The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

With another day in this world, we have another misleading Facebook post being spread about by conservatives. What are these little rascals spreading about the online book that is our face? Donna Brazile, CNN contributor and Vice Chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, posted the following on her twitter page on March 23rd of 2012: "2nd Anniversary of the Affordable Cart Act, ACA ('Obamacare' for critics)! #healthcareworks. Just ask millions with coverage." Just below this quote in this very post is a second tweet by Ms. Brazile, which she made on February 27th of 2013, that says: "What's on your menu? Just got off the phone with my health care provider asking them to explain why my premium jumped up. No good answer!" That's all this post is comprised of, with the dates both being circled in red. That's all there is to the story, right? No, of course not. What, in baseball, if the Boston Red Sox lead the New York Yankees by t...

In a back-and-forth e-mail exchange with White House economic adviser Gene Sperling, fiction-posing-as-nonfiction author Bob Woodward told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that Sperling had threatened him in the e-mail, saying, "It makes me very uncomfortable to have the White House telling reporters, you're going to regret doing something that you believe in." So, just what did Sperling say in this e-mail? Let me share that bit of information with you. Sperling said: "I apologize for raising my voice in our conversation today. I do understand your problems with a couple of our statements in the fall -- but feel on the other hand that you focus on a few specific trees that gives a very wrong perception of the forest. but perhaps we will just not see eye to eye here. But I do truly believe you should rethink your comment about saying that Potus (President of the United States) asking for revenues is moving the goal post. I know you may not believe this, but as a friend, I t...

Republican New Hampshire state legislator, Mark Warden, just recently had some interesting words for the Concord Monitor , where he stated the following with regard to abusive relationships: "Some people could make the argument that a lot of people like being in abusive relationships. It's a love-hate relationship. It's very, very common for people to stick around with somebody they love who also abuses him or her." Sure, some people "could" make that argument, but they'd be idiots for doing so. It's fairly common for abused individuals to "stick around with somebody" not because they enjoy the abuse, but because through this abuse, their confidence and self-image have taken serious beatings as well, and they wind up feeling as though they deserve the abuse. Many also fear leaving the abuser, fearful that this will lead to even more severe beatings or even death. Based on Mr. Warden's comments, it appears as though his brain cells h...

It appears as if an on-and-off-again friendship of 20 years is officially over for me. Through his alcoholism, drug problems, and all the other issues he's had to deal with through the years, I was that friend who didn't leave his side. I had known him for so long and got to see a side to him that most everyone else hadn't. Through this, I saw hope, a light, a decent human being at his core. However, after some monstrous bumps in the road the past few years, with us slowly drifting apart as a result, what occurred in the past 12 hours was the final straw. The guy has always had an angry side to him, but having observed how he is around his daughter, I saw that kind, loving, nurturing side as well, and this kept that hope in me alive. That hope started subsiding four months ago when I altered my relationship status on Facebook. After he saw that my girlfriend was of a darker skin tone than either he or I, he sent me a lengthy e-mail, telling me how "disappointed"...

Yahoo movie blogger Mark Deming recently wrote an article which made me chuckle a bit. The title of this article was, "Michelle Obama's Oscar appearance getting thumbs down from conservative critics." What, like that's a surprise? I'd be more shocked to read that the capital city of New Hampshire is Concord (it is) than one that says conservative critics give Michelle Obama's guest appearance at the Oscars a thumbs down. When's the last time conservative critics praised Michelle Obama or any Obama for anything? I'll give you a week's worth of time to research the matter. ::a week passes us by:: Find anything yet? I didn't think so. The last time conservative critics praised Michelle Obama for anything will also be the first time they did such a thing. So, what are conservative critics saying about the First Lady's appearance at the Oscars, as she read off the winner for Best Picture? Conservative columnist of the Washington Post - ...

