you don't pay the fine, you’ll go to jail. See you in jail. Jail construction should be great. Maybe I can build the one I'll be in.

[Healthcare reform] What it means to you right now. Health reform: What it means to you right now | freep.com | Detroit Free Press

So Rush Limbaugh is going move to Costa Rica, huh? Well Rush, don't let the door hit you in your big fat ass on the way out. Take Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Sarah Palin, Glen Beck, Ann Coulter and the rest of the gang of right wing jerks from "Cluster Fox" with you. Oh, and you can have the From the Right guy too.

[Tea Party] Want to have a little fun with the tea party folks? You know the ones that want No more taxes for anything. Go to the rally and ask them a few questions then be ready for a surprise.

Ask them if they will vote yes on a referendum for an increase of the sales tax to pay for their home’s mandated sewers.

Then ask them why they didn’t protest when our County added 4 cents onto our fuel taxes at the pump.

Then ask them if they will accept their government’s Social Security checks, put in place by the Democrats awhile back -- you know, that socialist government.

Then ask them if they went and got free government sponsored flu shots this year or if they demanded their own insurance company give it to them.

They wouldn’t accept government being involved with their healthcare needs would they? If they answer yes to any one of those questions please don’t laugh right at them. Be polite enough to walk away first, then laugh. I bet the Party of No all of a sudden becomes the Party of Yes.

Only the senior Bush landed on a carrier. "W" was in the Texas Air National Guard. The only way he would have landed on a carrier during his military career was if he was lost and clueless. Oh, wait a minute … never mind.

[From the Right] It’s been reliably reported that at least 10 members of Congress who voted for Obamacare have received threats sufficiently serious to warrant police inquiry. I hope that all CT fans can agree that any action of that sort is reprehensible beyond words. If, if those low life cowards who made those threats claim to be motivated by right wing motives, they accomplish nothing except to damage the reputation and message of all persons associated with the Republican Party, the Conservative thinkers, and the Tea Party.  The damage potential could warrant a dirty trick by left wing loons. If the threats were made by left wing loons posing as right wing loons, if they got away with it, their efforts would damage the credibility of the right wing message. Whoever is responsible, these scum are no more representative of any mainstream political  belief than are the left wing loons who engage in ethnic terrorism or environmental terrorism. Every thinking American has got to understand that at each end of the political spectrum there are those who traffic in hate, fear, and violence. The actions of the Ayrian Nation and similar groups claiming to be right wing, are every bit as reprehensible as the actions and beliefs of Mr. Obama’s friend and supporter William Ayers. Ayers was a left wing terrorist bomber who bombed U.S. police stations.  Then of course there is Ted Kazinski, the Unibomber. Kazinski was a left wing eco terrorist who killed and maimed his right wing enemies with package bombs delivered by the US mail. Let’s not forget that McCain offices suffered 6 incidents of vandalism during the campaign. Just last month Republican Rep. Jim Bunning got death threats during the unemployment debate. In Ottawa, authorities banned Ann Coulter from speaking because of threats of violence from left wing protestors. If it is shown that the demented people who engaged in this threat behavior against Democrat politicos are right wingers, their actions are beyond any reason and are condemned by all serious thinkers of all political persuasions. I hope that we can agree on this.

(Part II) It would truly be refreshing and perhaps even challenging if the liberals lurking amongst us could come up with a new a vibrant talking point to replace “The Party of No” when speaking of anything Republican. Especially when you realize that both parties are the party of “NO”. One says No to the massive Democrat caused debt that will cripple our nation. We also say NO to an administration that is doing its damndest to control all that we do. We say No to an adminstration that is on its way to saddle our grandchildren with nation crushing debt.  We proudly say NO to an administration that is hell bent on reshaping America into a nation that Rev. Wright or Frank Marshall Davis would approve of. A nation that could be BFF’s with Cuba and Venezuela. And of course we have the Democrats who routinely say NO to the America that our founders fought and died for.  The say NO to  the American Constitution, American freedom of speech, and of course the great American right to fail abysmally or succeed beyond all reason. That party says “yes” to conformity and subjugation to an overarching government.  They lustily embrace mediocrity. A poster yesterday quoted Gallup’s polling of “adults” which claimed that 49% of American adults supported Obamacare while 51% were of either  opposed it or had no opinion. On the other hand there is Rasmussen who only polls likely voters. By the way, Rasmussen exactly forecast the Obama presidential win; he was the only one who got the numbers correct. Rasmussen says:  “Rasmussen Reports national telephone poll, taken Friday and Saturday nights, shows that 41% of likely voters favor the health care plan. Fifty-four percent (54%) are opposed. These figures have barely budged in recent months. Another finding that has remained constant is that the intensity is stronger among those who oppose the plan. The latest findings include 26% who Strongly Favor the plan and 45% who Strongly Oppose it.”  We still have freedoms to choose our pollsters. So, trust whoever you wish. As for me, I believe that the deeply held convictions of 54% of likely American citizens who are likely voters trumps the amorphous views of 49% of “adults”. We'll find out in November because the House vote sure doesn't seem to be the will of the American public.

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Thursday March 25, 2010

Wednesday March 24, 2010

[Blacky Cruz] Yes I remember him. He certainly knew a lot about sea turtles. There was even tension between him and some of the more educated "experts” of the day. Just because Blacky didn't have a PhD behind his name, they wouldn't take him seriously. His practical knowledge was enormous. He also had a permit from the state to do research.  Recently his grandson, who still lives here, gave me a book that Blacky wrote about sea turtles. In it he explained how he got his interest and first hand knowledge of turtles. Someone borrowed the book but I believe the title was Saga of the sea turtle interesting reading for anyone interested in the history of the old Keys. The turtle pens are still there on Ramrod Key, I see them every day. I have been the caretaker of that property since 1979.
http://bigpinekey.com/History/history_page1.htm

[Un-incorporate Marathon. We would no longer be on our own, but rather back under the care of the state]  You never left the care of the State, same for Monroe County.  A percentage of your taxes continue to fund those operations.

Dog Found outside Dr Golden’s office on Tuesday March 23rd One terrier mix that had just had a litter.  One half Jack Russell the other half is unknown.  I would love for the owner to come forward as the female is crying for her pups. Stand Up for Animals will require money to pick them up.  Call Kathy at 305-873-9292

Can anyone suggest a good landscaper that can design and install? Someone that knows what they are doing and will show up to do it in the lowers Keys area.

[AA Basher]  Well the basher is back after a blissful month or so without his vitriolic diatribes against AA. He must have just gotten out of another rehab failure.

[Real Estate] Zillow.com is the real estate value site. Use common sense to judge your properties’ value. http://www.zillow.com/

[When I was a kid] I really enjoyed that post yesterday. You made me laugh all the way through, what a nice change from listening to the news. I'm an old bag of fifty seven and one of the few important things I've learned in life is that to maintain a sense of humor will keep you and your family at your level best.

All about the Air Shows. http://www.asb.tv/

[Moose Tiki Bar] I thought you had to belong to the Moose or have someone that belongs invite you to the Tiki Bar--or any other thing they have going on like the Friday night fish fries?

