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Showing posts from July, 2014

BREAKING NEWS: Voters to Sue House Republicans for Not Doing Anything While in Office!

Setting: John Boehner's favorite pub, A-Holes Anonymous John Boehner: "Alright... Does everyone have their six wise-men shots?" Eric Cantor: "I thought that was three wise men." Boehner: "We're just taking those three wise men and squaring that number to six." Paul Ryan: "Isn't three squared seven, not six?" Boehner: "Who cares? Since when were we about numbers anyway?" Ryan: "I care about my P90X numbers!" Boehner: "Shut up, Ryan! Now let's do those six shots!" :: they all do the six shots :: Louie Gohmert: "Holy Issa! Are you sure that was only six? Geez! That's more than I did at my 16th birthday party!" Darrell Issa: "What did you say? Holy what?" Gohmert: "Oh yeah. Sorry about that. Instead of saying, 'Holy crap!" I may have mentioned your name instead. My bad..." Issa: "Alright, well, don't let it happen again! ...or els

The Sarah Palin Channel is a special bridge-to-nowhere

It's recently come to my attention that former John McCain running mate, former half-term Alaskan Governor, and future president of the undiscovered country Onlyinhermind - Sarah Palin - now has her own channel (SarahPalinChannel.com). Her reality television shows, ubiquitous presence on Fox News, and seemingly constant posts on social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, weren't enough for Ms. Palin. She needed to go that extra mile, and for just $99.95 a year, you can tune in to Sarah Palin's every move. Here's how I envision Palin promoting the site: "Hey y'all. How's it going? Or as us real Americans say, 'How's it going?' Well, as you all know, I usually keep my distance from the cameras, but have I got a surprise for all of you!?! For years upon years, we've tried to find a way to crack the code of the liberal lamestream media. Fox News, a lot of conspiracy sites, and most of talk radio just won't cut it! We need to find

Common Sense Sensitivity

Is it just me or does it appear as common sense is ever so lacking? Heck, like with OCD, I wonder if almost every person has at least one uncommon sense behavior/habit. With some people, it's with regard to the concept of time. If a person has many errands to run in a given day and has to be back at a certain time, common sense would dictate that they should leave at a certain time when, in preparation for traffic or other delays, they'll have very good odds of making it back on time. Also, common sense would dictate that they should start their errands at the destination furthest away from home, and slowly work their way back home. However, there are times when people don't handle things in such a manner, and the person waiting for them back at home may sigh and mumble to themselves, "Come on... Why didn't you go the route I suggested? It's just common sense! Geez!" There are all common sense behaviors involved in: Cooking, cleaning, laundry, and pretty

OKStupid

Unfortunately, about 2.5 months ago, my then on-and-off-again girlfriend of almost 2 years and I decided to break up. Also unfortunate, an incident occurred about 3.5 weeks ago which led us to stop communicating altogether. She was my best friend in the area, so the whole scenario was kind of like a double-whammy for me. Working at home all week, not getting out a whole lot, except for on the weekends, has made it difficult to meet new people and make new friends. Due to that, I joined a people-meeting/friend-making/dating type of site by the name of OKCupid. After being on the site for a few weeks, and I have to wonder if all (or at least most) such sites are like this, but I would like to rename this particular site, "OKCupidIsFlaky." I have to wonder if approximately 89.47% of people on these sites really aren't sure what they're looking for, and their thought-process upon joining is something like this: "Well, I just broke up with my boyfriend/girlfriend,

An American politics rant

While I proudly call myself progressive and tend to lean Democratic as far as party affiliation goes, I still can't stand the political system in this country. More than two parties should be able to have a legitimate chance at winning on election day. Voting should be encouraged and made easier, so that every eligible voice can be heard and counted. A national holiday should be implemented so more people are able to take election day seriously and make certain to go and vote. Corporations should not be able to donate unlimited dollars to certain candidates. Misleading ads should not be permitted. Every candidate should have a voice during debates. "News" personalities should not be able to persuade the public through lies (if they do, it should be made mandatory that the program is referred to as opinion and not "news"). Fact-checkers should be given more time after debates (and speeches) to sort through the questionable comments, as opposed to party representa

A Jeremy Meeks satire

Jeremy Meeks, whose mugshot went viral not too long ago and was labeled as the "handsome felon" and "hot mugshot guy," among other things, is a sad story on multiple counts. First off, it's sad that any person can get off-track as Meeks has, and regardless of how hard they try to turn the corner, the bad cycle continues. According to his records, he's been in and out of trouble since 2002. It started with a two-year sentence for grand theft of a person. Meeks then got into trouble again in 2005 when he was arrested for alleged identity theft. He was listed as a defendant in Spokane, Washington courts on five separate occasions from 2005 to 2007. His most recent charges included five felony weapon charges and one gang charge. Unfortunately, this latest incident wasn't Meeks' first, but as always, I hope like with other felons, he's able to turn his life around. The other sad part of the story was how women all over the country appeared to fall

What's going on in the sports world?

