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Sunday, April 29, 2012

A Spring Challenge

I have been meaning to join this challenge for a couple of weeks now. It is a shorter challenge, only for the months of Spring (actually, the days of Spring, March 20th – June 19th).

There are several versions of this challenge... see the rules and sign up here.

I am choosing the option:
a. Read books where the first word in the title begins with each letter in the word SPRING.

At this point I have already read three of the books I need to finish the challenge and I know which ones I will probably read for the rest. Right now I am actually reading In the Woods by Tana French for this challenge, so I thought I should go ahead and sign up.

Second Violin
Political Suicide
Redbreast, The
In the Woods
Nero Wolfe of West Thirty-fifth Street
Green for Danger

Links to reviews:
  1. Green for Danger by Christianna Brand (read March 22, 2012)
  2. Second Violin by John Lawton (read April 4, 2012)
  3. The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo (read April 8, 2012)
  4. In the Woods by Tana French (read May 1, 2012)
  5. Political Suicide by Robert Barnard (read May 12, 2012)
  6. Nero Wolfe of West Thirty-fifth Street by William S. Baring-Gould (read May 28, 2012)
Completion of Challenge: I completed this challenge on May 28, 2012, when I finished reading Nero Wolfe of West Thirty-fifth Street.

Saturday, April 28, 2012

The Thief Who Couldn't Sleep: Lawrence Block

Lawrence Block started publishing mysteries in the early 1960s. This first entry in the Evan Tanner series was published in 1966.

From the description of Evan Tanner at a UK publisher, No Exit Press:
He is 34 years old and hasn't slept a wink since a piece of shrapnel destroyed the sleep centre in his brain during the Korean War. Tanner loves lost causes and beautiful women.
This is a very entertaining caper novel. I went into it thinking it was the first book of a spy series, and in a sense it is. But it is more of a spoof than a real spy story, and much less realistic than most spy novels I read.

For the first half of the book I was thinking the story was just too fantastic, even though it was an easy read and entertaining. In fact, it did remind me of fantasy novels I have read where the most unusual things happen and the hero gets in lots of deep water and is rescued time and again magically. At about the half way mark, the story becomes a bit more realistic -- just a bit.

Even when I was having problems with the plot or the whole impossibility of the situations he gets into, I still found this a fast, entertaining read. I have the next book in this series, The Canceled Czech, and plan to read it. At that point, we will see if I continue on

An interesting note: Most of the book is a wild, funny ride. But parts of this book are set in Turkey, and a large part of the plot depends on Tanner's research related to the Turkish massacres of Armenians during and after World War I. Before reading this book, I did not know much on that subject. I discussed it with both my son and my husband, who are more knowledgeable of both history and current events than I am. And did a little research on my own.

A quote from the book:
But it was during World War I, when Turkey fought on the Axis side and feared her Armenian subjects as a potential fifth column, that the Armenian massacres reached their height and the phrase “Starving Armenians” found its way into our language. In mid-1915 the Turks went berserk. In one community after another the Armenian population was uprooted, men and women and children were massacred indiscriminately, and those who were not put to the sword either fled the country or quietly starved.
I don't read mysteries to educate myself, I read them for entertainment. But knowledge gained from reading fiction is a welcome side effect. There is an afterward by the author describing his circuitous route to coming up with this plot.

I have read some books from two of Lawrence Block's other series: the Matthew Scudder series, which is very dark, and the Bernie Rhodenbarr Burglar series, which is funny. I read those books long ago and have plans to re-read them soon (gradually, over time). I like his writing no matter whether it is light or heavy.

This counts as one of my books for the following challenges:
Mt. TBR Challenge
Read Your Own Books Challenge
A-Z Challenge
1st in a Series Challenge
Merely Mystery Reading Challenge
Mystery & Suspense Reading Challenge

Friday, April 27, 2012

Book Beginnings: In the Woods

Today I am participating in Book Beginnings on Fridays over at Rose City Reader, for the first time.

Book Beginnings on Fridays is a meme with this theme: Share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires.

The best part is visiting the post at Rose City Reader and viewing the other links and getting glimpses at books you may not be familiar with.

This is the first sentence in the book I am currently reading:
Picture a summer stolen whole from some coming-of-age film set in small-town 1950s. This is none of Ireland’s subtle seasons mixed for a connoisseur’s palate, watercolor nuances within a pinch-sized range of cloud and soft rain; this is summer full-throated and extravagant in a hot pure silkscreen blue.

The book is In the Woods by Tana French.

So far, I am loving this book. I am at page 59. The Prologue and the first chapter pulled me in immediately. The first two sentences are beautiful and intriguing, although the tone of the novel changes quickly.

Sunday, April 22, 2012

2012 WWI Reading Challenge: Books Read

In late March I joined the World War I Reading Challenge at War Through the Generations. My goal is to read at least 4 books that have World War I as a major theme. Either fiction or non-fiction can be included and you can even include one or two movies to reach the goal.

My joining post is HERE.  I am tracking my list of books and films below.
  1. The Fighting 69th (a film)
  2. A Duty to the Dead by Charles Todd
  3. Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear
  4. Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear
  5. Joyeux Noel (a film)

A Duty to the Dead: Charles Todd

For me, the main attraction of this book is the picture it gives us of life during World War I in England. The main character, Bess Crawford, is a nurse on the Britannic, a hospital ship, when it sinks. She survives, but an injury forces her return to England on leave. Each new book that I read about World War I or World War II leads me to new knowledge about those time periods and events.  I had no knowledge of hospital ships and know little about women's roles in those conflicts.  I did not know that the Britannic was a sister ship to the Titanic and that she also sank.

Bess has experienced nursing many men injured in the fighting and watching men die of horrible wounds. She is not a part of the fighting but she has been close enough to see the horrors that the soldiers have to experience. The author uses Bess's experiences to contrast with those at home who cannot sympathize with what the men have experienced in war.

After recovering from an injury incurred during the sinking of the ship, Bess is allowed to go home on leave, and plans to follow up on a request by a soldier to deliver a message to his family.  She had grown close to the soldier, and she ends up getting involved with his family. Her dedication in her nursing career gets her more and more deeply involved.

Did I like this book? My opinion is in the lukewarm range. The mystery itself was not compelling, but I did enjoy the story. It was more psychological suspense than whodunit. The actual crime committed is not clear until deep into the story. The writing was too slow for me, but I persevered and was rewarded. Several reviews described it as an old-fashioned mystery, and I suppose that fits with the time and setting. I found it somewhat unbelievable that the protagonist is able to successfully investigate the mysteries she is confronted with and that her family would (reluctantly) support her in this. But I don't usually require that mysteries be totally realistic and believable. Most interesting novels are not realistic, but take us to a place we haven't been.

Charles Todd is the pseudonym for a mother and son writing team. They have written three other books for this series (one to be published in June 2012) and also have written an earlier series about Ian Rutledge, a Scotland Yard Inspector suffering from shell shock following World War I. The Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear is similar, although Maisie comes from the lower classes and that series takes place after World War I. I have read the first book in all of these series and I plan to read more of them.  So far I like the Maisie Dobbs series best.

This is an in-depth review of  A Duty to the Dead, with more background on the authors. A little warning: It has more detail about the plot than I like to know before reading a book.
At Open Letters Monthly.

Reading this book has inspired me to learn more about nurses in World War I and hospital ships in general.
  • This review at lists other fiction set in this period and resources for more information on the Britannic.
  • The website for the Women in World History Curriculum has reviews of many historical mysteries featuring women. Here is a review for A Duty to the Dead.
This counts as one of my books for the following challenges:
Mt. TBR Challenge
Read Your Own Books Challenge
Cruisin' Thru the Cozies Challenge
1st in a Series Challenge
Merely Mystery Reading Challenge
Mystery & Suspense Reading Challenge
World War I Reading Challenge

This book has been been on my TBR pile for about a year. But I was motivated to read it at this time by the 2012 reading challenge at War Through the Generations. I cannot say enough good things about this site. Not only does it encourage reading about history and war, providing lists of resources for both non-fiction and fiction books, it allows participation.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

The Fighting 69th: a film review

The Fighting 69th
(1940 - Warner Brothers - 90 minutes). Starring James Cagney, Patrick O'Brien, and George Brent.

I watched this film as a part of my commitment for the World War I reading challenge at War Through the Generations. It is part of a DVD set (James Cagney: The Signature Collection) and it is the first I have watched from the set.

This movie is a film about events in World War I produced by Warner Brothers in 1940, at a time that the second World War was escalating in Europe. I found this movie to be a confusing mix of propaganda, humor, and depictions of the grim realities of war. Since it features a real regiment, with some characters who really fought in the war, it does give us a picture of that time.

The movie starts with a group of new recruits (to the 69th Infantry Regiment) arriving at a base; it  takes us through the training process, establishing relationships between various members of the Squadron.  Jerry Plunkett (Cagney) is just one of the recruits; he is a misfit who has a chip on his shoulder and just wants to get into battle as soon as possible. Once they reach the front, he finds the realities of battle overwhelming.  Several of the characters in the movie were real people, including Father Francis P. Duffy, Major "Wild Bill" Donovan, and  Sergeant Joyce Kilmer (the poet). Father Duffy, a major character in the movie, was a highly decorated cleric in the U.S. Army.