[Corn Silk] No really! No joke.  I see why you thought it was a tech joke, but I’m not that much of a UNIX geek.

The corn silk is the stigma and style of the female part of the corn. The stigma is the sticky end of the silk where pollen attaches. The style is the tube from the stigma to the ovary, where the embryo (kernel) forms on the fruitcase (cob). Every ovary (a potential kernel) has its own strand of corn silk.

[Independence] Is there any place left in the world where I can be free to work hard, earn as much as I need (or want), and make my own decisions or help my neighbors because I just want to? I’m moving.

Doggie Gaga. The Doggie Gaga Project Jesse Freidin San Francisco Fine Art Dog Photographer | Jesse Freidin Photographer

The census information is already paid for by the marketing companies partnering with the Census Bureau.  It's already sold. 

Absolutely be civil, but also make sure the person on your doorstep is a Monroe County resident, not a Miami-Homestead import.  You have the right to request a Monroe County resident to do your census.

[Anger towards A.A.] I think most of it stems from the fact that their pissed off because they have to stop drinking.

Howard Livingston’s fifth full studio CD will be released on Saturday, March 27^th, but before the official release he's given Conch Republic Radio the okay to play the CD in it's entirety.  They will be doing that today Wednesday March 24th at 7:00 pm.  No matter where you are you can tune in online at www.conchrepublicradio.com and listen to the new CD.    That's 14 tracks with only one song that you've heard before.  The new CD includes a new studio version of "Livin' On Key West Time".  

[Life in the Keys-isms] Very well stated. You are obviously a patriotic American. You made us think about all those dumb yo-yos.

Red Light Runners. It's dangerous out there! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qvXbIenivk

[Conspiracy] 9/11 cover-up? http://www.911truth.org/article.php?story=20100310161739525

What a Wonderful World. For all you mushy people out there! Fawn video

Think outside the bottle? Millions in Taxpayer Dollars Flow to Bottled Water | CommonDreams.org

NATIONAL POLITICS

Republicans don’t care about the right thing to do. All they care about is money and war—never what’s right.

[Healthcare Bill] It's a great day in America.  After 100 years, America has finally passed a healthcare bill.  Republicans have proven themselves to truly be the Party of No.  Not one Republican had the guts to go against the power and money of their party.  So sad.  They made a horrible mistake for their party.  They gambled and they will soon realize they lost because people are going see that it was the right thing to do.  Already, Gallup Poll has the following results:  49% say it is a good bill, 40% say it is not and 11% don't know.  My family and I thank President Obama and the Democratic Party for helping us with our healthcare issues.  It was the right thing to do.  It was the moral thing to do.  

[Congress] If you're not scared to death of our government you haven't got your eyes open.  Only the fools in Congress would vote for a bill that they haven't even read and wouldn't understand if they did.  Just when you think things could not get worse, look out!

If you are retired or nearing retirement age, please don't vote for any Republican for Congress.  The agenda of the Party of No is not only to repeal the healthcare bill; they also want to roll back Medicare, limit Social Security eligibility and cut out the drug plan (Medicare Part D).  The propaganda campaign from now until the midterm elections will try to scare you with sound bites about "government takeover," "taking away your freedom," and all the other b.s. that is being orchestrated by their big corporate donors.

As one senator said yesterday, "When this health bill goes into effect, and none of the things Republicans warned about begin to happen--none of the death panels, none of the government takeover, none of the socialism--Republicans will have no credibility." Neither should they have your vote.

[Healthcare Bill] Al Sharpton enlightens the American voter. Video

[Healthcare] If you don’t have insurance they will fine you. If they don’t have money for insurance they don’t have money for a fine.  The lower class will just have 2 bills they can’t pay instead of one. All this is doing is trying to lower the cost of the upper and the middle class insurance premiums by trying to make the lower class join in. You can’t get blood out of a turnip.

[From the Right guy] You are argumentative, boorish, and a fool. From the Left, you are defensive, conniving, and an idiot.  Two parties with distinctly separate views; two groups to blame for stifling this country’s growth and world standing. You no longer care for what is best, you only care for what your “side” wants or profits from the most.  I read through the muck posted on the CT as well as across the web and can simply find no excuse for the downright ignorance that has become our political system and the overwhelming number of talking heads readily available to deliver this insanity. 

Knowledge of the issues and incessantly regurgitating party rhetoric day after day changes no one or nothing.  You accomplish nothing until you are able to formulate your own individual thought and express your opinion based on the merit of the issue, not what your “side” believes.  

Let’s see some originality.  Take a stance for what you believe instead of what your “side” is paid to believe.  Stop belittling our country and each other and you may all gain a small amount of credibility.  Maybe a few more people might feel inclined to scroll past “National Politics” and give your opinion a read.

The Republicans and the Tea Partiers are irrelevant in American politics.  They did it to themselves.

[Healthcare Bill] My wife and I are both independents. We would rather vote for the best man for the job instead of carrying a party’s lunch pail for them. After the healthcare program passed we will now both be voting for President Obama. (Yes, we both already have health insurance. Her thru her work and myself thru the VA)

[Obama’s healthcare program] Imagine that, Americans helping other Americans instead of helping other countries. This might be crazy enough to work. You put up a great fight Mr. President and the best man for the job won. Kudos.

[McCain Declares War] He says Democrats will get no cooperation on legislation the rest of the year (as if they were getting any now). I wish I could do that at my job when I don't get what I want.

Bush sucked and so does Obama. However the American public is too busy to realize or do anything about it. We are all busy because we are fighting among ourselves instead of fighting the problem in America today.

We have let ourselves be divided like spectators at a sporting event; it is the Republicans vs the Democrats and while we fight among ourselves to see who will win the game, politicians and corporate America have been left alone to do to us what they will. They are the only winners in this game so far.

We need our representatives to work together to improve our country and to do what is in our best interests not the interests of corporate America, they tell us when they are trying to get elected they will do just that, yet once they are elected they do the exact opposite. The worst part of this is that we continue to we let them do this with no recourse.

Democrats are not evil nor are Republicans. I have heard many good ideas from both yet they cannot find a way to work together. It’s time we demand that they find a way to put aside the differences and do what is right for the country. If they can not we need to elect new representation that will, and keep doing so until our voices are heard and our will is done.

Perhaps if all elected officials thought they were in jeopardy of losing their jobs they might be more willing to work together for the common good. It’s time for America to stop letting itself be a country divided and for all to come together as one team with respect and compromise in order to take back the control of our country that we have let slip away. If we do not then we will all lose the game.

Are the right-wing moon bats loosing it or what? Yesterday’s desperate posts and lies from the fearful right were so entertaining that I actually had to stop reading long enough to go nuke a bag of popcorn. Folks, I urge you to please go get the facts, don't give these wackos even one second of your time to fill you with fear-mongering and un-factual threats of government brutality and takeovers.  Oh, the desperation fills the air like napalm. As for the November Republican takeover—fat chance! We saw what your party cares about. Long live liberals, Democrats and the great American process of democracy.