Is it just me or is this the worst time of year in sports? The two days after the all-star game, I was so bummed without any major sports to watch, a bunch of guys and I met up at a local pub because we didn't know what to do with ourselves. Hockey and basketball are officially over. Baseball is just past the midway point. There's still a month left until football season starts, and until that point, sports commentators will spout about stories (or non-stories) they wouldn't even think about discussing during the course of the season. In recent days, I've heard talk show hosts speak about the following topics: 1) Johnny Manziel wearing his hat backwards - Have I ever been one to wear my hat backwards? No, because I think it's kind of silly and defeats the purpose of showcasing a team I'm rooting for, but others disagree, and see it as a fashion statement. Do most professionals whom regular appear in front of the camera typically wear their hat backwards? No, b

The new Florida state motto: "Don't ask questions. Just shoot."

I have a feeling, that before too long, Florida's state motto will be, "Don't ask questions. Just shoot." This wild and crazy trend continued recently when a federal appeals court upheld what has become known as the "physician gag rule," where doctors risk sanctions or even their license if they talk to patients about the dangers of guns. The American Bar Association has been adamant in their opposition to the law, as the organization released this message: "Preventive care through safety counseling is a pillar of modern medicine, and is vitally important to the health and welfare of patients." At least ten medical associations have also opposed the new law, including the American Psychiatric Association, which said that, "health professionals and health systems should ask about firearm ownership whenever clinically appropriate in the judgment of the physician." So, in Florida, citizens supposedly have free speech, yet doctors don&#

My "First Take" on Stephen A. Smith's recent comments...

There are three things which amaze me more than any other: 1) Man landed on the moon, 2) How much chaos and destruction natural disasters can cause, and 3) People still watch the ESPN show First Take . First Take is an opinion-oriented show featuring arguably two of the most disliked sports commentators in Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless. On Friday, Smith made some comments about the Ray Rice assault incident (and two-game suspension) which left many people shaking their heads in disbelief and anger. Just recently, the NFL suspended Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice two games for assaulting his ex-fiancee, Janay Palmer. With regard to the incident, Smith said this: "Let's make sure we don't do nothing to provoke wrong actions. If we come after somebody has put their hands on you, it doesn't negate the fact that they already put their hands on you. So let's try to make sure that we can do our part in making sure that that doesn't happen." He al

Earth to Boehner: Impeachment talk fires up both bases

From the outset, I felt that all of this Obama impeachment talk was just a way to fire up the bases, especially given the coming mid-term elections. I honestly felt it was being used by both sides to prompt donations and persuade people to vote in a little over three months. Republican House Speaker John Boehner, however, has a different take on things, as he just recently stated the following: "This whole talk about impeachment is coming from the president's own staff, and coming from Democrats on Capitol Hill. Why? Because they're trying to rally their people to give money and show up in this year's elections. We have no plans to impeach the president. We have no future plans. Listen. It's all a scam started by Democrats at the White House." While Boehner may be partially accurate with his commentary, let's be honest for a moment here - both sides have been using "impeachment" for political means. In fact, when it comes to the game of pol

Info on my Facebook business, Twitter, and Tumblr pages

Here's the URL to my Facebook business page. I update it fairly regularly, but still haven't put forth a great deal of effort yet in researching matters and attempting to make the most out of it. In any case, it can be perused here: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorCraigRozniecki?ref=hl Up next is my Twitter page. I'm still not 100% certain what I'm doing on there yet, but feel I'm gradually getting the hang of it and am up to 11.3 K followers. I update it daily with many of my own tweets, but also by retweeting some others'. It can be found here: https://twitter.com/CraigRozniecki Lastly, here's my Tumblr page, which I've neglected quite a bit recently, but if you're at all curious, you can find it at the following link: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/rozzy81

Weekly update of my book information

For new readers (and regular ones, I suppose), here's some information pertaining to my books. All twelve of my books can be purchased in paperback form at the following site (and others): http://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?type=&keyWords=craig+rozniecki&x=7&y=5&sitesearch=lulu.com&q= The ten books I've written and released in the past 3 years (yes, I've been on a roll) can be purchased for much cheaper in Kindle form at the following link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_22?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=craig%20rozniecki%20kindle&sprefix=craig+rozniecki+kindle%2Caps%2C228&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acraig%20rozniecki%20kindle As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me by either commenting on this blog or e-mailing me at CRozniecki@gmail.com. Unless I'm out of town, I'm typically very good at responding rather quickly.