I approached this movie with expectations of liking it... a lot. James Cagney is one of my favorite actors, although I lean toward the movies where he dances.  I knew a movie produced in 1940 would probably be a propaganda piece, and I was prepared for that slant. I was not prepared for the religious overtones. The movie was just too heavy-handed in that area for me.  As my husband said, it is a movie of its time.

For the most part, the acting was just OK, although James Cagney did well in his role, despite playing a very unappealing character. From what I know of World War I, it seems that the scenes in the trenches are fairly realistic and portray the horror of the that war.  I had never heard of the Irish heritage unit, the 69th Infantry Regiment.

From the article on Wikipedia:
The outbreak of World War I saw a resurrection of the old spirit of the 69th. Doubled in size by new War Department regulations, its ranks were filled with Irish-Americans and New Yorkers detailed from other regiments, and it was sent over to France in October 1917 as part of the 42nd "Rainbow" Division of the American Expeditionary Force. All National Guard regiments received new "100 series" regimental numbers at that time. The 69th was renumbered the 165th Infantry Regiment, but retained its Irish symbolism and spirit...
This site has detailed information about the regiment, from the Civil War up to today:

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Dying Light: Stuart MacBride

From the Book Description at Goodreads:
On the coast of Scotland, in the "Granite City" of Aberdeen, Detective Sergeant Logan MacRae is stuck between a rock and a hard place. Bumped to the homicide department's "Screw-up Squad" after a sting operation gone wrong, Logan will do anything to prove that he doesn't belong there…even if it means working overtime on two baffling cases: a fatal act of arson in a squatter's apartment and the murder of a prostitute in the city's notorious red-light district.
I really did not enjoy reading this book. I had read the first book in the series and liked it well enough to buy the next 3 in the series (when I found them at a good price). For some reason I could not get into the story. Out of roughly 400 pages, I enjoyed about 30 in the middle, and maybe 100 at the end.

I do like that the protagonist, MacRae, is fallible and not superhuman, but he really messed up a lot in this story and I had a hard time figuring out why he had the reputation as a capable policeman. Part of his problems seem to be in dealing with relationships and jumping to conclusions. In the end, it almost seemed accidental that they actually caught the bad guys.

A warning. The book (and the series) is very gritty. With a lot of swearing and graphic violence. I don't mind swearing (in books or in real life); I can handle violence to a certain extent in fiction. But I need something else to keep me going. I felt like the book moved slowly and I was not that interested in the characters and their plights. Maybe both Logan MacRae and I were having a bad week. (His was way worse than mine.)

A quote from this review (which was overall very favorable):
I do have to say that MacBride increases the graphic nature of the sexualized violence here beyond anything found in Cold Granite or in the Ian Rankin canon.

I have come to the conclusion that I like my books a little less gritty than this one. I like to read all kinds, from cozies to thrillers to spy fiction, but I do need some softening around the edges. However, I have read a lot of reviews that praise this book and the rest of the series highly, so I am not giving up on it.  I will read the next one.

To assure you that a lot of other readers enjoyed this book:
Review at Euro Crime
At Book World In My Head

What I learned about Scotland:
This series is set in the city of Aberdeen. This book (and the one before) gives one the impression that Aberdeen is dark and cold and full of crime.  I guess it is relatively cold, and like any large city, has plenty of crime.  If you check out this page on Aberdeen at Undiscovered Scotland, it looks beautiful and light and full of delightful attractions. I would love to visit.

This counts as one of my books for the following challenges:
Mt. TBR Challenge
Read Your Own Books Challenge
Merely Mystery Reading Challenge
Mystery & Suspense Reading Challenge
European Reading Challenge
2nds Challenge

Saturday, April 14, 2012

New Author Challenge: Books Read

In late March I joined the New Author Challenge at Literary Escapism. My goal is to read 15 books by authors that I have never read before. If I aim at two new authors a month, I can accomplish this. We will see.

My joining post is HERE.  I am tracking my list of books by authors new to me below.
  1. The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo
  2. Cop Hater by Ed McBain
  3. In the Woods by Tana French
  4. The Guards by Ken Bruen
  5. Whiskey Sour by J. A. Konrath
  6. The Information Officer by Mark Mills
  7. The Suspect by L. R. Wright
  8. Lament for the Bride by Helen Reilly
  9. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
  10. The Tattoo Murder Case by Akimitsu Takagi
  11. The House Without a Key by Earl Derr Biggers
  12. The Greene Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine
  13. The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon
  14.  A Trace of Smoke by Rebecca Cantrell
  15. The Cape Cod Mystery by Phoebe Atwood Taylor

The Redbreast: Jo Nesbo

The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo is a complex police procedural, following the story of a Norwegian detective investigating neo-Nazi activities in Oslo, with flashbacks to events during World War II on the Eastern Front. It is a very long book (my copy was a mass market paperback with 567 pages of small print) but I enjoyed almost every page of it.

Nesbo has written nine Harry Hole novels, and this is the third in the series. As yet, the first two in the series have not been published in English. I did not find it difficult to start the series with this book, although there were references to earlier exploits.

Harry Hole has many of the typical problems of policemen (at least the fictional ones): struggles with alcohol and smoking, depression, talented but has difficulty taking orders and dealing with co-workers. But I found him likable and interesting. He had integrity; he was confident of his abilities but not full of himself; and he was vulnerable. I liked the developing relationship with a single mother and her child.

There is a large cast of characters and they are convincingly written. I cared about what was happening to them.  I liked the short chapters and the headings for each chapter noting time and place.

I have recently become very interested in World War II and in reading both fiction and non-fiction on that time period. There is so much to learn. Although I was aware of the term "quisling," I was not fully aware of the origins of the term nor how many Norwegians aligned themselves with the Germans during World War II. This books was very educational for me, and entertaining at the same time.

The unfolding of two story lines at the same time and the fact that one of them was during World War II doubled my enjoyment of this book. However, I liked the contemporary sections a lot, and I am sure I will enjoy future books in the series whether or not they share this element.

This counts as one of my books for the following challenges:
Mt. TBR Challenge, Read Your Own Books Challenge, A-Z Challenge, Chunkster Challenge
European Challenge, Merely Mystery Reading Challenge, Mystery & Suspense Reading Challenge, New Author Challenge, First in a Series Challenge

Note: Even though this is not technically the first in the series, I am counting it because it it the first book in the series available (at this time) in English.

I am also participating in the April Challenge (Mystery, Crime, and Thriller Group) at Goodreads, and this book counts for that challenge.

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Second Violin: John Lawton

Description from Publisher's Weekly review:
"Lawton's engrossing sixth entry but the first chronologically in his Inspector Troy thriller series (Black Out, etc.) chronicles the major events leading up to WWII--Germany's annexation of Austria, Chamberlain's peace efforts, Kristallnacht--while providing a disturbing picture of anti-Semitism and class frictions in England at the time."

In my review of the fourth novel in the series, Bluffing Mr. Churchill, I noted the quandary regarding whether to read the novels in order by publication or in chronological order. I read the first four books in this series in publication order, then decided to jump to the #6 in the series based on reviews I had read that suggested reading that one first.

Based on my experience, I am going with reading the series in order of publication. Others disagree. They are all great books. In reading reviews for the last book published, A Lily of the Field, it appears that it starts even earlier than this one, then ends in 1948.  One review I read (at Mysteries in Paradise) for that book suggests some difficulty with starting the series with that book.

And from this review of A Lily of the Field at The Independent:
"Inevitably, the series's habit of doubling back on itself means that there are some nuances which will not occur to someone who picks up one of the later books as their first excursion into Lawton's fog-gloomed world."
Personally I would suggest reading at least the original three first. I am glad I read the first four in the series first, because I liked coming to this one knowing something about most of the characters. I might have liked it just as well the other way around. Impossible to know at this point. My favorite book in the series so far was Bluffing Mr. Churchill, and this one was a close second.

John Lawton states, on a page of Q&A at his website, that he does not see his novels in this series as mysteries.
"I don't like whodunits.  I don't write them.  I don't read them. I accept the label 'mystery' because the U.S. needs a label to market me.  The English don't tag me that way."
I agree, they are not merely mysteries, but I see them as historical novels with elements of the police procedural, since the main recurring character is a member of Scotland Yard’s Murder Squad. Most of the series are a mix of historical novel, mystery, and espionage. This one, however, lacks the espionage component, and the mystery is subordinate to the main story, which is not unusual in Lawton's books.

This book also features much more background on Troy's family, primarily his father, a newspaper publisher who immigrated from Russia, and his older brother, a journalist. In this book I enjoyed the portions that covered historical events more than the mystery elements.  Troy features in both parts.

From March 4th through April 4th of this year I have read 6 fiction books with World War II as a major theme. Two were written during the war (Heads You Lose and Green for Danger by Christianna Brand) and four were historical novels (three of those were mysteries).  World War II and the events leading up to and following the war are among my favorite reading topics; thus I was predisposed to like this book. It met or exceeded all my expectations.