I both love and loathe debating politics with people whom don't know what they're talking about. I love it, because there are occasions when I enjoy schooling people with research/facts and logic, in hopes that it'll prompt them to think more critically and research more thoroughly on a regular basis, and also because I am sometimes humored by their elementary responses. I loathe it because after a while, it can get mighty frustrating trying to argue numbers and logic with bumper sticker slogans and talking points, and also because too many facepalms within a short duration of time can lead to quite the headache. There comes a point in every such debate when a person (or persons) needs to accept defeat and walk away. However, it seems that sometimes, regardless of how badly a person got walloped, he/she just won't admit to being wrong, defeated, and walk away with a shred of class and dignity still left in tact. I've run into just this scenario over the past wee...

As regular readers will know, I'm not the biggest Tim Tebow fan in the world. I don't know the guy personally, but just from a football standpoint, I can't say I'm a huge fan. The guy seems to receive just about as much attention as anyone else in the NFL and for what exactly? I'm not sure. This past season with the Jets, he was seen more times sitting on the bench warming a spot for a starter than actually playing. When he did play, the guy seemed to complete fewer passes than a 5-year old would, and have poorer fundamentals than a zebra attempting to throw a football (as in the actual animal, not a referee). However, based on what I've read about him as a human being, he seems to be a very kind, respectful, generous, and devoted individual. While Tebow and I may not share religious beliefs, I respect him for how he lives his life. That brings me to a fairly recent story involving the New York Jets quarterback. He was set to make an appearance at the First Ba...

I love hearing all the rants by hard-core conservatives that the mainstream ("lamstream") media is liberal and/or that whenever a presidential election rolls around, they're "in the tank" for the Democratic candidate. This was very much the case in this past election, where conservatives all over claimed that the media was in favor of President Obama winning a second-term, over the Republican challenger Mitt Romney. As I've been saying for quite some time, I see the mainstream media in favor of one thing and one thing only - good ratings. Whether that comes at the expense of a Republican or Democratic politician is really of no matter. These networks want the best story and the best ratings. Whenever I hear these claims by uber-conservatives that the mainstream media is liberally-biased, I ask them to watch opinion shows on Fox News and MSNBC, and then to watch the nightly news on ABC, NBC, or CBS, and report to me any differences they observed. If they...

As anyone who knows me could tell, I love satire. I enjoy reading it, writing it, viewing it, etc. From The Daily Show to Saturday Night Live to The Colbert Report to written works by Al Franken and beyond, I love satire. Likewise, there have been several articles on the site The Onion that have made me laugh quite hysterically. I've had to laugh even harder when a story gets reported of a politician believing an Onion article as being real. However, having said all that, I can't for the life of me find anything amusing about the now very well-known and controversial tweet made by The Onion last night during the Oscars. Quvenzhane Wallis, the 9-year old actress who was on hand at the Oscars last night, as she was nominated for Best Actress in the film Beasts of the Southern Wild , was the subject of this very tweet. The tweet read, "Everyone seems afraid to say it, but that Quvenzhane Wallis is kind of a c**t, right?" How is that funny exactly? How is that su...

I hadn't watched the Oscars for a couple years or so. I was getting tired of it. While I absolutely adore cinema, I can't say hearing movie stars thanking people for five minutes a piece over the course of three to four hours sounds like a great deal of fun to me. When I heard Seth MacFarlane was going to be hosting this year's awards ceremony, however, I decided to give it another gander. Overall, I'm glad I did. While the thank-you speeches grew a little tiring after a while (Daniel-Day Lewis' speech being an exception), I thought MacFarlane put a nice twist on the show which it has been lacking in recent years. Granted, I think some of the jokes were coming dangerously close to crossing that "line" between inappropriate yet still funny and inappropriate beyond funny. However, that's what MacFarlane is known to bring to the table in just about any of his projects, and while some of the jokes fell flat in my eyes, others shined. Overall, it made for a...