I officially have a new dog

Up until about 2.5 months ago, I had owned at least one dog for 25 straight years (I think 28 to be more precise). The one I had put down 2.5 months ago was my favorite of the lot. She was an all white Siberian Husky, and while she wasn't void of her share of quirks, she was a bundle full of joy and energy, always seeming to have a big smile on her face. It took 2.5 months before I thought I may be ready to research and potentially get another. A couple of dog shelter volunteers stopped by Saturday morning with a 1.5-year-old Siberian Husky (a combination of white, black, grey, and red), and unless she has a bad check-up which confirms an earlier doctor's worry about cataracts (a later check-up countered that belief, and from what I can see, she doesn't have any problems with her sight), she's found herself a new home.  To this point, it's honestly been a rather surreal and draining experience. I was so busy with my college courses when my first husky was a puppy

According to a new study, guns kill more than cars in 14 states (and D.C.)

Often times when gun rights activists get confronted by gun-control advocates, they respond with something like this: "Well, people die in car accidents every year too. What are we going to do, take away cars from people? I bet you more people die by way of car accident than by gunfire ever year. Maybe we should worry more about making driving safer with laws than making guns safer." This argument is, of course, quite flawed. First off, many more laws and regulations are already in place to limit car accidents as much as possible - much more so than with regard to firearms. Secondly, many more people own cars and drive them than own and shoot guns in this country. So, even without going into numbers, that argument doesn't hold much, if any, merit. Even if we take the gun rights activists' argument seriously, however, a new study shows that their assumption isn't 100% accurate. A new Violence Police Center (VPC) study shows that while vehicle-related deaths h

When the temperature on Earth and Mars was exactly the same...

Earlier this month, Republican Kentucky State Senator Brandon Smith, whom is the owner of a coal company, had this to say to Louisville NPR affiliate WFPL: "I don't want to get into the debate about climate change. But I'll simply point out that I think in academia we all agree that the temperature on Mars is exactly as it is here. Nobody will dispute that. Yet there are no coal mines on Mars. There's no factories on Mars that I'm aware of." Yeah, I'm not sure which "academia" Mr. Smith is talking about, but I have a hunch it's made up of one person and his name happens to be Brandon Smith. According to NASA, the average temperature on Earth is 57 degrees Fahrenheit. So, according to State Senator Smith, Mars should be around that same number, correct? Okay, so Smith may be just a little off with his estimation. The average temperature on Mars is -81 degrees Fahrenheit - a difference of 138 degrees. My, those numbers are close. Maybe Sm

Marco Rubio: "Intolerance should be tolerated!"

Florida Republican Senator and man voted most likely to become an elderly superhero by the name of Mr. Dry-Mouth - Marco Rubio - recently made the following remarks at Catholic University: "[While recognizing that] our history is marred by discrimination against gays and lesbians, traditional marriage has such an extraordinary record of success at raising children. Today, there is a growing intolerance on this issue, intolerance towards those who continue to support traditional marriage. And I promise you that even before this speech is over, I will be attacked as a hater, a bigot or someone who is anti-gay. This intolerance in the name of tolerance is hypocrisy." He also added this: "Supporting the definition of marriage between one man and one woman is not anti-gay, it is pro-traditional marriage. And if support for traditional marriage is bigotry, then Barack Obama was a bigot until just before the 2012 election." I've touched on this issue before,

Tony Dungy's Distraction-Gate

Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy has come under fire recently for a comment he made with regard to St. Louis Rams draft pick Michael Sam, whom came out as being gay prior to the draft. Dungy told the Tampa Tribune  that he wouldn't have drafted Sam, "not because I don't believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn't want to deal with all of it. It's not going to be totally smooth...things will happen." In response, most of the media has been rather critical of Dungy's comment(s). Michael Sam, himself, responded very well, and lightened the mood a bit with a joke when asked about Dungy's quote. I, for one, have mixed feelings on the matter. Tony Dungy has a right to his own opinion, just like we all do. The problem here isn't that, however. The problem is that Dungy makes it sound like players whom attract a lot of media attention, for whatever reason, aren't worth the trouble. They c

Why I hate texting...