Rush Limbaugh said on his radio show that if the Healthcare Reform Bill passed, he would go to Costa Rica. http://www.aticketforrush.com/

T.E.A. = Taxed Enough Already. If you can't agree with that I can only assume you are one of the parasite-moocher class bleeding the productive citizens of this country for everything you can get.  Or possibly one of the "ruler" class who thinks we're all too ignorant to see the big picture.  In either case it is attitude, not color that determines your membership.

[Healthcare Passed] The will of the people was ignored by lawyer/politicians who think we're all too stupid to handle our own lives.

ACORN is kaput. ACORN disbanding because of money woes, scandal

[Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen voted no on the healthcare bill]  Thanks for the tip!  I plan to keep a list handy when voting.  Those who inflicted this new phase of despotic rule on us will be voted out if I can help that happen in any way.

I saw Rudy Giuliani on the TV this morning.  He said that Obama rescued GM and Chrysler in order to save the UAW union.   It was obvious that the Republican Senators, especially the Southern ones, wanted to allow the American automakers to go under in order to kill off that Union.  The UAW was an active supporter of the Civil Rights movement in the South back in the day.

[From the Right] Today, the land rings with donkey braying. The left winger’s sound a lot like school girls, “Tee Hee Hee, we won, you lost, we kicked your Right Wing butts.”  O.K. folks lets think about who lost and who won, and how. For nearly a century, our left wing tagalongs have fought tooth and nail to socialize American medicine. For nearly a hundred years America has rejected it. This past week, America rejected it again. On the day of the House vote, on the day that Mr. Obama signed it into law, at least 6 out of 10 American were opposed to the legislation.  The Republicans and the Conservatives and the Tea Party did not lose, the American public lost. Ignoring the will of the people, our progressive President has signed his bill. Not all Democrats voted for it, in fact nearly 14% of them joined the Republicans in a “Nay” vote. No doubt that there were Democrat legislators who were convinced that a “Yay” vote was the principled thing to do.  But then what of the majority of the Democrat legislators who refused to vote for it until they were cajoled, threatened, and bribed. You must wonder how they would have voted if they had not been cajoled, threatened, and bribed. Rep. Stupak was hailed as being a principled resistor until he was given Presidential “promises” that his item of interest would be protected. Oh, by the way, he also got $766,000.00 for his pet projects in his home district when agreed to vote for Obamacare.  Over the next few months we will learn of the massive amounts of tax dollars that were spent on political bribes to buy Democrat votes. So, Mr. Obama and his minions have had a victory over the will of the American public. They found it necessary to descend to the level of gutter politics, they have surrendered the moral high ground. As of today only 17% of the American public is satisfied with Congressional conduct. Pundits of every stripe predict massive Democrat losses in November. Democrats have firmed the resolve of those who oppose them, and yet they bray, “Tee Hee, we won, you lost”.  Have you ever heard the term “pyrrhic victory?”

(Part II) Kudos the poster who expressed an interest in our national debt. Frankly it is a subject that most of us consider to be as dull as the famed pop corn fart. But it really is important; it affects everything that you do. The debt is nothing more than money owed. It is the accumulation of deficits.  Deficits are the amount that we have spent that is excess of the money that we have.  It’s credit. Right now we’re spending staggering amounts of money that we do not have and that we cannot earn. That debt costs us big bucks for every day that we owe the money. It’s the damned interest and we have to pay it. Now we pay by increasing taxes and, believe it or not, by borrowing more money. Which we have to pay for by raising taxes and borrowing even more money, that’s not a repeat or a typo, its fact. Its just nuts! In order to even operate our government, or pay for our bewildering array of ever growing entitlement programs, we must borrow money. Long tons of money. It makes all of China smile a lot.  If all of a sudden everyone refused to loan us money, massive portions of our government would just cease to operate. Social Security would soon die. All of the entitlement programs would be flushed. If our government were suddenly forced to operate on what it takes in alone, chaos would ensue. Don’t get me wrong, we should be operating on only what we do actually take in, but we are now so far behind the curve that it will take time to cure the ills.  The only way to get out of this whirlpool is to stop spending, today. Our government is glued to the teat of foreign money. We're just like junkies, or drunks. The more we use, the more we need. The more we need, the more it costs us to get it. We are forced to pay higher and higher interest rates, and we are forced to make political concessions to foreign lenders. You pay for the national debt everyday by having to pay more for everything.  And it’s about to get much worse. Because of our staggering debt, our credit rating is on the edge of taking a dump. That means it will cost us more money to borrow more money. We are chasing our tail and we are losing. We will trip and break our back unless we get our debt under control by cutting spending and entitlements.

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Wednesday March 24, 2010

Tuesday March 23, 2010

[Un-incorporate Marathon] The sweet, lovely lilting voice of dissent.  There’s just nothing like it.  The rock on which our republic was founded – a reminder that in the beginning we were nothing more than a core of revolutionaries up against the Queen’s domain, determined to change the status quo, determined to assert our independence.  For those of us who recall the last time a significant portion of our nation was involved in organized dissent, who recalls the Jefferson Airplane (Starship), the Dead, County Joe and the Fish.  Dylan and CSNY as purveyors of the truth, as artists intent on bringing about change, the act of rebellion is as welcome as a free slice of pie and a cup of Joe at the local diner. 

I’m pleased to report that dissent is brewing here in Marathon, having recently arrived on the doorsteps and in the mailboxes of the city’s residents in the form of a printed circular titled simply:  Un-incorporate Marathon.  And, as you might surmise, the contents of the circular are simple and to the point – it is a petition whose sole purpose is to garner enough support to dissolve the city of Marathon.  Dissolution of the City government will return us to the auspices of Monroe County.  We would no longer be on our own, but rather back under the care of the state. 

Ever wonder how they test toilets? Check out those little test “sausages”. http://www.watersmartinnovations.com/PDFs/Thursday/Napa%20C/800-%20John%20Koeller-%20MaP%20Testing-%205%20Year%20Anniversary.pdf

[Census] Please be kind, people, my husband is one of the census takers.  Don’t get caught up in all that paranoia.  They don’t want to know how much you earn or how many guns you have.  They are not selling your information; however, it just might get put to good use for future government dollars coming our way.  At the very least, please be civil. 

If you haven't been to the Moose Lodge lately, stop by our Tiki on a weekend. There are still some fun places to go on Big Pine.

I just don't get the anger towards A.A. It's so very simple. Take what you want and leave the rest. Put a buck in the jar or don't. Work the steps or don't. Work with a sponsor or don't. Drink or don't. What ever the case maybe, it's up to you. I have been sober for a few 24 hours and I couldn't have done it with out A.A.

I do know one fact. If It didn't work I would not be there. Feel free to move on to Weight Watchers. I understand some of those folks end up gaining weight. I also understand a few keep coming back. God bless them. It works if you work it. I can't see anything wrong with working to be the person you would like to be.

Do any of you remember Blacky Cruz? People who were here in the '50s and 60's may remember on old Conch named Blacky Cruz. Blacky had been a turtle fisherman out of Key West in his youth and after watching the decline of the turtle population he spent his senior years trying to undo some of the damage he had done while a young man.