I just stumbled upon the second reader review of my 2011 poetry book, entitled, Penetrating The Heart Of Life: Ambiguous In Thought, Ambivalent In Feeling . The reader gave it a perfect 5 out of 5 stars, titled the review, "healing read," and wrote the following: "I bought this in book form, quite a while ago. It's a book I recommend to anyone on a path out of darkness and looking for the light at the end of the dark tunnel. The author takes you on his journey through the dark to lightness and healing." This book can be bought for one's Kindle at the following link for $2.99 - http://www.amazon.com/Penetrating-The-Heart-Life-ebook/dp/B00B1F0LIY/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1361809488&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=craig+rozniecki It can also be bought in paperback form at the following link for $10.00 - http://www.lulu.com/shop/craig-rozniecki/penetrating-the-heart-of-life-ambiguous-in-thought-ambivalent-in-feeling/paperback/product-18677...

I just thought I'd continue with the trend of semi-regular updates regarding my books. A few more reviews have come through in the past week or two (all positive), which has prompted me to do this (yet again). If any reader is interested in checking out a paperback version of my books, including my two most recent ones - LOL at the GOP and LOL at the GOP - Volume 2: 47% Awesome 100% of the Time , you may do so at the following link (and others): http://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?type=&keyWords=craig+rozniecki&x=4&y=12&sitesearch=lulu.com&q= For a 20% off discount, type in FEBBOOKS13 as a coupon code just prior to purchasing the book(s). I imagine that coupon code will be MARBOOKS13 as of March 1st. If the paperback versions are a bit too pricy and/or you're reading books via Kindle nowadays, you may download the Kindle versions at the following site: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_p_n_feature_browse-b_mrr_1?rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Acraig+rozniecki%2...

A church facing a lawsuit from former members whom have accused church officials of covering up sex abuse allegations is thinking about using the First Amendment as its defense. Sovereign Grace Ministries saw a former member indicted this past December on charges that he molested multiple boys in the 1980s, and is now dealing with the very real possibility that multiple members covered up these alleged acts. Seeming to hint that the church was going to lean on the First Amendment as the members' defense, University of Virginia law professor Douglas Laycock commented on the matter with the following: "To the extent that there's a First Amendment issue they're talking about, it is not about sexual abuse as a First Amendment right. It is about the church deciding for itself how to respond to claims of misconduct among its members." So, let me get this straight. Many members of the church don't believe in the separation of church and state, yet when it com...

I don't think ESPN soccer commentator Alexi Lalas is very in tune with satire and may not be the brightest crayon in the box overall. He made his third guest appearance on The Colbert Report last night, to defend the sport of soccer in the face of recent news that hundreds of games all over the world may have been fixed. Colbert preceded the interview by poking fun at the sport, its over-dramatic actors, I mean, players, and its seemingly constant adrenaline-pumping 1-0 matches. The interview went fairly well for approximately the first two minutes. However, in the final minute is where Lalas seemed to get irritated. He said, "I pity you (Colbert), because you don't understand the beautiful game of soccer..." He also had this to say - "It takes a superior intellect to understand the beauty of the game..." Then shortly after the show, I'm assuming the soccer commentator heard from someone that he shouldn't have taken Colbert too seriously, ...

I read a lovely letter-to-the-editor via The Columbus Dispatch today. The "piece" was titled "President seems to be protesting a bit too much." The letter read as follows: "It seems obvious that an action that is right needs little explanation; that which is wrong will cause the person taking the action to spend much effort trying to persuade that the action he took was correct. In his first term, President Obama made 699 speeches. In his first term, he also proposed the so-called health-care reform. Need I say more?" Let me answer that question - yes, you do. This man's link is about as solid as the link between water consumption and brain cancer. The author says that which is right needs little explanation, that President Obama made 699 speeches in his first term, and also proposed his healthcare reform plan in his first term. See the connection? Look closer... Closer... Alright, so it's not there. Whether or not the president made...