Sometimes I wonder if I was born in the wrong year or perhaps born on the wrong planet. Selfies, duck-faces, planking, fake mustaches, and other such trends, I just can't get into. Now, if an actual duck took a selfie of himself with a fake mustache on while planking, then I might be interested in seeing that picture. Reality television doesn't tickle my fancy. Neither does cable news or a good portion of talk radio. Yes, perhaps I'm a bit old school. Speaking of which, I didn't own a smart phone (I believe it has average intelligence most days, but that's just me) until two or three years ago. Even now, I only use the thing to call friends, answer calls, perhaps check email if I'm out and about, or play a word game or two. That's right - I don't text. I know what you're thinking... "What in the hell is wrong with that guy? Get with the times, slick!" Eh, no thanks... I honestly haven't been a fan of texting since its inception. For m

Standing up for the nice guys (nice people in general)! ...well, to a point...

I'm not sure what the deal is exactly, but I can't tell you how many articles I've read or rants I've heard lately regarding the "nice guy." These rants typically include the following statements: - "'Nice guys' aren't really that nice!" - "What's the big deal about nice guys being nice? Isn't everyone nice? They're just doing things all guys do, but not all guys talk about it like they do!" - "These 'nice guys' are simply sexists looking for an excuse to blame women for their problems!" - "Look, nice guys - she's not into you because you're a loser, because you're ugly, and because, did I mention you're a loser? It's not because you're nice, so get over it!" Yes, it appears as if a fairly decent sized segment of the population is anti-"nice guy." They feel these "nice guys" are either fake, weak, or a bit of both. So, what's the

My response to a Columbus Dispatch letter-to-the-editor

Recently, I read the following letter-to-the-editor in the Columbus Dispatch  and felt the need to respond. The letter was entitled, "Young people have lost their sense of values." Here it is: "In his Thursday letter 'Young people more flexible on gay marriage,' Ben Meacham said, 'The younger generation is adapting to an ever-changing society.' Well, either it is adapting to an ever-changing society, or it is changing society itself. I recall that back in the 1940s and 1950s (I am 81), abortion, euthanasia, cohabiting before marriage, children born out of wedlock and — gasp! — same-sex marriage were simply unheard of. The problem, as I see it, is the members of the current generation, because many, if not most, are completely comfortable with these developments. Does anyone really think our society is better off by virtue of allowing 54 million abortions to have taken place? It’s really not a question of society evolving or traditions changing.

Info on my Facebook business, Twitter, and Tumblr pages

Here's the URL to my Facebook business page. I update it fairly regularly, but still haven't put forth a great deal of effort yet in researching matters and attempting to make the most out of it. In any case, it can be perused here: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorCraigRozniecki?ref=hl Up next is my Twitter page. I'm still not 100% certain what I'm doing on there yet, but feel I'm gradually getting the hang of it and am up to 11.2 K followers. I update it daily with many of my own tweets, but also by retweeting some others'. It can be found here: https://twitter.com/CraigRozniecki Lastly, here's my Tumblr page, which I've neglected quite a bit recently, but if you're at all curious, you can find it at the following link: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/rozzy81

Weekly update of my book information

For new readers (and regular ones, I suppose), here's some information pertaining to my books. All twelve of my books can be purchased in paperback form at the following site (and others): http://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?type=&keyWords=craig+rozniecki&x=7&y=5&sitesearch=lulu.com&q= The ten books I've written and released in the past 3 years (yes, I've been on a roll) can be purchased for much cheaper in Kindle form at the following link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_22?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=craig%20rozniecki%20kindle&sprefix=craig+rozniecki+kindle%2Caps%2C228&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acraig%20rozniecki%20kindle As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me by either commenting on this blog or e-mailing me at CRozniecki@gmail.com. Unless I'm out of town, I'm typically very good at responding rather quickly.

Guess what? Republicans like Obamacare!