If you are looking for a whodunit, a straight mystery, this book might not appeal. If you lean more towards cozy mysteries, this one is not in that sub-genre. Otherwise, I would definitely recommend this book.

This counts as one of my books for the following challenges:
Mt. TBR Challenge
Read Your Own Books Challenge
A-Z Challenge
Finishing a Series Challenge
Mystery & Suspense Reading Challenge

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Bluffing Mr. Churchill: John Lawton

Description from review at Publisher's Weekly:
"In this stimulating prequel to Lawton's acclaimed Inspector Troy series (Black Out; Old Flames; etc.), London is in the middle of the blitz and 25-year-old Freddie Troy is a Scotland Yard sergeant, chafing at the limits of his post. As the novel begins, he is relegated to the background, the focus instead on a gawky American named Calvin Cormack, who has come to London to help find and debrief Wolfgang Stahl, a top aide to Hitler's SS chief, Heydrich, and a spy for the Americans who has been forced to flee Germany for England to avoid capture..."

This book was the fourth book published in the Inspector Troy series by John Lawton -- and the fourth book I read in the series.  It was my favorite of the four I have completed. I found the first three confusing and slow at times. And the characters seemed less sympathetic. (It could have been me and my frame of mind when reading the books.) However, I persevered through each of the books and found the journey rewarding.

It is worth noting that Bluffing Mr. Churchill is set in 1941. Thus, chronologically it precedes the first  book in the series, Black OutBlack Out was set in 1944 (at the end of the Blitz). The second book, Old Flames, moves ahead to 1956, when Britain is still suffering the after effects of the war. The third book, A Little White Death, jumps forward to 1963. But if you order the series chronologically, A Little White Death is the seventh book in the series.

Some reviewers have suggested reading the series chronologically rather than in the order published. That disagrees with my personal rule: Always read a series as published. For this series, there are probably pros and cons no matter which way you go. Yes, you get back story on many of the characters in later books in the series, and, if you remember the details of the earlier books, you may know things about the characters you don't want to know. So far, it has not caused a problem for me. After this book, I decided to read Second Violin next, which begins in 1938, but was the sixth book published. I actually think I preferred reading them in this inverted order. In Second Violin, we get more background on Wolfgang Stahl and other characters central to this book ... So, I say ... maybe the order of reading does not matter.

On a page of Q&A at John Lawton's website, he answers the question about why the books jump around in time. Paraphrasing, he started out intending to write a trilogy, then later another author (Ariana Franklin) suggested he fill in the gaps. Which he has done with four additional books.

But to get back to my thoughts on this book. This one kept me interested throughout and I really liked all the "secondary" characters, although, as pointed out in the Publisher's Weekly review, a large part of the book covers Calvin Cormack and his relationship with Sergeant Stilton and his family. I have not felt that any of the books ended "happily" but they are not depressing. Realistic, I guess.

This book combines two of my favorite topics (especially in mystery novels): World War II and espionage.  I like books about the Cold War and this series covers that time period too. The British class system and the resentments it engenders are addressed, and we see the impact from both sides. That continues in Second Violin. The discrepancies in attitudes of the British and Americans in the early 1940's are also a focus.The fact that John Lawton writes so well makes it all the more enjoyable.

Lawton sees spies as the bad guys, as he states in this article: "I write what I call 'anti-spook' novels..."

"As Cormack told his tale, Troy found himself responding to it with a prism of feeling--to the end of the rainbow and all the way back again. He'd never understand the spooks if he lived to be a thousand. It seemed to require a degree of patriotism he could not imagine, a faith in one nation that defied intelligence. At the same time it was the biggest lie of all--all spooks were playing parts, all spooks were liars. Who, Troy wondered, did they see when they looked in the mirror?"

For me, this is a re-readable series. I have two more books to read after Second Violin. But I can easily see re-reading the whole series someday.

Another small thing that is unusual in these books is the way the chapter divisions are handled. The book is divided into a lot of very short chapters. This made it easy for me to read in short sessions when necessary and not lose the flow of the plot.  Sometimes with books that I cannot break away from easily, I end up stretching the book over several days when I can find longer periods to read.

This counts as one of my books for the following challenges:
Mt. TBR Challenge
Read Your Own Books Challenge
A-Z Challenge
Finishing a Series Challenge
Merely Mystery Reading Challenge
Mystery & Suspense Reading Challenge


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Site for Free Markets and Free People

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Colin Powell: Tea Party at Fault for Divisiveness

Colin Powell always displays his true colors on Sunday talk shows. Today he says that it's all those millions of responsible Americans who want the country to live within its means that are responsible for the country's divisiveness.

Nope, not Obama's desire to destroy the economy or demonize everyone who disagrees with his radicalism. To Powell, all those who disagree with Obama are at fault. It's time for Powell to announce what he's always been - a big government liberal.

Bush Cancels Swiss Speech on Threats of Arrest

Former President Bush has cancelled his planned speech in Switzerland due to threats of his arrest from Leftist groups.

It's interesting that they don't care about politicians (Chavez, Castro, Ahmedinijahd) who commit what they view as torture or criminality unless it's an American or Israeli politician.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!

As a reminder of Thanksgiving each year, Rush Limbaugh reminds us of the true story of Thanksgiving. In it, the Pilgrims experiment with socialism did not work, so they tried a market economy instead. The Democrats should pay attention...

"The experience that we had in this common course and condition,'" Bradford wrote. "'The experience that we had in this common course and condition tried sundry years...that by taking away property, and bringing community into a common wealth, would make them happy and flourishing -- as if they were wiser than God,' Bradford wrote." This was his way of saying, it didn't work, we thought we were smarter than everybody, everybody was gonna share equally, nobody was gonna have anything more than anything else, it was gonna be hunky-dory, kumbaya. Except it doesn't work. Because of half of them didn't work, maybe more. They depended on the others to do all the work. There was no incentive.

"'For this community [so far as it was] was found to breed much confusion and discontent, and retard much employment that would have been to their benefit and comfort. For young men that were most able and fit for labor and service did repine that they should spend their time and strength to work for other men's wives and children without any recompense,'" without being paid for it, "'that was thought injustice.'" They figured it out real quick. Half the community is not working -- living off the other half, that is. Resentment built. Why should you work for other people when you can't work for yourself? that's what he was saying. So the Pilgrims found that people could not be expected to do their best work without incentive. So what did Bradford's community try next? They unharnessed the power of good old free enterprise by invoking the under-girding capitalistic principle of private property.

"Every family was assigned its own plot of land to work and permitted to market its own crops and products. And what was the result? 'This had very good success,' wrote Bradford, 'for it made all hands industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise would have been.' ... Is it possible that supply-side economics could have existed before the 1980s? Yes," it did. "Now, this is where it gets really good, folks, if you're laboring under the misconception that I was, as I was taught in school. So they set up trading posts and exchanged goods with the Indians." This is what happened. After everybody had their own plot of land and were allowed to market it and develop it as they saw fit and got to keep what they produced, bounty, plenty resulted.

CBO Downgrades Obama Stimulus Effects

Not a good review, even from the normally pliant CBO. From IBD:

So in other words, the CBO now says it's possible that the stimulus had virtually no meaningful effect on growth and employment despite its massive price tag.

All this comes after the CBO increased that price tag to $825 billion from its initial $787 billion — a 5% hike.

Adding insult to injury, the new report also says the stimulus will hurt economic growth in the long run because of "the resulting increase in government debt." Each dollar of additional debt, it reports, "crowds out about a third of a dollar's worth of private domestic capital."

In our view, even the CBO's downgraded estimates are too high, because they're still based entirely on Keynesian economic models that simply assume extra government spending results in added economic growth.

Frankly, the GDP was likely barely improved from the increased spending because of the crowding out effect in the private sector. All it did was reduce future GDP growth and add $1 trillion to our debt.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Supercommittee "Success" Would Have Been Failure Anyway

Oh no, the Supercommittee "failed." The whole goal of the committee was absurd. Under the CBO baseline, thanks to Obama's increased spending over the past three years, was projected to be approximately $50 trillion in spending over the next decade, with an additional $9 trillion in debt.

The committee was arguing about how to narrow the deficit by $1.2 trillion. So even if it were ALL spending cuts, which the Democrats adamantly refused, that would have reduced spending from $50 trillion to $48.8 trillion over the next decade. And that was a bridge too far for them. But the GOP said they would reduce spending by only half to $49.4 trillion and increase revenue by the other $600 billion. That was still too much for the Dems.

Frankly, a successful outcome would have been a sham anyway.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Obama's Uncle In Court In Mass

He's not contesting the fact that he was drunk-driving, or the fact that his blood alcohol level was .14, or the fact that he almost smashed into a police car. He's contesting the fact that the officer stopped him in the first place.

What is he insinuating?

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Et Tu, Toomey?

I'm not convinced I should believe this story, but it appears that even Pat Toomey, a conservative member of Obama's 2nd Super Committee (he ignored his first one) is now acquiescing to raising taxes on wealthy Americans through the back door.