I became quite perplexed when I saw a trailer for an upcoming film, entitled, The Last Exorcism Part II . If The Last Exorcism was indeed the last, how on earth could there be another? While we're at it, I propose original films and sequels be made of the following titles: Original: The Final Chapter Sequel: The Very Final Chapter Original: The Last Day On Earth Sequel: The Last Day On Earth - For Real This Time Original: The End Sequel: After The End Ended I'd also like to see The Last Exorcism Part II change its title some to The Last Exorcism Part II: Because The First Last Exorcism Wasn't Enough! http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_last_exorcism_part_ii_2013/

Are you in favor of stricter gun control laws? Have you ever engaged in a debate on the subject with a far-right gun enthusiast? At some point in the conversation, have they brought up Chicago as evidence that gun control laws don't work? If so, you're not alone! Is Chicago known to have fairly strict gun laws? Yes. Is it known to have a high homicide rate? Yes again. However, there's more to the story than that. The fact is that gun-related crimes have been high in Chicago since before the stricter gun laws were enacted and such crimes have actually decreased since they were put into effect. Even with the stricter gun control laws, there are approximately six times as many guns that are owned in Chicago than in New York City. Also, while the gun laws may be stricter in Chicago than most other areas in this country, such laws are much more lax in other portions of the state and adjacent states. So, just because there is a high homicide rate in Chicago and there are fairly...

I've been hearing a lot about "karma" recently. It's usually been used in the following manner - "Karma came back to bite him" or "Karma is a b**ch. Just wait and he'll get what he deserves." Now, I refer to myself as agnostic. While I don't believe there's enough evidence to state there is a higher power we call God, I also don't believe there's enough evidence to deny this being's possible existence either. As for karma, though, I think I have an even harder time believing it than the existence of a higher power. First off, let's look at the definition of the term: "karma [kahr-muh] noun 1. action, seen as bringing oneself inevitable results, good or bad, either in this life or in a reincarnation. 2. the cosmic principle according to which each person is rewarded or punished in one incarnation according to that person's deeds in the previous incarnation. 3. fate; destiny. 4. the good or bad ema...

I both love and loathe many holidays. I love them for the simple fact they can provide me with a day off, and also give me an excuse to spend time with extended family. However, when thinking about the traditions of many, I have to scratch my head, and ask, "Why?" Groundhog Day is such a day for me. It gives me a reason to spend time with family and watch the film by the same name for the 37th time. However, what does this holiday revolve itself around? A groundhog, based on whether or not the sun is out at that time of the day, predicting whether or not we'll have an early spring. What is the groundhog's rate of accuracy? Just 39%. The groundhog is wrong 3 times out of every 5. That's worse than most meteorologists...barely. I don't know what's sadder, the fact we celebrate a day looking to a groundhog for all the answers regarding when spring will start, or that I'm seriously wondering if the groundhog's forecasts are more accurate than our act...

I really have to wonder sometimes what people are smoking when they post some of the things they do on Facebook. I just came across another one of these "what-the-hell-is-he-smoking" posts. Someone I know just posted a sign which says the following: "Liberal Rape Tips: Urinate on yourself to ruin the rapist's mood. Conservative Rape Tips: Pull out a Glock - and make him piss HIMSELF!" Are Republicans ever going to learn it's probably best that they don't talk about rape? Between Todd "vaginas-have-a-way-to-shut-that-whole-thing-down" Akin and Richard "it's-part-of-God's-plan" Mourdock's comments about rape being the ultimate deciding factor in their Congressional losses this past November, I'd think the GOP would send a memo around, which read, "Don't talk about rape!" But, here we go, just 3.5 months after election day, hearing another lovely Republican quote about rape: "Liberal Rape Ti...

Have a crazy uncle who seems to constantly send you political chain e-mails, mainly revolving around President Obama, which can be debunked within 30 seconds via Snopes.com? I know some people like that. I'm THAT guy who takes those 30 seconds to search Snopes.com and provide the link to the sender to illustrate that the claim or story is false. This happened just yesterday when an old very conservative friend of mine shared the following story on Facebook: "CLASSROOM SOCIALISM Is this man truly a genius? An economics professor at a local college made a statement that he had never failed a single student before but had recently failed an entire class. That class had insisted that Obama's socialism worked and that no one would be poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer. The professor then said, 'Okay, we will have an experiment in this class on Obama's plan'. All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so no one will fai...