Remember how much money conservative groups spent on "Obamacare" attack ads? How much time Republican candidates spent telling potential voters they were going to repeal the healthcare law? How many times far-right Congressional Republicans claimed that the Affordable Care Act was going to destroy the fabric of this country? Well, strangely enough, the world didn't end, and according to a new Commonwealth Fund poll, the attack ads and hyperbolic rhetoric were only effective for a limited period of time. According to this new poll, 73% of people whom bought health plans were either somewhat or very satisfied with their new insurance. This includes 87% whom signed up for Medicaid and were at least somewhat satisfied. Not only that, but 74% of newly insured Republicans liked their plans. With numbers like these, it makes the Tea Party/Ted Cruz-led government shutdown look even more ridiculous. Cruz: "I'm going to stand up for the people, the Constitution, and

How Americans see Jesus...

It amazes me that approximately 95% of the people seem to believe that their beliefs coincide with a higher power's. Since no two people's opinions are exactly the same, this creates a bit of a dilemma. It also amazes me that while many people may see Jesus as being omniscient, omnipotent, and benevolent, they appear to believe he's an uber-capitalist whom would be anything but benevolent if he were growing up in the United States today. The non-partisan organization YouGov  just released poll results with regard to how Americans feel about certain contemporary political issues and where they feel Jesus would line up on those same issues. Here were the results: Legal abortion: 48% support it/36% oppose (net +12%), 20% believe Jesus would support it/52% oppose (net -32%) Gay marriage: 48% support it/40% oppose (net +8%), 32% believe Jesus would support it/45% oppose (net -13%) Death penalty: 58% support it/23% oppose (net +35%), 34% believe Jesus would support it/41%

Vikings special teams coach Mike Priefer - "Nuke the gays!"

In January, former Minnesota Vikings punter and LGBT rights activist Chris Kluwe published an article on Deadspin  where he made the claim that special teams coach Mike Priefer one time told him, "We should round up all the gays, send them to an island, and then nuke it until it glows." This led to the Vikings launching an independent investigation, with the summary of the results being released this past Friday. The report concluded that Priefer did indeed make the comment about nuking gays, and he has since been suspended for the first three games of the season. The team also plans on donating $100,000 to an LGBT organization. Humorously enough, the team's lawyers said that even though Priefer made the nuke-the-gays comment, he has otherwise been very respectful of the LGBT community, saying that, "...other than Kluwe's allegations, there is no support in the record of Priefer made any additional statements of this nature." Let's review the comme

Kentucky-isms

What is it with the poor, bad, or "redneck" parts of a state being nicknamed after Kentucky? It seems to be a national trend. Regardless of where in the country a person is, chances are he or she will hear a resident of the area utter something negative about a place they refer to as "-tucky." When I lived in Omaha, Nebraska, about 20 minutes east of where I lived was Council Bluffs, Iowa. What did most Omaha residents refer to Council Bluffs as? Counciltucky, of course. So, in light of this, I thought I'd have some fun with the word "Kentucky" and nickname certain parts of every state after it. Here we go... 1. Alabama: Kentuckabama 2. Alaska: Kentuska 3. Arizona: Kentuckizona 4. Arkansas: Arkansucky 5. California: Calitucky 6. Colorado: Kentuckorado 7. Connecticut: Connectitucky 8. Delaware: Kentuckaware 9. Florida: Floritucky 10. Georgia: Georgitucky 11. Hawaii: Kentuckawaii 12. Idaho: Kentuckaho 13

Info on my Facebook business, Twitter, and Tumblr pages

Here's the URL to my Facebook business page. I update it fairly regularly, but still haven't put forth a great deal of effort yet in researching matters and attempting to make the most out of it. In any case, it can be perused here: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorCraigRozniecki?ref=hl Up next is my Twitter page. I'm still not 100% certain what I'm doing on there yet, but feel I'm gradually getting the hang of it and am up to 11 K followers. I update it daily with many of my own tweets, but also by retweeting some others'. It can be found here: https://twitter.com/CraigRozniecki Lastly, here's my Tumblr page, which I've neglected quite a bit recently, but if you're at all curious, you can find it at the following link: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/rozzy81

Weekly update of my book information

For new readers (and regular ones, I suppose), here's some information pertaining to my books. All twelve of my books can be purchased in paperback form at the following site (and others): http://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?type=&keyWords=craig+rozniecki&x=7&y=5&sitesearch=lulu.com&q= The ten books I've written and released in the past 3 years (yes, I've been on a roll) can be purchased for much cheaper in Kindle form at the following link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_22?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=craig%20rozniecki%20kindle&sprefix=craig+rozniecki+kindle%2Caps%2C228&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acraig%20rozniecki%20kindle As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me by either commenting on this blog or e-mailing me at CRozniecki@gmail.com. Unless I'm out of town, I'm typically very good at responding rather quickly.