He was given the use of some property and a canal located on Ramrod Key at the NE corner of Niles Channel and US 1. I think the property was owned by the Spotswoods. Blacky built an array of holding tanks, pens and incubators that he used for hatching and raising turtles. The incubators consisted of sand filled boxes mounted on legs. Each had a ramp that ran from the surface of the sand down into a large seawater tank. People who knew of Blacky and his interest in turtles would alert him to the presence of turtle nests and he would travel up and down the Keys collecting eggs from nests. He then buried the eggs in his incubators where they were kept damp until they hatched. When the baby turtles hatched they would dig up through the sand and then, after moving about on the surface of the incubator, they would stumble onto the ramp and slide down into the holding tank.

He fed and reared the hatchlings until they were about a year old and then released them into the wild. Since the newly hatched turtles were the most vulnerable to predation he figured that the one year head start he provided through his efforts was serving to promote the recovery of the local turtle population. He was trying to pay back for the impact made by him and his fellow fishermen. It’s hard to know whether his efforts were useful, but he meant well. Today, he would probably get arrested. History

Spot the wonder cat tries to find the right size box.

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up how they walked twenty-five miles to school every morning, uphill, barefoot both ways in the snow. And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it.

But now that I'm over the ripe old age of thirty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a damn Utopia.  And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it.

I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog.

There was no email. We had to actually write somebody a letter with a pen. Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there. Stamps were 10 cents.

Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass. Nowhere was safe.

There were no MP3s or Napsters or iTunes. If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself.

Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and mess it all up. There were no CD players. We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and eject it when it finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless. Cause, hey, that's how we rolled, baby, Dig?

We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting. If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it.

There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a damn call or receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your friends. Think of the horror not being in touch with someone 24/7. And then there's texting. Yeah, right. Please! You kids have no idea how annoying you are.

And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either. When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was. It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent, you just didn't know. You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister.

We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics. We had the Atari 2600 with games like Space Invaders and Asteroids. Your screen guy was a little square. You actually had to use your imagination. And there were no multiple levels or screens; it was just one screen forever. And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died. Just like life.

You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on. You were screwed when it came to channel surfing. You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel. No remote controls. Oh, no, what's the world coming to?

There was no Cartoon Network either. You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait all week for cartoons, you spoiled little rat-finks.

And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove. Imagine that?

And our parents told us to stay outside and play -- all day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside you were doing chores.  And car seats - oh, please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place.  See, that's exactly what I'm talking about. You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten. You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1980 or any time before.

[Life in the Key-isms] I can't believe you forgot the most favorite Key's "ism": Alcoholism

[Life in the Keys] I truly identify with your observations yesterday. For decades, we had the ideal neighborhood, people caring about people, then we began to see a slow turnover and it changed the entire vibe of community that we had and willingly shared. Now people seem so nasty, inconsiderate and selfish, bigoted and intolerant. I don't think this prevailing attitude is unique to the Keys it seems to be happening on a global level. Is it a symbol of over-population? Too many people all fighting for space and resources? I just know that it was a much better world when we subscribed to peace, love and understanding. Greedy capitalist and their mindless minions have had their way and it's ugly in the extreme.

But worry not; Mother Nature will always restore balance.

[Rush leaving USA] Hey there Rush, have a nice life down there in Costa Rica. I hope you're taking your Dittoheads with you.

The urge to save humanity is almost always only a false-face for the urge to rule it.

[More bleach in the gene pool]  Calif. shoplifters get prison after bragging on TV

[Census Conspiracy] The new purpose of the 2010 Census is for The New World Order. So they can know how many people they will have to deal with, on their 2012 agenda. It's getting close. The clock is ticking!

Sent from my iPhone

Our Ocean Wonderland:  The future of fishing. http://babelgum.com/browser.php#play/SEARCH_
SIMILAR,clipID:4021933,includeClip:true,order:MOST_
RELEVANT/0,4021933

[Tech joke] “Ear of corn has 800 Kernels”  And every one of them has it’s own string.

[AA Basher] There is a way to stop drinking alcohol. Just stop drinking. You can break your addiction. That way you don’t have to admit to anything. If you do stop on your own, your life will become manageable as you are not drunk all the time. You don’t have to believe that you are insane. You don’t have to turn your will over to the golden calf. You won’t have to take any inventories. You won’t have to admit all your sins to another drunk. You won’t have to have the golden calf remove your shortcomings. You won’t have to make a list of all the people you pissed off. You won’t have to apologize to anyone. You won’t have to follow the golden calf doing its will as you were given free will at birth. You won’t have to turn your life over to a bunch of drunks. You won’t have to spend the rest of your life hanging around with the drunks. If you stop boozing your life will get better, I know this for a fact and there is not one fact in the Biggest BS Book written by BS Wilson. The best thing about quitting is that you don’t have to attend the cult meetings for the rest of your life.

Ask your doctor if you have the disease of alcoholism. He will tell you that you have an alcohol addiction that can kill you and will kill you if you keep drinking, but he will not say your drinking is a disease. The disease theory is an accepted theory which keeps perpetuating the money machine of Alcoholics Anonymous and relieves drunks from guilt.

Chinese incentive to win.

[Life in the Keys-isms] Very well stated. You are obviously a patriotic American. You made us think about all those dumb yo-yos.

[Deer on Middle Torch Key] Just look around, there are key deer on all 3 Torches.

NATIONAL POLITICS

[Health Cops] I shudder to think of the enforcement of this new health care bill, soon to be the law of the land. I understand there will be 16,000 IRS newly hired agents. That's 16,000 new jobs for enforcers. 16,000 jobs with big pay, big benifets.16,000 jobs that will need mid-level and top-level management.16,000 IRS agents tying your medical records to your Federal Income tax. I think we all know and agree that health care needs to be reformed. I do feel this is  a very painful and costly way to go about it.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen voted no on the healthcare bill. She’s now higher up on my s**t list.

[National Debt] So what? I’ve lived through a few major national debts in my life and they haven’t inconvenienced me one bit. My business neither grows nor shrinks based on the Debt. So what’s the problem? As far as we are effected, it’s just a paper debt isn’t it?

Even though they held big rallies, the tea baggers and the GOP couldn't stop the will of the American people this weekend.

[I don’t care how much Obamacare costs or how much it will add to the Debt because it’s the right thing to do]  Brilliant! So we'll go broke and be able to help no one, that'll fix things perfectly.

Does anyone know where I can go to read the new health care bill in its entirety?

[Bushes] Can you land a plane on an aircraft carrier?  Can you land a plane at all?  Can you get a plane to get off of the ground?  If your premise holds that the Bushes are so damn stupid, how effing dumb are you?

Yeah, the people at the Teabaggers’ rally were “Democratic plants”. Man, your desperation is really getting serious. Try and relax, you live in the Keys. Quit looking for Goblins and Monsters infiltrating the nutty Teabaggers. Even plants couldn’t be as wacky as those folks.

Obama's under water in CNN's latest poll. I'm sure someone will call CNN a right-wing polling outfit.

According to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Monday, 51 percent of respondents disapprove of Obama's job performance and 46 percent approve of it.

The Tea Party is perfect for From the Right guy.  He is angry, bitter, prejudice, old, bored and closed-minded.  He fits right in. Good luck to him.