Toomey is apparently pushing a plan designed to raise taxes by eliminating or capping deductions in favor of reducing tax rates. The desired result, according to sources, is to raise taxes on wealthier Americans and reduce them further on lower class Americans. Unfortunately it appears that even the GOP is agreeing with Obama that we have a revenue problem and not simply a runaway spending problem. If so, it's extremely unfortunate. (And certainly won't help the housing situation either as owning homes will not be advantageous.)

Oh, and if the Super Committee is successful, it will merely increase the debt from $15 trillion today to $23 trillion in 10 years rather than CBO's estimate of $24.2 trillion. And that is if they are "successful."

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

President Golfs Again - This Time with Convict-Friend

Ok - big deal - the President golfed again - yes - we're getting used to that. Some might say - hey, what's the big deal? He's having some down time. I don't mind the leisure time at all (even if it is a lot of down time). My beef with the President's golfing is that the media treated the previous administration with such contempt every time he golfed, on the few occasions he played. Eventually he simply quit the game. Sure it was his decision, and he said he did it out of respect for the troops fighting overseas. My beef is that those troops are still overseas, and we have a President golfing again, and he's breaking records for frequency. But the media are non-existent, or simply don't care. Double standard? Those are the facts. You decide.

Yesterday, the President golfed with a long time friend who was busted a few months ago for soliciting prostitution.

My guess is that if this were GW Bush, that this would be on every front page of every newspaper worldwide. My expectation with Obama is that it is completely ignored (again).

Obama Making Friends Again: This Time China

Chinese officials don't like the fact that Obama is blaming the US's economic woes on their country. I'd say this to them: stand in line!

For the first two years of his Presidency, Obama blamed the previous administration on average, about 14 times per speech for the poor economy. I'd say it's lessened slightly over the past year - maybe down to about 7-9 times per speech now. Recently he blamed Europe, Japan, and the Middle East for America's problems. He's also been blaming Wall Street and banks for his woes. Then he blamed the Tea Party for a while. Over the past month or two, he seems to be blaming Congress for not doing enough, even though he's the president.

Always plenty of blame to go around! This might be the one thing that Obama seems to be good at.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

The Corn Ethanol Disaster

In case anyone thinks that the clean ethanol experiment was a success, this is an instructive read. I think it's time to phase out corn ethanol altogether.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Stryker to Cut 1,000 Employees in Face of Obamacare Taxes

As expected, Obamacare fees are starting to translate into job losses at medical companies to offset new taxes.

Stryker, the Kalamazoo-based maker of artificial hips and knees, will cut 5% of its global workforce by the end of next year to reduce costs in the face of new fees on device makers required by the U.S. health care law.

Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.

Obama's Got a Big Problem in Virginia

Kimberley Strassel has a good post on the election results in Virginia this week. In short, the GOP now controls the governorship, Senate and House for only the second time since the Civil War. More importantly, Democrats ran as far from Obama as they could get. This, despite the fact that Northern Virginia has grown wealthy on the backs of a massive federal government. Now, it takes one unpopular president to accomplish that feat but Obama achieved it.

Democrat US Senate candidate Tim Kaine must be more than a little worried right now, as I've already seen commercials showing his praise for Obamacare and Obamanomics when he was chairman of the DNC.

Obama Votes "Present" on Keystone XL Pipeline

The next time Obama says he is "laser-focused" on jobs, remember that he is refusing to allow the Keystone XL pipeline project to go forward due to pressure from his environmental wacko friends. As the WSJ notes:

President Obama used to be fond of "shovel-ready projects." He's also demanding that Congress pass his jobs bill immediately because 9% unemployment is a crisis, and, by the way, he's for making the U.S. less reliant on energy from tyrants. So how about putting 20,000 Americans to work on a North American energy project that's as shovel-ready as they come? Sorry, Mr. Obama is voting present.

The $7 billion project is TransCanada's Keystone XL, a 1,700-mile underground pipeline that would deliver 830,000 barrels of heavy crude oil a day from Alberta to refineries in Oklahoma and Texas. TransCanada filed an application to build the pipeline in September 2008 with the State Department, which must approve it because the pipeline would cross the 49th parallel. In April 2010 and again this August, State produced multivolume environmental impact statements that concluded the pipeline would have "no significant impacts" on the environment.

If people haven't noticed already, Obama doesn't give a damn about jobs. He cares about one thing - his re-election. He must assume he needs to rev up his wacko base to have a chance at winning.

Fatal Shooting At Occupy Oakland

I guess this is how "community organizing" works. Obama's favorite vagabond group, the "Occupy" movement, has had another death at its camps - this one a fatal shooting in Oakland. Apparently the shooting took place in an area directly adjacent to the Occupy group, where drug use is prevalent.

And liberal newspapers still like to claim that Americans at large support this violent, anarchist, drug and defecation movement (aka "community organizing").

Thursday, November 10, 2011

SEC Brags About "Record Results"

The SEC posted this news release bragging about its "Record Results" over the past year. Everyone knows that the SEC considers itself to be the enforcer of financial markets, but does anyone else find it a bit odd that they issue a press release emphasizing their record results by the number of prosecutions it brings? Only in Obamaville does this seem appropriate.

“We continue to build an unmatched record of holding wrongdoers accountable and returning money to harmed investors,” said SEC Chairman Mary L. Schapiro. “I am proud of our Enforcement Division’s many talented professionals and their efforts that resulted in a broad array of significant enforcement actions, including those related to the financial crisis and its aftermath.”

The press release just seems strange. It also forgot to mention that they've also dramatically increased staff and costs to operate and now have 103 employees who make $225,000 or more at the agency. Not bad for government work...

Time to Narrow the Republican Candidates

Ok. Another debate with 8 different candidates. A debate with so many people limits the time each person can speak and limits the depth of the conversation. I say it's time to limit the debate to 4 or 5. In my opinion, it's now time that for Huntsman, Santorum, and Bachmann to be relegated to the second tier. It's possible the even Governor Perry doesn't make the first cut.

The would leave Romney, Cain, Gingrich and Paul to duke it out. I would welcome this.

Wednesday, November 09, 2011

Cain Accuser Krashaar Filed Similar Complaint at Next Job

From ABC News, that bastion of right wing extremism:

Karen Kraushaar, who settled a sexual harassment complaint against Republican presidential frontrunner Herman Cain in 1999, filed a different complaint at her next job four years later, accusing a manager of sending out a sexually suggestive email and asking to be allowed to work at home after a car accident.

Kraushaar was injured in a car accident at an intersection in late 2002. After the accident, Kraushaar asked to be allowed to work from home. She filed the complaint when her repeated requests to work at home were denied, according to a former supervisor. The former supervisor told ABC News that Kraushaar wanted a "large payout" of tens of thousands of dollars, a year-long fellowship at Harvard, a raise and the reinstatement of sick leave.

Hmm. This woman's history speaks for itself, I think.

Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Obama's New Christmas Tree Tax

Is there anything that Obama and his Democrat buddies won't tax? He just imposed a new 15 cent tax on the sale of Christmas trees.

Hey, at least his Muslim base should be happy.

That was a quick reversal on the tax. But the entire episode was absurd: tax Christmas trees in order for the federal government to hire a PR firm to promote and market Christmas trees. Why does the federal government need to do this again and who was stupid enough to even propose it?

Why is Obama Loaning $730MM to a Russian Steel Company?

Unbelievable. I can see lowering taxes for companies that choose to manufacture in the US, both American companies and foreign - that makes sense. But simply handing them a loan? Guess that's what happens when you have a President that doesn't understand business.

People have been asking where the trillion + of stimulus has gone....

Cain Accuser Short on Credibility

Media outlets (well, at least those outside the US) have learned a bit more about Sharon Bialek and there certainly is quite a bit of a shady past, from two personal bankruptcies to harassing former lovers to pay child loans to not holding a job in two years. Frankly, the one I'm most interested in is how she was fired from the National Restaurant Association after only six months. For those who understand the hiring and firing practices of these non-profit associations, it is nearly impossible to be fired. Should be interesting to find out why.

Jindal Wins Landslide Victory in Louisiana but Media Yawns

Bobby Jindal won an election two weeks ago for Governor of Louisiana but you wouldn't know it, as the media has all but ignored the results. (Republicans won all seven elections). Even more glaring is that he won by 48% to his nearest challenger! Even more remarkable is that Jindal is only the fourth Republican governor in his state in the last 125 years.

All of this leaves me scratching my head - as I have seen hardly any coverage of this huge victory. It's possible that it was expected and so the media doesn't care but I have a feeling if an Indian-American Democrat had won a landslide election in a huge Republican state, like say, Texas, then we'd be hearing a lot more about what the election means for 2012. I suspect if the media were to mention his win, then they'd have to speculate on what this means for Obama next year, which is something they don't really want to talk about.

By the way, Republicans (and Democrats) should take note: Jindal cut the budget by 25% and still achieved this victory.