Taking a break

Unfortunately, due to an incident which occurred this past weekend which I can't get into, I think I'll have to take a break from writing. I'm not sure how long this break will be. However, I've been shaky ever since the incident, have had trouble eating and sleeping, have suffered from nightmares/night-terrors, have gotten slightly paranoid about even stepping outside of the house, seem to be suffering from short-term memory loss, have felt a constant sense of nausea and heartache (along with fatigue and weakness), and have at least temporarily lost the focus necessary to get much work done. I sincerely hope these feelings subside, and sooner rather than later, so I can get back to doing what I love - which is writing. But I can't make any guarantees at this juncture. I just ask for your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time. Thanks.

Info on my Facebook business, Twitter, and Tumblr pages

Here's the URL to my Facebook business page. I update it fairly regularly, but still haven't put forth a great deal of effort yet in researching matters and attempting to make the most out of it. In any case, it can be perused here: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorCraigRozniecki?ref=hl Up next is my Twitter page. I'm still not 100% certain what I'm doing on there yet, but feel I'm gradually getting the hang of it and am up to 10.8 K followers. I update it daily with many of my own tweets, but also by retweeting some others'. It can be found here: https://twitter.com/CraigRozniecki Lastly, here's my Tumblr page, which I've neglected quite a bit recently, but if you're at all curious, you can find it at the following link: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/rozzy81

Weekly update of my book information

For new readers (and regular ones, I suppose), here's some information pertaining to my books. All twelve of my books can be purchased in paperback form at the following site (and others): http://www.lulu.com/shop/search.ep?type=&keyWords=craig+rozniecki&x=7&y=5&sitesearch=lulu.com&q= The ten books I've written and released in the past 3 years (yes, I've been on a roll) can be purchased for much cheaper in Kindle form at the following link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_22?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=craig%20rozniecki%20kindle&sprefix=craig+rozniecki+kindle%2Caps%2C228&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acraig%20rozniecki%20kindle As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me by either commenting on this blog or e-mailing me at CRozniecki@gmail.com. Unless I'm out of town, I'm typically very good at responding rather quickly.

The Declaration of Independence needs an update

In light of the Supreme Court's Citizen's United ruling, as well as their recent Hobby Lobby ruling (and other such decisions), and as we're about to celebrate Independence Day, I think it's about time we update our Declaration of Independence so that it's a more accurate reflection of contemporary society. Here is how the most well known portion should probably read: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all corporations are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Yeah, that sounds more like it... http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/

The Fifty Shades phenomenon...

When it comes to the odd mix of commercial success and negative reviews, Fifty Shades of Grey is like an Adam Sandler comedy. While critics may claim it's the worst film of the year, it does well at the box office. For example, the 2013 film Grown Ups 2 earned almost $134 million at the box office, while being approved by just 7% of critics. From that perspective, Fifty Shades... isn't much different. To this point, the series has sold over 70 million copies worldwide, all while receiving negative reviews like Seattle receives rain. Here are just some such quotes: Sir Salman Rushdie: "I've never read anything so badly written that got published. It made 'Twilight' look like 'War and Peace.'" Maureen Dowd ( The New York Times ): "[It was] like a Bronte devoid of talent," and "[It was] dull and poorly written." Jesse Kornbluth ( The Huffington Post ): "As a reading experience, Fifty Shades... is a sad joke, puny of plot

President Obama speaks up about paid maternity leave

Recently, President Obama came forward in support of government-mandated paid maternity leave in this country (you know, like other industrialized countries). In response to this, a Facebook acquaintance of mine shared the following thoughts: "Love the thought of paid maternity leave (and it already exists)....but if this jackass thinks only women care for newborn children he is sorely mistaken. Maybe at his house, but not in the bulk of homes. Perhaps lazy men like him should do their job as a spouse and parent. Sounds to me like Obama is one of those old fashioned men that think it is solely the woman's job to care for the child...sick" and "I'm of the old mindset that if you can't afford to miss work for maternity/paternity leave you probably can't afford to have a child....and therefore, should not conceive one." First off, this "friend's" comments were with regard to President Obama's following statement: "The Un