[Bushes were stupid] Father and son, both with prior military service who rose to the office of President of the United States of America must be stupid (for you I feel I must note the sarcasm). I bet you are a rocket scientist yourself, huh? You should really think about what you are saying and unless it is just too hard for you to comprehend, try not to degrade the highest and most esteemed leadership position in America, not to mention the individuals who have served in defense of this nation.

The rock star's going on tour again. Obama to sign health care reform into law, then promote it on the road

[From the Right] Implementation of Obamcare is going to be a fascinating exercise. I urge all you supporters to take careful note of what you currently spend on your health care. Make sure to check on our current national debt as well.  We’ll revisit those numbers in 12 months. Those of you who currently choose to spend nothing for health insurance will very soon be forced to start paying several thousands of dollars a year for health care insurance that you may or may not need to use. If you refuse you will be fined, the fine is $2500 or 2% of your income, whichever is greater. If you refuse to pay the fine, you may go to jail. Did you know that the IRS is going to add thousands of agents just to enforce this act? If you are a typical insured Keys family of two that makes over $58K, the CBO tells us that your health care premiums will increase between 10-13%. If your boss currently gives you health care insurance, the odds are that he will just pay the penalty fine and cut you loose. Enjoy. The dollars that you will be spending will subsidize my health care and my nephew Roscoe who is 35 and chooses not to work, and therefore will get his insurance free.  Both Roscoe and I say thank you very much. If you currently rely on Emergency Rooms as your primary source of health care, you are going to be a very unhappy camper. As of last night 30 – 35 million folks will soon be heading to ER’s for everything from sniffles to hang nails because they believe that the treatment is free. They’re right, it is free to them, but you will pay for it.  ER’s will be mobbed. If you rely on your family Doc, the same as above applies. Only worse because as many as 25% of the existing GP types will quit their practices, they won’t be making enough money. Then of course there is the problem of enticing new hands to become Doc’s. We already have a Doc shortage that is sure to get worse as the income and prestige of the profession heads for the toilet. Yes sir, I urge all of our Democrat friends to walk proud. While you can. Please remember it's only 6 months to November, in November America will remember.

(Part II) It is starting to get interesting. Earlier today we learned that the IRS is going to be the Obamacare police force. I've just learned that the thousands of new IRS agents that are going to be hired  are the kindly and understanding folks who will decide how much health insurance you must have and how much you're going to pay for it. Isn't that just freaking beautiful! This is just magic. Now we have Obama-cops to enforce Obamacare. If you don't pay up you go to Obama-jail. I can hear it now: "Hello Sir, We're from EIO. That’s Enforcement IRS Obama, don't be frightened, we're here to help." "Now, Farmer MacDonald, just how many pigs did you used to have on your farm before we seized it? Did you have an oink oink here and an oink oink there or did you have oink oinks everywhere?"  "Farmer MacDonald why have you refused to appear for your quarterly proctological exam, eei, eei, o demands to know?". It looks like Farmer MacDonald had a dime dropped on him by an Obama-formant

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Tuesday March 23, 2010

Monday March 22, 2010

[Life in the Keys] Let’s see, we’ve got nepotism, cronyism, egotism, elitism, fascism and the old standby pessimism.  Of course, we’ve also got patriotism, opportunism, positivism, and my own personal favorite optimism.  Unfortunately, of late, down here in the nation’s southernmost playground, we’ve seen so much more of the former than the latter when it comes to ‘isms.’  What’s happening to us as a community? 

 Why is it all we hear and read about is how badly we’re treating one another, how out of whack our elected officials seem to be, how avarice and generally over-the-top behavior is threatening a lifestyle that is intended to be both laidback and life-affirming.  In other words, basically you live in the Keys because the grind of the real world no longer works for you – you want to have nothing to do with it any longer.  The hustle, bustle and hubris have become anathema to you.  So what do you do when your duly elected officials, neighbors, friends and family alike start acting like a barnfull of horses’ patooties?  I’m not sure I know the answer. 

A Key Deer was spotted on Middle Torch Key Sunday. I’ve never seen one there before. It mist have swam over.

[Census] I will start by saying the poster yesterday was right on target.  The government is not only in the business of gathering information about everyone, but selling that information to other companies that use that information for a lot of purposes like  research, marketing, site planning, etc.

I worked for over 20 years as a research director specifically using the data we were able to get from the Census Bureau.  Okay so you say, “20 years working on the last census? Yes. The government has not been sitting idly by while this information is used for profit, not to mention political agendas.

Be careful what information you give out.  At one point, I had the entire database of every account holder in a 17 million person database.  This was housed on my PC!  Due to some confidentiality contracts, I can't say who, but I will say that the database and what it contains and what it is being used for scares the poop out of me.

The government is hiring census takers from Miami/Dade and putting them up in hotels with stipends as well. I have a friend from the mainland that got hired to do this, while a qualified local who applied for the job was turned down.

Don't trust the smiling face.  They might be a nice person just doing their job, but the consequences of the information you supply and where it goes is food for thought.

[AA basher] I’ve got nothing against the Automobile Association. Every now and then I need them to tow my car. I don’t know what that guy’s so mad at.

I saw Elvis in Sunday's CT banner! Maybe it was the Virgin Mary?

Half the fun of going out to a bar is people watching and the other parts would include having quality alcohol (not watered-down) in a nice glass with a fresh garnish. This includes fine wines and not generic brands served in a plastic cup. The Loose Cannon Bar and Grill is for loose cannons and Lynard Skynard. It is a very good thing that your type stays in Ramrod and forgets there are a hundred drinking establishments down in Key West with attractive, smiling servers and patrons. It is best that Piners stay in their element.

[Earth Day Cleanup on Cudjoe] The areas on both sides of the highway at the east end of Cudjoe has been sorely neglected any time there are cleanups. From wash-up and some dumping, there is a lot of stuff in the mangroves waiting to be pulled out -- stuff accumulated over many years, and just far enough off the right-of-way that FDOT never takes it. This would be a perfect time to hit this area.

If you have another area on Cudjoe you would rather work on, then that's great, too. Go for it!  But please join in to the 'official' clean up so the free bags will be provided and pickup can be arranged.

I hope you will join me in doing this, but it would not be the first time I do this kind of thing alone (some others of you also usually work alone with no help -- let's work together.). I know some of you likely have other Earth Day commitments already that day, and I can sure get behind that, but some of you don't; please help. If you know others who want to join in, all the better.

April 17. Sign up at 8am at the Wharf on Summerland or you can join us at the cleanup site after 8.Whatever works best for you. We need to know if you’re coming so we can have enough bags. We also will need to know if you have another cleanup spot.

Please email me if you can make it (or want to make it). Tahenize@aol.com

The bike path took part of the Tiki Bar’s parking. The lower parking lot floods. So what do patrons do? Ride our bikes?

[Angry AA basher] Even if everything you say is true, we’re thankful for the 3% who stay clean and sober. That’s a better average than the program you’re offering. Which is what again?

[Armadillo] You say you almost hit one, so there has to be at least one. Maybe it was an opossum?

[2010 Census] I had one show up at my door Friday the 19th who had the wrong paperwork. He showed back up this morning at my neighbor’s. All you have to answer is how many people, sexes and ages and you don't have to let them in your house.