Monday, November 07, 2011

Politico Attacks On Cain - By The Numbers

This from Legal Insurrection:

Days as of 8 p.m. Eastern today since Politico broke the story - 7
Politico news stories about or mentioning “Herman Cain“: 138
Politico news stories about or mentioning “sexual harassment“: 91
Politico news stories about or mentioning “sexual harassment” not involving Herman Cain: 0
Politico news stories showing what Herman Cain actually did: 0
Politico news stories showing specifically what Herman Cain was accused of: 0
Percentage drop in Herman Cain favorability rating as reported by Politico: 9
Politico news stories about or mentioning “Solyndra“: 9
Politico news stories about or mentioning “Fast and Furious“: 3
Politico news stories about or mentioning “unemployment“: 17
Politico news stories about or mentioning “recession“: 14
Politico’s credibility self-destruction: Priceless

Saturday, November 05, 2011

These Financial Services "Fat Cats" Make Too Much Money

If an executive at a financial institution creates value for shareholders, there is a good argument that he should be paid big money. But when federal government employees with all sorts of perks and benefits (including guaranteed pensions that private workers only dream about) make a lot of money at the sole expense of American taxpayers, that is something else (and never mentioned by Obama). These are the true "fat cats." From Biggovernment.com:

  • The CFPB responded on August 4, 2011. The SF-50s revealed CFPB workers being hired at salaries twice the maximum ordinarily allowed under guidelines published each year by the Office of Personnel Management. A dozen new hires take home more than $225,000 a year, and a student intern is currently being paid $42,036 “through completion of education & study” as a communications trainee.

  • The CFTC responded on September 12, 2011, but blocked out most of the information on the 26 forms provided. The documents, however, reveal that the agency has instituted a cash award bonus system, and during the first six months of 2011, the agency doled out from $400 to $5,000 in bonus income to employees already earning $225,000 or more per year.
  • The Federal Reserve, responding on August 25, 2011, denied using SF-50s, despite an apparent statutory requirement to do so. It also refused a subsequent request for “Transcripts of Service,” which the agency said it used instead of SF-50s.
  • The OCC responded on August 22, 2011. The SF-50s indicated that 85 workers earn $225,000 or more per year. The employee names, as well as the legal authority under which the pay raises were issued, were blotted out.
  • The U.S. Department of the Treasury, responding on August 25, 2011, indicated that two employees earn more than $225,000, but withheld their names.
  • The SEC responded on October 3, 2011, reporting that 103 workers earn $225,000 or more per year.

Friday, November 04, 2011

Cain Accuser Sees No Value in Coming Public

OK, after a week of the attempted sabotage of Herman Cain, we now know that there are anonymous sources for anonymous details about something that happened or was suggested or interpreted 20 years ago while Cain was the CEO of the National Restaurant Association. And the woman making the allegations was paid severance when she later left the association. Despite efforts to make it appear there was a massive scandal, her lawyer now says she sees no value in coming forward.

Wow - seems like a smoking gun story to me. Bill Clinton has to be laughing right now at this nonsense.

Thursday, November 03, 2011

Top Corzine Contributor and Ally In Charge of MF Global Investigation

Nothing to see here. Just because Gary Gensler has known and been friends with Jon Corzine for years and personally contributed $10,000 to Corzine's campaign doesn't mean anything. I'm sure he'll be an objective investigator as he heads up the Corzine / MF Global investigation...

Tuesday, November 01, 2011

Corzine's MF Global Another Madoff Fraud?

It appears that MF Global, run by top Democrat Jon Corzine, has been fraudulently using customer funds to help fund the company's massive losses. If this is indeed true, Corzine should receive the same treatment that Bernie Madoff received.

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text:
Wedding Lifestyle Magazine | #1 Top Wedding Resource for Black Brides and Grooms | Wedding Professionals | BB&G
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February 25, 2017

Design Wedding Decor with Ease- Top 10 Tips

Creating your wedding vision can be easier by following key helpful tips from Susan Chitwood, designer, at Maypop Design.

1. Choose a Theme: Working with a theme or color scheme narrows down the infinite design options, thereby lessening your stress!

2. Embrace Color: Consult decorating and fashion magazines for fresh color combos. Choose the ones that resonate with you.

3. Don’t be Matchie-Matchie: You needn’t replicate the exact same colors and patterns. Exact matches don’t excite the eye.

4. Think Texture: If you are going with all white or ivory, vary fabric and paper textures as well patterns to add movement.

5. Don’t Forget the Lighting: Creative lighting adds ambience. Bad lightening…..makes for zombie weddings.

6. Buy in Bulk: On a budget? You may cadge lower prices if you buy in bulk. And extra is always good.

7. Become Versatile: Those pomander balls hanging from the pews can do double duty piled in a beautiful bowl or stacked in a hurricane lamp at your reception. Afterwards, offer them as mementos to a lucky few.

8. Be Honest: Know when you can D.I.Y. and when you need help. If you’re crafty ad have time, go for it. Otherwise, read below.

9. Hire an Artist: Make sure your wedding planner has a very good eye. Or, hire a wedding decorator, and make sure your planner and decorator can work together.

10. Start Early: you’ll be making hundreds of decisions; make sure you allow time for the inevitable back-and-forth between you, your intended, the planner, the decorator and venue.

For more design assistance, visit Marypop Design.

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by Editor

Joel and Jessica Myers

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One Comment

  1. Davis

    lovely, such a good article. I needed hell starting my theme.. Thanks BB&G!

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Sputnik Diner Plate in Pink Sputnik Diner Plate in Pink

Sputnik Diner Plate in Pink

Blame Betty has all the retro kitchen accessories you can think of, and even some that you didn’t. Slip into a gorgeous vintage-inspired apron, and let’s talk kitchen!

Start your morning right with your favourite coffee or tea in one of our mugs or tea sets. For those of us who rush around the house like storm in the morning, take that warm beverage on the go with an adorable monster tumbler.

Rock your next dinner party with rockabilly kitchen essentials. Bake up some skeleton cookies, and display them on gorgeous traditional tattoo style platters. Serve up cold beverages on a hot day with bone shaped ice cubes. Your parties will be the talk of the town!

Bring home sailor approved classic design kitchen treasures. Complete your nautical theme with adorable salt and pepper shakers, bowls, cups and more. We think these beauties would look great displayed in a glass cabinet, or on an eye level shelf, in your dining space.


text:
Published by Blavatsky Study Center.  Online Edition copyright 2003.

The Judge "Occult Diary"
Vindication of Tingley, Hargrove, Fussell

by H.N. Stokes

[Reprinted from O.E. Library Critic (Washington, D.C.), September 1932, pp. 12-13.]

Much has been written of late about the quotations made by Mr. E.T. Hargrove in an E.S.T. circular of April 3d, 1896, from a purported diary and other papers of W.Q. Judge, and relating to Katherine Tingley.  The existence of these Judge documents was called in question in the United Lodge of Theosophists book, The Theosophical Movement (pages 667, 670) and very recently Mr. E.A. Neresheimer, who has in his possession a diary of Judge which does not contain the passages in question, has not hesitated to say that "Those alleged 'messages and quotations' attributed to Mr. Judge could only have been concocted by Mrs. Tingley, assisted by Mr. Hargrove and Mr. J.H. Fussell"; a very serious charge indeed.  ("Some Reminiscences of William Q. Judge", 1932, privately circulated, quoted in Canadian Theosophist, May, 1932, page 70.).   Based on Mr. Neresheimer's statements, the fraudulent nature of the Hargrove quotations has been accepted by several persons who have assumed, curiously enough, that Mr. Judge could have had but one diary.  (See Canadian Theosophist, May, 1932, page 70, and The Theosophical Movement, Bombay U.L.T., July, 1932).

It is claimed by the authorities at Point Loma that they actually have at least four Judge diaries.  Very recently they have unearthed in their archives a series of loose sheets in Judge's handwriting, in which are found every one of the quotations made by Mr. Hargrove in support of Katherine Tingley.

I am not asking anybody to accept their assertion alone.  But I have been furnished with photographs of five of these loose sheets, the contents of which I give below, containing six of the disputed quotations.  All except the one about the ring are quoted by Mr. Hargrove.  Anybody having the E.S.T. circular of April 3d, 1896, can compare them with Mr. Hargrove's quotations.  I submitted these photographs to two friends who had been closely associated with Mr. Judge, who at once pronounced them to be in his handwriting.  Together we compared them with several personal, handwritten and signed letters from Mr. Judge in their possession, and we agreed that there could be no doubt whatever that the writing of the loose sheets was his.

There is nothing suspicious in these papers coming to light at this late date.   Nearly every office has a lot of unsorted or unclassified material, and the appearance of the papers is not such as to attract attention, four of them being obviously written by pencil on a scratch pad, 5 x 4 1/8 inches.

There can therefore be no doubt that the papers are genuine Judge writing, and that the persons charged with fraud are fully exonerated, unless one makes the assumption that one of them, besides being a cheat, was a very skilful forger also, and imprudent enough to preserve the forged papers after they had served their purpose.  Incidentally it may be mentioned that four of the sheets are written in pencil, apparently hastily, as the punctuation is defective, giving the impression that they may have been taken down from dictation (by a medium?).  There are two or three insignificant verbal changes in the quotations as presented by Mr. Hargrove, from which it would appear that Mr. Judge may have copied them, with corrections, in a permanent diary from which Mr. Hargrove quoted, and which Mr. J.M. Pryse claims to have had in his possession for a time (Canadian Theosophist, June, page 125), but which cannot now be located.