Jay Laze, owner of the Virginia pizza shop All Around Pizzas and Deli, has recently offered a 15% discount to any customer that carries with them a gun into his shop. That's right, whether a person brings in a pistol or an AK-47, he or she will be given a 15% discount on their order. No, nothing could possibly go wrong here... Whether these guns were legally obtained is of no relevance. Neither is the mental state of the customer, his/her criminal history, blood-alcohol level, etc. More guns equal less shootings! It's a fact! Just like more fast food equals less obesity! With this new discount, I can't possibly see the following scenario play out with some drunk kids: Drunkard #1: "Dude, I'm hungry." Drunkard #2: "Me too. Let's get some pizza!" #1: "Yeah! I know! Let's get some free pizza at that one place. Do you have your gun on you?" #2: "Always. We showered together just before we got drunk. Free pizza, though...

Many members of the media were quite "frustrated" that they weren't given full access to President Obama and Tiger Woods' golf outing the other day on the president's "day off" (like there's ever really a day off when president). What could be of greater importance to the media? Wars in the Middle East or how President Obama fared on the par 5's? The meteor in Russia or how well the president controlled his wood...on the golf course? Dangerous weather patterns or if the president putts like he would if he were playing pool? I too was quite flustered by the president's lack of transparency when he was swinging his awkward-shaped clubs at a tiny ball and then attempting to find that ball, before swinging at it again. To think I had taken the day off to follow the president's every move on the golf course during his "day off," and for what? For nothing - that's what! You know what this has all the makings of? A grand conspiracy...

Just recently, Missouri state Representative Mike Leara (Republican) proposed a bill which said the following - "...[a]ny member of the general assembly who proposes a piece of legislation that further restricts the right of an individual to bear arms, as set forth under the second amendment of the Constitution of the United States, shall be guilty of a class D felony." Sure, this proposed bill ironically violates the Missouri Constitution, but still... Is Representative Leara really wanting to bring gun control debate to a screeching halt? Do Second Amendment rights trump First Amendment rights in his opinion? Don't the two kind of connect with one another in a way? In Mr. Leara's mind, he seems to think, "Everyone should have the right to own and fire any gun of their choosing anywhere at any point in time. If someone doesn't want to own or fire a gun, that's their choice as well. However, if anyone wants to debate gun rights, he or she shall go to ...

Today, I just saw a post made on Facebook of a sign which said the following - "As long as you know that God is for you, it doesn't matter who is against you." So, how do we know God is "for" us exactly? Is there a mailer that comes out every four years which tells us our status in God's eyes and if he is for or against us (or perhaps neutral)? Should we just automatically know? Does this take place when looking at the whole of a person or just individual components? Are we simply delusional and when times get tough, just say to ourselves, "Well, God is for us, so we've got that going for us, which is nice"? I'm sure Hitler and others like him probably thought that God was "for" them, yet that doesn't make it so. I could say my invisible friend Bucktooth Brutus is for me and will be getting laid tonight by a virgin named Leticia the Mannequin, but again, that doesn't make it so.  The thing about it is I can't ...

I didn't really know what I was getting into last night when I sat in the recliner to watch a film I had taped on TCM (Turner Classic Movies) a couple months ago. The film was the 1962 Spanish classic El Angel Exterminador (The Exterminating Angel), co-written and directed by surrealist great Luis Bunuel. After seeing this film, I have to say I'll make it a point to see many of Bunuel's other works. This is the kind of film that frustrates many viewers, while marveling others, for it leaves open to interpretation the point and message it's trying to get across, while being able to provide just as much power and marvel behind one interpretation as with another. As for me, I'm definitely in the latter of the two groups I mentioned. Some people need a very black-and-white message, void of symbolism and ambiguity, to be fully satisfied with a film-viewing experience. While I can be satisfied with such a viewing, I tend to more enjoy an experience where my mind is stim...