[Slow Poke] Deer Lady in the grey minivan with paw print license plate holder, Slower traffic stays right.  That means if you are going 40 in a 55, you pull over to the right lane and not antagonize other drivers attempting to pass you.  Hang up your cell phone and drive the speed limit.  I bet you are pleased as punch that you were boss of us this Sunday morning going down US1 with a back-up of people following you for ten agonizing minutes as you drove way below the posted speed limit.  Too bad you were so focused on blocking us and talking on your cell phone that you did not see me give you the finger.  I am sure you see this particular finger quite often.  Jimmy Buffett even wrote a song about you!

[Train wreck in tornado] Trains nowadays mount cameras in their cabs, facing forward and backward, the same way police cars do. This video is from a rear facing camera.  This is video of a train that ran through a tornado.

First there is the normal rearward view from the last of three engines with the trees looking normal.  Then you begin to see rain, and then, halfway through the video the trees begin to sway violently and then the "fun" begins.  It’s amazing. Tornado1.wmv

It doesn’t feel like Spring. I’m still chilly.

Spot gets crushed in giant’s paw.

[Beware of Full Names] Anytime someone calls and identifies themselves with their full name, it is not someone you want to talk to!

One of the oldest and best weather sites. Full Screen Weather : Weather Underground

[Coll For Commissioner] I meet with Sloan in my office Monday the 15^th of March in Big Pine.  Upon meeting with Sloan I was asked why I was running as a Republican when I could run as a Democrat.  I have been a Republican my whole life and I would not change that for political expediency.  Further, I do not think that the issues in county government should be based on partisanship any more than for special interests.  I will vote with the Democrats on the Commission if I believe their position is correct and my fellow Republicans if they are correct on the issue.  My only test will be what is in the best interest of the citizen not any party or special interest.

Sloan advised that we could meet again once I answered his questions that were posted to the Coconut Telegraph on Saturday March 13^th, 2010.   I would welcome Sloan as a Democrat opponent. Sloan, if you feel that you as a citizen of Monroe County have/can bring positive influences and opportunities for the citizens of Monroe County you should run for office. It is the perfect forum to help/give back to your community.  That is why I am running.

I am looking to win this election and become the next County Commissioner for District 2. My goal is to be able to serve all citizens of Monroe County regardless of party affiliation.  I will campaign and work hard for the citizens of Monroe County. I have entered this campaign with no personal agenda and I personally do not consider the office a partisan office.

I have given back to the community in the way of volunteering for several years. However my dream has always been to run for office for Monroe County and that opportunity has presented itself at this time.

I own a home that I purchased in 1994 and that home came with a downstairs enclosure. This is the only home that I own.  There are arguments on both sides. One argument is that the downstairs enclosures provide affordable housing for many of the working class of this county; moreover, we should not be a target--the only county in the United States with such stringent rules. The counter-argument is the risk of the county losing the participating of the national flood Insurance program.  This is one of the many difficult issues the county faces and I doubt whether it is best solved by litigation.

As I said before, I have no personal agenda for myself, family, friends and business associates. My track record in this community is to work hard and give back to the citizens of this county who have supported my businesses and continue to do so.

I am for affordable housing and believe there should be strict rules about the elimination of such housing. On the other hand, we need to understand that there are constitutional issues if the government restricts the right of a property owner to pursue the highest use of his or her property so we need to be very careful that a solution we adopt does not come back to haunt us.  For instance, consider the judgment against the City of Key West because of action to restrict competition that was ruled illegal.  I would do whatever we can (with the best legal counsel) to protect people living in mobile home parks.  Every citizen of this county deserves our support regardless of socioeconomic status, particularly in these difficult economic times that are not over yet.

Litigation is very expensive. We need the best legal advice, and independent.  If we sue and lose, we have just wasted a very substantial amount of taxpayers’ money.  I would support litigation if and only if the best legal advice assures us a reasonable chance of success.  By independent let me show how my judgment and experience will help the County:  we would ensure that the firm giving the advice would be told in advance it would not handle the case so it would not have a financial interest in urging us to proceed. We also need to understand that a legal suit would take many years from start to completion so it is not an immediate solution to the problems many face.  ~Danny Coll

[Bushes] It must not be so difficult to land on a carrier. Two generations of President Bushes did it. And we all know how stupid they were.

[William Shatner Day] First it was International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Now someone is trying to start a new web fad - International Talk Like William Shatner Day. Maurice LaMarche, who calls himself the third most prominent William Shatner impressionist, has posted a video clip on YouTube declaring March 22 as International Talk like William Shatner Day.

William Shatner is an actor who achieved worldwide fame on the cult sci-fi series Star Trek, and his unique style of speaking has produced countless parodies. March 22 is his birthday. In the YouTube clip, LaMarche shows viewers how to talk like Shatner, including awkward pausing and pronouncing "you" as though you're "about to gag". LaMarche is a well-known voice actor who has performed in many TV shows and movies, including Futurama and Animaniacs.

The internet has been the driving force behind the global spread of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, which encourages people to say "arrr" and "avast" like a true salty sea dog every September 19.

Only time will tell if Talk Like William Shatner Day will have achieve the same fame.

Please plant native milkweed to support the Monarch Butterflies migration and survival. Here is the list. IRC - Natives for Your Neighborhood

“We need more real workers who can do or fix things and less white collar bean counters.” Andy Rooney had it right last night when he said that.

Who's got Big Pine Key.com stickers? Mine is starting to look ratty. (Ed: Unfortunately no one has any. They curled at the edges so I’m not ordering any more. I sure did like them though.)

[Sloan] Tomorrow is my brother Major’s memorial service in Birmingham, of which I learned yesterday afternoon. For a variety of reasons I will not be there.

Here are very recent email comments from people with Birmingham ties.
1) Just had an hour talk with your name-sake, Sloan Bashinsky (Major’s first child). I ran into her working my job at the Summit. She thinks suicide. Gunshot to the left temple.
The rest...goodmorningfloridakeys.com

Comments made in the year 1955.

I'll tell you one thing, if things keep going the way they are, it's going to be impossible to buy a week's groceries for $10.00.

Have you seen the new cars coming out next year? It won't be long before $1, 000.00 will only buy a used one.

If cigarettes keep going up in price, I'm going to quit. 20 cents a pack is ridiculous.

Did you hear the post office is thinking about charging 7 cents just to mail a letter!

If they raise the minimum wage to $1.00, nobody will be able to hire outside help at the store.

When I first started driving, who would have thought gas would someday cost 25 cents a gallon. Guess we'd be better off leaving the car in the garage.

I'm afraid to send my kids to the movies any more Ever since they let Clark Gable get by with saying “damn” in Gone With the Wind, it seems every new movie has either hell or damn in it.

I read the other day where some scientist thinks it's possible to put a man on the moon by the end of the century. They even have some fellows they call astronauts preparing for it down in Texas.

Did you see where some baseball player just signed a contract for $50,000 a year just to play ball? It wouldn't surprise me if someday they'll be making more than the President.

I never thought I'd see the day all our kitchen appliances would be electric. They are even making electric typewriters now.

It's too bad things are so tough nowadays. I see where a few married women are having to work to make ends meet.