Whether the person referred to was Mrs. Tingley or not is beyond the scope of this article to discuss.  The communications are supposed to be from the discarnate H.P.B.

In the originals there occurs a sign for the name of a person, designated by Mr. Hargrove as "Promise" and supposed to be Mrs. Tingley.  As this cannot be reproduced without a special engraving I have indicated it by the letter "X".   One sign, however, is different, though also designated by Mr. Hargrove as "Promise".  This I have indicated by "Y".

Sheet 1 - written with pen and ink

April 3 night
     B.  How I yearn for the day when I can come myself and work.   It is being put off by all this strife and bitterness.  I will come, as I said through Y.  Every day they keep this up is another day of delay for that event.

x x x

     B.  Had both been free, you well, & ye met at the time I said more and more wonderful phenomena would have happened than did with me; & we would have 100 members for every one we now have.

x x x

     The ring you wear is mine.  She thinks she has mine and that you have hers.  But you are right.  It was done by substitution, in the night by one of us.  There is also a letter I left you which has never been delivered.

Sheet 2 - written with pencil

     4) Jan 2
if we had been more together have come up before me & I have learned much.  I am, next to the American work, interested in Spain.  Ireland will take care of itself.   There in Spain in the pine woods I have found a lodge which I knew something about before I went away.  There 7 chelas and the light they

Sheet 3 - written with pencil

show that some day will be better known I will describe to you at our next meeting     There is much connected with it that can be used for irradiating causes in this country.  Be sure that at next meeting this is not forgotten.  Slowly the light from this Lodge is being thrown over Spain & I see that from the

Sheet 4 - written with pencil

You can make X what you wish & the truthfulness of X spirit & devotion to us will make X useful.  Keep X well in the background  In outer work X is our mystery The light I mentioned in Spain is of 7 sides with a purple-yellow light.  On each of

Sheet 5 - written with pencil

with sustaining points & leave the rest to us.  This is to your questions of last night.  I can do well now with 13  I can do better in time.  I will touch upon minor points  they will take care of themselves Master is not after the little points     Let our eyes turn to the American future of theosophy

See next article by H.N. Stokes. . . .

Return to Table of Contents of H.N. Stoke's
"William Q. Judge and Katherine Tingley" series of articles


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WWE Hell in a Cell 2012

WWE Raw Live Results, Reaction, Analysis and Hell in a Cell Fallout

The Doctor Chris MuellerFeatured ColumnistOctober 29, 2012

We are less than a day removed from Hell in a Cell and the reactions to the event have been mixed to say the least.

Every title ended up being defended last night and several of the matches stood out as entertaining, but the main event is the match most people will be talking about.

Ref Brad Maddox once again came into play as he stopped Ryback from winning the match by delivering a low blow which allowed Punk to roll Ryback up for a fast count.

Ryback got his revenge after the match, but the monster will likely be looking for a rematch tonight.

We also have the angle with John Cena being confronted by Vickie Guerrero with "evidence" that he had an affair with AJ Lee.

Big Show is the new World champion following his win over Sheamus and Dolph Ziggler still has his MITB case. Could we see a cash in tonight?

The fallout from Hell in a Cell is sure to be intriguing so make sure to bookmark this page and come back tonight when Raw goes live for up-to-the-minute coverage of all the action.

Follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor

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Houston Rockets

Toney Douglas' Role as Backup Point Guard in Houston Is Running Out

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 09:  (L) Kemba Walker #1 of the Charlotte Bobcats is challenged by (R) Toney Douglas #23 of the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on January 9, 2012 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.  (Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images)
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James ChangCorrespondent INovember 10, 2012

When Chauncey Billups and Toney Douglas were teammates in New York, Billups was injured and out several times.  Douglas was called upon to keep the Knicks boat afloat.  He did a decent enough job that the Knicks amnestied Billups to give Douglas the starting role.

Toney had a good start with the Knicks at the beginning of last year's shortened season, putting up 19 points in the opener against Boston and 17 points and eight rebounds six days later against the Kings; after that, he struggled and was benched by Mike D'Antoni as a result.

When the Knicks traded for Douglas after he was picked 29th overall in the 2009 draft, Douglas was a great spot-up shooter, and someone who made defenses pay with the long ball.  It's been a while since Toney has been relied upon for these skills.

The Knicks would eventually send Douglas to the Houston Rockets along with Josh Harrellson, Jerome Jordan and second round picks for Marcus Camby.  The Knicks and their fans seemed giddy to be rid of Douglas and his lingering shoulder problems.

In a short four months, both Harrellson and Jordan are gone.  Douglas remains as a backup point guard, but his woes continue in Houston.  From failing to recognize open teammates and not having a good sense of court awareness at all, his role as a ball distributor seems in question.  His shooting, which was his strength in his first two years, has been poor since his last year with the Knicks.

In four games as the backup point guard in Houston, Douglas has made only two shots and is shooting a dismal 11%.

The real disappointment is that the Toney Douglas who is with Houston now is struggling just as he did  last year with the Knicks.  He's still having trouble with the same missed screen passes, and hurried shots with the shot clock winding down, either for himself or the perimeter shooter he just passed to.

Imagine if someone was seriously injured in a car accident.  He may get on the road again, but the ease of which he drives and his comfort is no longer there.  This appears to be the case with Douglas and his shoulder injury.

Even when he struggled with the Knicks during games, Douglas would make those same shots and passes in practice.  But as soon as the game started, his confidence disappeared.  What's left was someone who knew how to play the game well, but can't seem to execute, and his indecisiveness often led to missed plays and turnovers.

Players at this level deserve chances when they falter.  However, Douglas has struggled for several seasons now.  The prospect of him recovering his court abilities seem grim.

Even with his struggles, Douglas is an above-average defender; however, Houston needs a solid backup distributor more than they need a good on-ball defender.  Maybe it's time to give Scott Machado some court time.

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Michigan Wolverines Football

Michigan Wolverine Commit: Antonio Kinard (Mar. 17)

ErocWolverineSenior Writer IMarch 18, 2009

Antonio Kinard

Height: 6'4"
Weight: 210 lbs.
High school: Liberty high school (Ohio)
High school coach: Jeff Whittaker
Position: Defensive End
Class: 2010 Recruiting Class (Verbal Commit)

Antonio Kinard

Overview: He is a tall rangy athlete who currently plays inside linebacker. He could easily grow into a defensive end or play the hybrid in coach Robinson's defense. If defense does not work out could also play Max back on offense.

Strengths: He runs very well for a player his size and has an excellent quick burst and closing speed. He is a sound and physical tackler.

Needs Work: He loses leverage at times. He must learn to keep his knees bent. His feet have a tendency to stop moving.

To watch video highlights of him: http://gobluemichiganwolverine.blogspot.com/2009/03/antonio-kinard-2010-michigan-commit.html

To see my blog page please visit http://gobluemichiganwolverine.blogspot.com/

Make sure to sign up for the daily e-mails on other articles not covered here.

We mostly cover Michigan football, basketball, recruiting, hockey, baseball, softball and have video of recruits along with recruiting list that Michigan is looking at now. Also we have television show reminders that cover the University of Michigan.

Written by ErocWolverine and CoachBt

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Dallas Cowboys

Jerry Jones' Comments on Tony Romo's December Failures Only Hurt the Cowboys

Jerry Jones' comments add even more pressure to quarterback Tony Romo.
Jerry Jones' comments add even more pressure to quarterback Tony Romo.Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Tom LoganCorrespondent IDecember 3, 2013

Following the Cowboys' comeback victory over the Oakland Raiders on Thanksgiving Day, Jerry Jones called Tony Romo's performance "inspirational," revealing that Romo had played with a stomach virus—as NFL.com reported. It was a nice, supportive thing for an owner to say.

Then, just a few days later, the omnipotent Jones felt it necessary to call out Romo for his lack of performance in December over the last few years.

"I think it's real and I don't mean to be trite," Jones said Tuesday morning on his radio show on KRLD-FM in Dallas, as reported by Calvin Watkins of ESPNDallas.com. "You can probably tie that [Romo's struggles in December] [as to] why we have had disappointments in December."

Through Week 13 Romo ranks eighth in the NFL in passer rating, according to ESPN.com, and he's enjoying arguably his best season as a pro. He doesn't need a backseat driver reminding him of poor performances from the past, he needs to continue to be efficient in the passing game and give his team the chance to win football games.

Romo has made some notable mistakes in critical late-season games in the last two years, and it's hard to deny his career dip in performance in the month of December. A 24-5 record in the month of November juxtaposed with an 11-15 mark in December paints a pretty clear picture.

Romo knows he'll have to play better for the Cowboys to succeed. Tied for first in the NFC East, the Cowboys have a golden opportunity to outlast the Philadelphia Eagles and punch their ticket to the playoffs.

If they can get there, they're capable of beating anyone, should their explosive offense gets rolling.

In the 2006 NBA finals, Dallas Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban created the blueprint for how to not act as the owner of a franchise. He yelled at refs, claimed that the NBA was rigged and obnoxiously hovered around his team's bench.