Musician Ernest Evans, better known as Chubby Checker and the song "The Twist," is suing Hewlett Packard over an application. The app is called "The Chubby Checker" and what does it do exactly? Measures penis size. When I read this article, I semi-ignored Chubby Checker's beef with the application at first. All I could focus my attention on was the app itself. Really? We've really gotten to that point? I heard the other week that there's an app for hooking up with friends and now there's one to measure penis size? Since Chubby Checker's biggest song is the before-mentioned "The Twist" and there's now an application with his name that measure penis size, I may never hear "The Twist" in the same way again. Whenever that song comes on, I'll have to try and shake out the image of men doing the twist in the nude and shaking their penises all about. On that note, I may have to see a shrink soon. http://www.huffingtonpo...

Remember President George W. Bush and the Iraq War during his term? Remember how his popularity seemed to dwindle by the day following the peak at 9/11, and how support for his decision to invade Iraq seemed to diminish by the day as well? Especially after it was reported that the country possessed no weapons of mass destruction, which is why we invaded them in the first place? Yeah, those were the days, right? Why do I bring this up? Because Senate Republicans filibustered Defense Secretary nominee Chuck Hagel yesterday. It was the first time in our history that this has happened. Why did they do this one may ask? I'll let Arizona Senator and rumored co-lead to the upcoming film Grumpiest Old Men John McCain explain the reasoning. Keep in mind that Chuck Hagel is a former Republican Senator of Nebraska. McCain explained the reason for filibustering the former Republican Senator as follows: "It goes back to there's a lot of ill will towards Senator Hagel because when ...

I'm reporting that the nominees for the new pope are: - Tom Cruise, who would be known as Pope Shorty - Charlie Sheen - Pope Tiger Blood - Dick Cheney - Pope Vader - Joe Flacco - Pope F**king Awesome - Lance Bass - Pope Techno

I'll be the first to admit that I'm an over-analyzer. I earned three degrees in psychology, took elective courses in philosophy and critical thinking. My very first words as a child were, "I think therefore I am." Alright, so that last bit isn't true. I have always been a thinker, though, which is what prompts me to drink on weekends. I have to slow that mind down somehow. Why not go about it legally through the consumption of alcohol? Thanks, Jack (Daniels)! Having said all this, though, even I find the over-analyzing by art critics regarding former President George W. Bush's paintings absurd to the point of being comical. The Bush family got hacked by someone who calls himself Gucifer, who stumbled upon Dubya's latest hobby - painting. The two paintings which seemed to most catch people's attention were of the former president, naked and cleaning himself. In one of the two paintings, Dubya was standing in a shower, in the nude (even Dubya knows not...

Following President Obama's State of the Union Address and his claim that our nation is "stronger," I've seen several posts on Facebook from Republican friends of mine about this claim. What has their focus been on exactly? The unemployment rate, where they showcased that we've had more months of being at over 8.0% unemployment under President Obama than we had in all the years before him since 1948. These numbers may be true on the surface, but once again, don't tell the whole story. The unemployment rate was 4.6% on January 1st of 2007, 5.0% on January 1st of 2008, and 7.7% on January 1st of 2009, just before Obama took the reigns away from George W. Bush. See which way those numbers are moving? Obama was then handed the keys to the car which was going 90 mph and inching ever closer to a cliff. The unemployment rate continued to increase at an unheard of rate (outside of the Great Depression) to 9.7% as of January 1st of 2010. However, the unemployment rat...

I've learned that it is often times difficult to understand the human mind. Within each of our series of thoughts and feelings, there will likely exist at least one contradiction. However, while most outsiders may visibly see that contradiction, the actual person likely won't and in the end, that's all that really matters. So long as things make sense to that individual person, all other vantage points tend to be meaningless to them. However, we also can't look at these seemingly contradictory thoughts and feelings in pure black and white terms. Sometimes, while they may seem contradictory on some level or another, they may make a great deal of sense. One prime example of this is with regard to the taking of life. Most people believe that when one's life is being threatened, it is morally reasonable to take another's life in defense of one's own. We then get into trickier territory when talking about abortion, capital punishment, and eating meat. Man...