It won't be long before young couples are going to have to hire someone to watch their kids so they can both work.

I'm afraid the Volkswagen car is going to open the door to a whole lot of foreign business.

Thank goodness I won't live to see the day when the Government takes half our income in taxes. I sometimes wonder if we are electing the best people to government.

The drive-in restaurant is convenient in nice weather, but I seriously doubt they will ever catch on.

There is no sense going on short trips anymore for a weekend, it costs nearly $2 a night to stay in a hotel.

No one can afford to be sick anymore, at $15 a day in the hospital, it's too rich for my blood.

If they think I'll pay 30 cents for a haircut, forget it.

[Glass Half Empty] There are two types of people, both bad. Those that take advantage and use you and the cold ruthless types, who come into a room and say, I am important, nobody else matters.

[Roommates From Hell] Living in the Keys can be hazardous to your mental health. The 9 worst roommates you will ever have.

9. The Deadbeat. The first of every month this guy is like a broken record, "Hey man...yeah, so, like, my company...they, like, forgot to pay me. So I don't, like, have any money for, ya know, rent." And he says the same thing when the electric bill, cable bill, or any other bill needs paying. But somehow his total lack of cash doesn't stop him from going out four nights a week, while you're stuck eating Ramen noodles and dryer lint just to make ends meet. And whenever you try to explain to him that you can't always pay for his share, he gets offended, takes a communist stance, and says that if you were in the same position, he would totally help you out. But, unfortunately, Arby's doesn't plan to double his $13,000 salary anytime soon.  

8. The Food Stealer. We’ve all taken food that didn’t belong to us at some point, but the Food Stealer is on an entirely different level. It’s as if they spent years in an early twentieth century orphanage, learning grifting and sleight of hand techniques. If you ever happen to leave any of your food in a common area like “the fridge,” they’ll immediately eat all of it, and then when you ask them about it, they’ll act like a drug dealer being questioned by the cops about a murder.
YOU: So, did you see the Cheez-its that were in the cabinet?
THEM: Cheez-its?
YOU: Yeah, cheez-its, cheesy snacks, look kind of like wheat thins. You know what they are.
THEM: OH. Cheez-its. Nah, don’t know what happened to them.
YOU: But they were here earlier, and now they’re gone.
THEM: That’s unfortunate. Maybe they’re just missin’. (stare down between you and them)
YOU: Gah! I know you did it you son of a bitch! 

7. The Party Guy. Every night this guy comes home at five in the morning, with a group of people that all look like the fourth picture in a twelve picture “Faces Of Meth” montage. If the sound of the music blasting doesn’t wake you up, the drunk woman stumbling in to your room and attempting to f*&k her boyfriend on the bed you’re sleeping on does. Inevitably you have to walk out into the living room, and turn down the music, and everyone looks at you like they’re a group of graduate students and you just told them you “don’t really care for Arrested Development.” You tell your roommate you have to be up in two hours, and they’re like “Oh, no way, okay, totally sorry. We’ll turn this down.” Then you head back to your room, and you clearly hear through the wall, your roommate saying “just wait like two minutes and then we’ll pump that shit up again.”

6. The Borrower. They borrow everything from you, and either lose it or use it for something it wasn’t supposed to be used for, leaving you saying things like “It’s cool you borrowed my copy of Shawshank Redemption, but I’d rather you didn’t use it to hold up your dresser. It’s not really a load bearing DVD.” You don’t want to look like an asshole, but before you know it, you’re gingerly asking them to BORROW BACK the things you lent them. “Hey man, I was wondering if I could grab that toothpaste back from you, just cause I ran out of mine. As soon as I buy new toothpaste, I’ll bring it right back.” “Hmmm, I kind of need it tonight and there’s not much left.” “Okay, cool, no worries.”  

5. The Gamer. Everyone likes to kick back and blow off some steam and playing video games. But nothing is more annoying than sharing an apartment's only television with someone who's surgically attached to his Xbox and/or PS3. Because the only thing lamer than always playing video games, is having to watch someone always play video games. The problem is, hardcore gamers don't sleep, or seem to have regular jobs. Which means you're getting woken up by him screaming into a headset at a seven-year-old in Poland about how his Warlock totally annihilated by his cleric. Or when you get home from work and you just want to watch some mindless TV, but he's playing Madden by himself so he can "practice running up the middle. Or when you just want to watch the Super Bowl and he "Needs to get to this one last level of Call of Duty so I can save it. Can you listen to the first half on the radio? I'm sure it's online somewhere."  

4. Couch Potato. Remember how you used to like sitting on your couch? Remember how it used to not smell like rotten guacamole? Remember when it wasn’t covered in what looks like various dried bodily fluids and sweat stains? Well those days are over, now that you’re living with a Couch Potato. The Couch Potato roommate is usually a combo roommate, meaning that the Couch Potato will most likely also be The Gamer, The Dead Beat, or (worst of all) The Guy Who’s Girlfriend is Always Over. Either way, this couch is his new home, and there’s no moving him once he’s established it as his territory. Your best plan of action now is to position a garbage can nearby, get a fresh bottle of Febreeze, and learn to like Law & Order (all of them), because he who controls the couch controls the television, and that SVU shit is like Couch Potato heroin.  

3. The Guy Whose Girlfriend Is Always Over. When you're roommate is in a relationship, it's like you're in a relationship, too; except you only get the shit parts of having a girlfriend. You're always hanging out with her, she's eating your food and she's taking up your spot on the couch, but you don't get to have sex with her. And somehow, you end up watching Grey's Anatomy because she wants to because you're roommate wants to watch it because he wants to keep having sex with her.  

2. The Slob. After the slob is done cooking, your kitchen looks like someone raped a barbecue chicken sandwich.   Every time you walk past their bathroom, it smells like a baby shit on top of a copy of the New York times, then died.  Every time you ask them to clean up, they respond with picking up something and moving it somewhere else, then look at you to see what your response will be like they’re playing chess for the first time and want to make sure they moved the knight correctly.  The apartment gets messier and messier, until the only way the apartment could get any dirtier, is if it f*&ked strangers for money.   That’s when you realize you’ve lost the battle, and start laughing when your roommate blows his nose on a pair of basketball shorts he found stuffed inside your silverware drawer.  

1. Mr. Anal Retentive. Maybe this person was raised in a strict household. Maybe at some point they were thrown into the back of a garbage truck, and they’ve been freaked out by messiness ever since. Freud would say that at some point in their childhood they had to hold in a huge dump, and that magically turned into obsessive-compulsive disorder. Whatever the reasoning, there are some people who are anal retentive neat-freaks, and this can translate into a roommate nightmare. To compound the issue, most anal-retentive people are passive aggressive, so they won’t express frustration and resentment over having to wash your two dirty dishes in the sink to satisfy their twisted psychological disorder. After about 7 months, though, all of their frustration will build into a repressed volcano of bitter rage, and eventually they will go ballistic over something completely inane, leaving you to calm the situation down by saying something like “Dude. Sorry, I didn’t know we had separate sponges for the dishes and the counter.” Unfortunately, you’ll still have five months left on your one-year lease. Good luck with that.