Was he solely responsible for his team's disappointing series loss? Certainly not, but his actions didn't help its cause.

In the 2011 NBA finals Cuban took a relaxed, hands-off approach, and his Mavericks upset the Miami Heat. This time around, Cuban didn't create any headlines or distractions. He simply let his team play freely without heaping any additional pressure on them. He didn't call out his players or the coaching staff, and he didn't try to micromanage his team.

Jones could learn a thing or two from his fellow Dallas franchise owner.

Jones has already locked up Romo with a six-year contract guaranteeing the quarterback $55 million. It's time for the Cowboys' CEO to sit back and reap the dividends from his investment.

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Dallas Cowboys

Adam “don't call me Pacman” Jones making impression with Cowboys

Eddie GriffinSenior Analyst IJune 19, 2008

For once, seeing Pacman Jones’ name in the newspapers and on the Web is a good thing: He has been a model citizen and is showing his vast talent to his new club, the Dallas Cowboys.

In fact, he practiced with the first-team defense on Wednesday alongside Terence Newman. However, that fact did make one player unhappy: starter Anthony Henry, as it cut into his repetitions.

“I’ve been playing in this league for eight years. I’m not blind to it,” Henry said, referring to the trade for Jones from Tennessee. “I knew what time it was when the transaction happened at the draft. I already knew what time it was. It’s just a matter of when. And maybe when is now.”

Henry eventually could move to safety and get some work there covering tight ends, but he is not expected to lose his starting cornerback job anytime soon. The Cowboys are working on some dime packages that include Henry at safety, but coach Wade Phillips said he doesn’t expect Henry to move much from cornerback.

“Right now, we don’t have any depth charts,” defensive coordinator Brian Stewart said.

Jones is getting kudos from just about everyone in camp other than Henry.

“He’s come in here and picked up the system pretty quickly,” receiver Patrick Crayton said. “I haven’t heard anybody repeat a whole lot to him. I think he’s going to step in, and he’s taking care of his responsibilities.”

Cowboys secondary coach Dave Campo has compared him to Newman and lauded his conditioning.

“He kind of reminds me of (Terence) Newman,” Campo said. “They’re very similar type players, they’re aggressive, they’ve got good feet, they’re quick. He’s that kind of a player, and I think Newman’s pretty darn good, so that’s a good compliment.

“When he walked out on the field, he was ready to start playing,” Campo said. “And the coachability part of it, I was not so much surprised, but happy with it. He listens and he’s hungry.”

It seems everyone is talking about Pacman besides himself – other than letting the media know that he would like to ditch the nickname and be referred to simply as Adam from now on.

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Jacksonville Jaguars

Troy Williamson Of The Jacksonville Jaguars: A "Cat" With Nine Lives

JACKSONVILLE, FL - AUGUST 22:  Troy Williamson #84 of the Jacksonville Jaguars catches a touchdown pass during the first quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium on August 22, 2009 in Jacksonville, Florida.  (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
Sam Greenwood/Getty Images
James WalkerAnalyst IIMarch 4, 2010

Maybe the third season is a charm.

Troy Williamson was re-signed to a contract this week with the Jaguars, but the terms and length were undisclosed.

In 2009, he played in the first two games of the season before a shoulder injury sidelined him for the remainder of the year.  He was also injured throughout 2008 only contributing five receptions for 30 yards and a touchdown.

All in all, he has played in 11 games in the two seasons that he has been a Jaguar.

Arguably, he did have a strong preseason in 2009 before his season-ending injury; however, how much more time will Williamson be given to prove himself and/or contribute?

Now that one-year contributor Torry Holt has been given his walking papers, will this finally be Williamson's year?

Mike Sims-Walker had a coming-out year, and Mike Thomas showed flashes of potential.

Could Williamson be that third and final piece of the WR puzzle?

Jaguar fans must keep in mind that former rookies Tiquan Underwood and Jarrett Dillard are also potential weapons.  However, are they pee-shooters or weapons of mass destruction?

Only time will tell.

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Kentucky Wildcats Basketball

NCAA Tourney Round 2 Wake Forest Vs. Kentucky Preview

NEW ORLEANS - MARCH 18:  DeAndre Liggins #34 of the Kentucky Wildcats catches a pass over Adam Sollazzo #43 of the East Tennessee State Buccaneers during the first round of the 2010 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the New Orleans Arena on March 18, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Wildcats defeated the Buccaneers 100-71.  (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Chris Graythen/Getty Images
Ray MonohanContributor IMarch 19, 2010

Welcome to our college hoops weekly predictions! We KNOW you will find our FREE March Madness predictions, tips, betting advice, strategies, CBB gambling articles and more to help you become the best College Hoops bettor on your block!!

Wake Forest vs Kentucky – 8:15 P.M. Saturday, March 20th

NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament 2nd Round
Wake Forest + 9 (-110)
Kentucky – 9 (-110)
Over/Under 147

No. 9 seed Wake Forest squares off against No. 1 seed Kentucky in the second round of the East regional with tip-off slated for 8:15 P.M. Saturday, March 20th.

After losing four out of their last five regular season games to finish with a 9-7 conference record and getting knocked out of the ACC Tournament by Miami 63-82 in the first round, you have to wonder what the selection committee saw in Wake Forest (20-10) to not only give them an at-large bid but to make them a No. 9 seed.

They did have some early season wins against other tournament teams like Richmond and Xavier, but I think they relied heavily on their reputation to gain such a lofty spot.

They earned a bit of respect back with their first round win over Texas 81-80 in overtime, but the Longhorns have been headed in the opposite direction ever since they reached the No. 1 spot in the rankings midway through the season.

In the win over Texas, senior G Ishmael Smith’s 17 foot jumper with 1.3 seconds left in the first overtime gave the Demon Deacons the unlikely win, after they were trailing by eight in the extra period. This game was more about another Texas collapse than a Wake Forest win.

Kentucky has been atop of the polls all season long as one of the two or three best teams in the nation.

They have an overall record of 33-2 and were 14-2 in conference play.

They were the SEC East regular season champions as well as won the SEC Tournament with a dramatic last second 75-74 win over Mississippi State in overtime so it is no wonder they earned a number one seed for this tournament.

The Wildcats are an extremely young team, led by a pair of freshman studs, G John Wall and F DeMarcus Cousins who make up for a lack of experience with a ton of talent.

In their opening round 100-71 rout over East Tennessee State, Wall scored 17 points and had 11 assists, but it was another freshman, Eric Bledsoe that stole the show with 29 points to lead the way.

Junior F Patrick Patterson added 22 points as the Wildcats coasted to the first tournament win ever for the majority of the starting five.

I am still scratching my head trying to figure out how Wake Forest or Texas for that matter even got into this tournament, let alone earn a 9 and 8 seed respectfully.

These young cats are just getting warmed up as they roll their way into the Sweet 16.

Betting Trends:

Wake Forest is 16-8 SU in its last 24 games
Wake Forest is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
Kentucky is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
WAKE FOREST is 18-37 ATS (-22.7 Units) in all tournament games since 1997
WAKE FOREST is 2-10 ATS (-9.0 Units) in a NCAA tournament games since 1997
WAKE FOREST is 12-4 ATS (+7.6 Units) as an underdog over the last 2 seasons
WAKE FOREST is 15-6 ATS (+8.4 Units) versus good offensive teams – scoring 77+ points/game over the last 3 seasons

Wildcats vs. Demon Deacons Round 2 Free Pick: Kentucky -9

Gamblers looking for the best online free march madness Round 2 picks and 2010 bracket predictions? Visit Our Cappers Pages for expert College tournament basketball Gambling Predictions from over 40 of the best sports handicappers.

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Calgary Flames

Get Out Of Our Game, Gary!: A Canadian Cry For The Integrity of The NHL

CALGARY, AB - FEBRUARY 20:  Fireworks are shot off at the end of the 2011 NHL Heritage Classic Game at McMahon Stadium on February 20, 2011 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The Flames defeated the Canadiens 4-0.  (Photo by Dylan Lynch/Getty Images)
Dylan Lynch/Getty Images
Michael van der SlootCorrespondent IFebruary 21, 2011

As a faithful, Alberta-born Calgary Flames fan miles away from heart and home in Big D, Texas, I was very excited to catch CBC's broadcast of the Heritage Classic in my living room.

While it was a balmy 70+ degrees Fahrenheit in Dallas (with a refreshing breeze), I admittedly envied the -13 degree Celsius weather at McMahon, even though one trip back home would surely change my mind.

When I saw the pre-game videos that demonstrated so well how much the game of hockey is part of Canadian culture and life, I felt a little tingle in my heart (Yeah, my doctor knows—he already diagnosed me with a severe case of sentimentalism).

After I saw the beautiful aerial shots that the camera crew had of the Calgary skyline, I really felt like I was back home for a second.

Seeing 40,000+ fans cheering for two of Canada's most legendary sports teams, I was very proud to be a Canadian.

I want to point something out to all you American readers: For a people that generally lack obnoxious, in-your-face patriotism (I'm looking at you, Texans), Canadians are still proud to be Canadian, and the more they're away the more that feeling grows.