[Keys Community Cleanup] The County Administration decided to separate the announcement of the cleanups and the special Saturday dates for collection of Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) and electronic waste (e-waste); that will be released in the next few days.  I would very much appreciate your assistance circulating this announcement to your staff, members, business associates, and your friends!

This notice is a Call for Volunteers!  In addition to volunteers to actually get out and do the cleaning up, we will also need a few volunteers to help us at the check in sites.  Since the HHW/e-waste collections are on the same dates as cleanups, the HHW /e-waste collections will require most of the County Solid Waste staff as they will not let us use volunteers for those events.  At the cleanups, we will definitely need one or preferably two people from 8 am to 12:30 to help handle check-in at the “staging” sites where we’ll have a sign-in, pass out instructions, the raffle tickets, tell everyone where to put the trash, and have info about recycling and the free HHW/e-waste collections.  This would be a good post for anyone not really physically able to be out and about doing litter patrol.  I’d suggest a 2-2 ½ hour shift for the check in sites.  The  County is requiring that all volunteers sign a “hold harmless” liability release if they are gathering litter; it is one of the most  important jobs at our check-in locations. 

We would also appreciate your help securing any small donations from businesses or residents for the raffle that will be held as a way of saying “thank you” to volunteers.  Items need not be extravagant; a beverage, a dessert, a cap, a small gift certificate, reusable grocery bags- ANYTHING will be appreciated as it is the “thought that counts!” So sorry, but our Earth Day t-shirts were not approved; County policy prohibits such funding.  

I hope that you will pass this along to other individuals or groups that you  believe are appropriate recipients.  Events like this are all about networking and cooperation.  If your organization plans to participate, make sure you let me know and we will post you as a co-sponsor- but I need to know ahead of time. We’ll also include the businesses providing staging sites, services, raffle donations, and volunteers.  Let us know in ample time to provide a complete list so we can promote those who really make this kind of event a real success! 

Colleen Murphy, Monroe County Recycling Coordinator
Murphy-colleen@monroecounty-fl.gov

NATIONAL POLITICS

Obamacare passed the House last night. Now it has to pass the Senate. I don’t care how much it costs or how much it will add to the Debt because it’s the right thing to do. It’s time we join the other democracies in the world and take care of our people’s basic health needs.

Finally the time has come.  A time for all American's to rejoice. It was a hidden agenda. Rush Limbaugh is leaving the USA. Goodbye!

[Government is there to provide services] How true. People easily forget that because of all the corruption and dishonesty.

[No More Abortions] Women's rights being thrown to the wayside to clinch the deal with the insurance companies/health care bill reform? Deal Struck On Abortion, Clears Path For Health Care Passage -- Politics Daily

[Health Care, get your hand out of my pocket] I stand by my statement. It is not for the gov’t to spend my earnings.  I am much more willing to help when I am not forced to help.

[Healthcare Passed] Outstanding work Mr. President. You just brought America in line with the rest of the industrialized nations of the world. When the middle of the road C Budget Office, with zero partisan dogs in the race, tells us its wise and a money saver in the long run I believe it. This is change to make America a much better place for our kids to grow up in. Take your shots, righties, as you can see it makes the President stronger. Keep on saying no to everything its being seen by Americans as obstructionist to progress and Obama’s support is getting stronger. Give him hell, Republicans, we love it.

[Government is there to provide services] Wrong!  Gov’t is there to "provide for the common defense".  All those 'services' that have been added are just ways to justify taxes and weasel their way into more areas that are none of the government's business!

[Healthcare] I disagree with the poster on that said Obama only wants healthcare for his own personal gain. Obama already is guaranteed healthcare for himself and his family from his elected position, where’s his personal gain? Half the country is for it, half isn’t. That’s not a benefit.

[From the Right] The Tea Party phobic’s were well represented here yesterday.  I’ve got to admit that I’m fascinated by their postings. These posters present as being devoid of reason or recall of history. On the one hand they praise freedom of speech, and then in the same paragraph assert that the Tea Party folks should not have that right. One poster seems obsessed with racism. He/she decries the shameful racism of miniscule numbers of persons who claim to be Tea Party supporters. In the same paragraph they praise the Democrats who were the heart of the KKK. They extol the same Democrat party that filibustered against the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The same Democrats who stood in school doorways in the 60’s to block black children from education. In those days the Democrat mantra was "All blacks to the back of the bus." These deluded folks adore the Democrats who honored Lester Maddox and his wildly segregationist policies. How many of you remember his braggadocios waving of a baseball bat to guarantee that no blacks could come into his restaurant?. These phobic folks  continue  to whistle as they pass the graveyard when they claim that the Tea Party is in decline. It strikes me that their odd savaging of Tea Party supporters is the functional equivalent of racism. DC officials have told us that on Saturday 20K plus Lipton Lovers rallied. The Tea Party reps say that the number was between 30K and 50K. On Sunday the crowds were massive. Listed below is a web site that has an unedited amateur video of the event. If you look at it you will see thousands of young, old, male, female, white, brown, calico, moms, dads, kids, students, and a smattering of old farts. All having a good time speaking the truth. Not a single racist sign is to be seen. I sure wish that I had been there.  It turns out that an incident occurred wherein  a hand full  dudes claiming to be Tea Party types displayed racist behavior by yelling at black legislators. There have been accusations that these scummy people were Democrat plants. It’s being looked into. 

The Tea Party is very much alive, and it's all over Big Pine Key. I’m told that a major Tea Party Pow Wow is scheduled for April 15^th at the corner of Key Deer and U.S. 1. If it’s anything like the last two, it will be a cross section of this community, good folks all. Mark your calendars, think about making signs, and be sure to keep that day free. More about this later.

(Part II) Quiz time boys and girls! What do the following events have in common? General Washington’s loss of NYC in 1776 to the Red Coats. The loss of Washington D.C. and the burning of our Capital by the Brits in 1814. The loss of the Philippine Islands in 1942. The Battle of the North Atlantic in 1941. The passage of Obamacare by the U.S. House of Representatives in March of 2010.  If you opined that all were lost battles for America you were right. But wait, there’s more! Each as but a battle in a struggle against regimes lead by monomaniacal despots who were determined to crush and change America to their own ideals. Each loss was but a temporary set back in a struggle to preserve the America of Jefferson, Adams, and Washington. Each lost battle only strengthened American resolve and set us down the road to ultimate victory over the tyranny of any government. America will be stronger because of this.

Remember folks; it isn’t over ‘till it’s over, and this is just the beginning. This will permit us to closely examine and reveal each and every purchased vote and each and every shameful failure of conscience of our Democrat Representatives. It’s actually going to be very illuminating and exciting. Let’s face it folks, as of today none of us know what is in the bill that 60% of Americans did not want passed, but we will know.  November 2010 will make the 1995 political massacre of the Democrats by Gingrich and his Contract with America look like a little league shut out. The puck has been dropped.

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Monday March 22, 2010

Sunday March 21, 2010

[Politicians Running Wars] If Hitler hadn’t insisted the Allies were going to invade Calais instead of Normandy, D-Day might have been a failure and we all might have German accents today. That’s another reason to let the generals run a war.

History repeated itself when the politicians ran the war in Vietnam and we lost. The generals are running the