Here I was, thinking to myself that this is such a great event for Canada as a whole.  Two Canadian playoff-caliber teams, two diehard markets that can hold their own, a mostly-Canadian alumni between the two that has left an impressive legacy, and the whole snow and ice factor.

That's a lot of Canada right there. The game is back at home where it belongs.

Then I heard it.

"Will you please stand and remove your hats for the playing of 'The Star Spangled Banner'."

A country duo based in Tennessee singing the American national anthem at a sporting event specifically in Canada specifically featuring Canadian teams?

You really outdid yourself with this one, NHL.

Oh, and 10 points goes to the person who can tell me what Tennessee offers to the sport.

I'm not entirely certain who to blame for this one, but I, for one, was absolutely disgusted.  I'm sure that others felt this way, you could tell even from the TV screen that the fans at the game felt a little dejected.

Don't get me wrong, folks, I'm not at all anti-American. I hated your guts in the Olympics but that was pretty much it, and I already got grilled for it by plenty of one-day hockey fans in Texas, believe me.

What disgusted me about this was the fact that the anthem did not belong in any way at the game, yet for some reason, brass must have thought it invaluably necessary to have it sung even though it defies normal procedures.

How many Americans were able to watch this game? What channel broadcasted it? Versus? NBC was running "Hockey Day in America" (way to be original) which did NOT feature the Heritage Classic. So that explanation is obviously bogus.

In games featuring two American teams, they sing the American anthem. In games between a Canadian and American team, they sing both anthems. In games between Canadian teams, they sing the Canadian anthem.

So why change that for the Heritage Classic, which emphasized a very obvious Canadian theme?

Part of me can't help but assume that this is still part of Bettman's failed plan to promote hockey in places where snow is viewed as a magical, fearsome substance that only exist in legends and Wisconsin.

I guarantee you with rare exception that no American sat down on a Sunday afternoon in their (insert Southern city name here) home to watch the Flames play the Canadiens.

So why try to blatantly assert American presence in a Canadian game played in Canada between Canadian teams consisting of mostly Canadian players?

Sure, this is just one little thing that really is not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. However, you can't deny that there was some kind of motive behind it that is highly characteristic of the way the NHL has been run recently.

Jim Balsillie's gutsy and sensible attempts to bring teams to a potentially lucrative Canadian market were all kicked to the curb by Bettman and his accomplices.

Winnipeg and Quebec City have been pushing to bring teams back that they can now probably afford in the new salary-cap era.

Yet, the NHL (and its member teams) keep the Phoenix Coyotes on life support, and keep their fingers crossed that one day Nashville and Raleigh will ditch NASCAR for hockey.

There's great talent in these teams that goes under-appreciated in places where they will never find a real fan base behind the other American sports like football, baseball, and basketball that dominate those markets.

I'm just sick and tired of people stealing and trying to transplant Canada's game where it doesn't naturally grow—just like we can't plant palm trees from Florida in Edmonton.

It's a beautiful game that many people here in Dallas, for example (one of the strongest southern hockey markets), don't actually understand.

Sure, there's some interest in the sport, but there is hardly any passion—and there's a big and crucial difference between the two.

It might have just been a song, but it's a microcosm of the recent trend.

The game needs its integrity back, and it will not happen as long as the current administration tries to force its bastardization of this game to the wrong target audience.

Give the game back to the people who love it.

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Saturday, December 11, 2010

The End of IPv4 and the Amateur 44/8 amprnet

Internet Map. Ninian Smart predicts global com...Image via WikipediaI wrote about amprnet ( a while back - here.  It's a relatively unknown fact that ham radio has its very own Class A IP network --  This is quite a huge chunk of Internet IP v. 4 address space -- 16 million addresses, give or take.  As best I can determine, it was established in 1987 to support future TCP/IP networks that might be implemented either on radio links or as some combination of radio and alternative commercial or other links.  (The latter makes a lot of sense now, given the widespread availability of consumer Internet connections.)  The allocation is best documented in this ARIN WHOIS link.  I have not been able to find on-line documentation or other material relating to amprnet, beyond a number of blog and email postings.  (I'd be happy to get pointers!)

This whole subject came up once again for me, when I was reading how ARIN is trying to "capture" (contractually speaking) the legacy owners of IPv4 address space.  These are people, presumably including amprnet, who received their allocations well before the current Internet bureaucracy was established.  An interesting look at the issues is available in ComputerWorld.  (Thanks slashdot!)

The amprnet allocation usage must be tiny in percentage terms, and hard to justify in a world of address scarcity.   Standalone radio networks based on TCP/IP (if there really are any!) are likely based on VHF if not 2.4 GHz (HSMM), and they are fundamentally local or regional and are not likely to be routable from the Internet.   They could probably equally well use a network address like

In recent years, various other network-based amateur systems have developed, including EchoLink, IRLP, D-Star, winLink, etc.  These make effective use of Internet links, but have no particular need for the amprnet addresses.

I don't want to argue the pros and cons so much as to point to the odd situation of our hobby holding such a valuable resource, with no visible institutional support.

What are the chances to get a little more RF spectrum, if we hand back the IP addresses?
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- AARP - http://blog.aarp.org -

Placebo Power: Can It Relieve Your Migraine?

Senior woman with headacheIt’s called the placebo effect – the surprising power of the brain to affect the body when we take a pill we think is medication, even though it isn’t.

It’s been found to influence a number of conditions, including depression and irritable bowel syndrome, as Smithsonian magazine noted, but the most recent research concerns the pain of chronic migraines – those severe pounding headaches often accompanied by nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light.

In the study, published in Science Translational Medicine, researchers with Harvard medical school found that a dummy pill labeled as a drug provided nearly as much relief for migraine sufferers as did the real drug. In other words, patients reported their pain had been reduced about equally for both kinds of pills, as long as they didn’t know the pill was a sham.

>> Sign up for the AARP Health Newsletter

There was one significant difference, however: When it came to an objective measurement – whether the pain was actually gone 2 1/2 hours after taking the pill – the real drug was four times more effective than the placebo.

The 66 subjects were given six envelopes containing a pill to take after their next six migraine attacks. Two of the envelopes were labeled with the name of a migraine drug (Maxalt, the brand name for the generic rizatriptan) even though only one of the envelopes had the real drug; two had no label so subjects didn’t know which was a placebo and which was the drug; and two were labeled “placebo,” even though only one really was.

The subjects were asked to rate their pain relief two hours after taking a pill. When they took the pill labeled a placebo, they reported 26 percent less pain. When they took a Maxalt-labeled pill, they reported 40 percent less pain. And when they took a mystery pill that could have been either a placebo or Maxalt, they also reported a 40 percent decrease in pain.

This means that people who took a placebo pill labeled Maxalt got just as much pain relief as those who took a real Maxalt pill labeled as a placebo. It also means that those who thought they were taking placebo, even though it was really a drug, reported half as much relief as those who took a real placebo labeled as a drug.

Obviously, this shows the power that expectation can have if you think a pill is going to help you. But the findings also show that asking patients for their subjective feelings – like how much their pain has been reduced – is very different from asking for an objective measurement. There was no question which type of pill was more effective when patients were asked whether the pain was completely gone. The real drug won, hands down.

That’s because pain relief is “a judgment call,” study author Ted Kaptchuk, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard medical school, explained to NPR’s health blog.  “Being pain-free is not a judgment call.”

So what’s the lesson here? The words a doctor uses when prescribing a drug for a patient matter, researchers said in a press statement. Setting patients’ expectations high that a drug will work may help the drug be more effective. And for drug companies testing new medication, it may be more useful to measure an objective outcome rather than rely on patients’ subjective feedback.

>> Get discounts on health products and services with your AARP Member Advantages.

Photo: londoneye/iStock

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Teachers Share their Experiences While Living Abroad!

Opportunities to Work at Various Chungdahm Locations

Posted on Wed, Jun 15, 2016 @ 03:53 PM

Chungdahm Learning is a massive company that has various branches and franchises domestically and globally. Recently, CDL expanded its international horizons, and has opened up new academies all over Vietnam. The company also has locations in Philippines and America

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Tags: creativity with students, student management, international, teaching at Chungdahm, teaching,, chungdahm, class management, chungdahm learning, international teaching jobs, project based learning, growing with Chungdahm, Chungdahm locations, transfer locations

The Benefits of Project Based Learning at ChungDahm

Posted on Thu, Oct 29, 2015 @ 07:00 PM

Project Based Learning, PBL, is an important instructional component of Chungdahm Learning’s curriculum. Chungdahm’s smart classrooms provide the technology tools to connect students ideas and projects nationally.  Loudestbrain, Chungdahm’s brain child, challenges students to participate in national PBL competitions and school-branch level collaborations.

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Tags: critical thinking projects, chungdahm, project based learning

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Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Contractor Tips: 10 Home Remodeling "Don'ts"

Whether you work with a general contractor or act as one on your own project, getting a glimpse into the mind of a contractor can give you a new perspective into remodeling projects around your home.

1 comment:

  1. This is a nice post in an interesting line of content, great way of bring this topic to discussion.

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