This is how grown-ups do it!

Wow, what a difference in debate style. I am so impressed and so glad that I am a Dem and not a Rep. No shouting, insulting, innuendo or other really cheap shots. All of them did a fine a service for the Democratic Party and give hope to the American people.

Now compare that to the Republican free for all clown show starred by some one whose name rhymes with rump!

If Hastert is found guilty do you think he will get any jail time?

I am so jazzed! I am going to Europe

In 17 days my family and I will be leaving for a 35 day trip. We will be going back to my birthplace of Frankfurt, Germany.

If you have been in any of these spots and have suggestions or know some one who would like to hook up and explore a bit together, please let me know:

Reykjavik, Iceland 2 days
Paris, France 3 Days
Grenoble France 1 Day
Barcelona, Spain 4 Days
Zurich, Switzerland 1Day
Florence, Italy 2 Days
Rome, Italy 4 Days
Athens, Greece 2 Days
Vienna, Austria 1 Day
Prague, Czech Republic 3 Days
Koln, Germany 1 Day
Brussels, Belgium 1 Day
London, England 3 Days
Dublin, Ireland 1 Day
Frankfurt, Germany 4 Days

Some of our highlights are a tour of Iceland, lunch at the Eiffel Tower, guided tour of the Louve, Papal Audience and Mass, dinner and formal concert in Vienna, all day tour of London, Irish house party and dinner.

I have been working on this for two years. I have re-done the route 82 times. Most of it is being done by train except Barcelona to Zurich and Athens to Vienna. I dumped 900,000 Marriott points for hotels and 261,000 flight points for tickets (I travel for work) I have saved up 8 years worth of points. It has been 23 years since I have seen my family in Frankfurt.


For all the other spots, most of them I has in when I was small...so I would appreciate suggestions of things to do and observations. Thanks Mike

Guessing on the Hastert pot of gold.

what are your thoughts as to what the hush money was for?

I am so thankful that the Baltimore officers have been charged

but I am cynical enough to know that they wouldn't have been had it not been for both the peaceful and violent protests. It felt last night that the lid was about to blow on our US cities this weekend. Hopefully this will stop some of it.

Fuck Cops

I am so heart broken and sick and tired of god damn cops getting away with brutally murdering people in cold blood. Part of the problem started with shows like COPS of fucking Fox. They glorified scenes in which cops disrespected suspects (not criminals) and berated them, taunted them, harassed them and pre-judged them. The show made it all look glamorous and like it was okay to mistreat certain segments of society.

The other problem is that we have militarized our police departments to such an extent in the name of fighting terrorism. We have turned this country into an armed camp. The only difference is that instead of green uniforms, most of the occupiers have blue uniforms. We have filed many of our LEO positions with former military who have their own PTSD problems and are also infused with a culture of us vs them. Much of this done in the name of fighting terrorism.

We have turned our court systems into money makers for cities and states. Often cops look for the most petty reasons to stop some one, find something wrong and then get them to court. Once in court the system fines them exorbitantly or worse yet jails them and they go to work for the prison industrial complex where corporation make obscene profits off the "prison slave labor" available.

And let's not forget racism...it's there folks, has never gone away and is actually back with a vengeance. What better way for a maladjusted racist to practice his belief system than under the color of law. Stomp and beat people different than you and get praise for it.

We need to quit giving cops the benefit of doubt in beating cases. Also they are no better than other folks in other professions. Why should killing a cop be an aggravating factor in a death penalty decision and not killing a teacher, fireman, engineer, social worker, community activist or teacher?

Our national law enforcement system is sick, bloated and corrupt. We need to scrap it and start over!!!!

Does anyone here know who the sentencing judge is for

David Petraeus?

I would like to write a victims statement letter. We are all victims of his crime. To me no jail time is bullshit.

I take really personally for the following reason. I had cancer a while back in which I was uninsured. I had 169,000k in medical debt with no way out. I was up against the wall and what I did was keep on filing bankruptcies to stall the creditors from garnishing our paychecks and seizing our home that we had lived in for 16 years. Because of my keeping on filing for bankruptcy over and over which I knew that you had to wait 6 years between each one, I was charged with abuse of the US Bankruptcy process ( charged as contempt of Federal Court) I got to spend 328 days in a federal prison as a result.

To me (at least to my perspective) what the general did was WAY! worse and for him not spend a day in jail because of it or have a felony record is complete bullshit!

As victims we have the right to file a victim statement and I encourage each and every one of us to do so!

40 years ago today I was sworn in as a US Citizen

My mom met my dad in Germany, he wound up being sent to Vietnam and was shot and died returning home. It took my mom and I a few years to get everything together to come to Tacoma where my dad owned a house. Then as a teenager after taking the citizenship class in the evening at our local high school, I was confident enough to take the test.

I was sworn in 40 years ago today and I remember my mom telling me I had an obligation to always know what was going on in this country and I also remember the Federal Judge who swore us in told us, that we had a responsibility to serve our community in any way could.

It seems to me so many times when I listen to Republicans campaigning and pontificating, that those ideals are lost upon them. What a tragedy for them and for our nation!

A shot in the arm is worth....

frankly, a life!

I just wanted to share my perspective on immunology/vaccination: I was born in a German hospital in 1957 when the nation was still recovering from World War II. Not all hospitals were totally sanitary. As a result I got the measles and I was one of those one out of a thousand in which the measles wound up being encephalitis. I spent the first six months of my life in a hospital. I have struggled all my life as a result of this. My vision is poor and I don't have good equilibrium. In addition the encephalitis which was a result of the measles the disease damaged my nervous system slightly. I would up being hyper and in the days before an adhd diagnosis, this was not well received in the German Catholic system of which I was a part of. Even into adulthood, I still have problems. Now I know of ways and mechanisms to cope with it, also my hyper activity as I get older has started to finally work to my advantage. But the result of not having a vaccine (it wasn't available yet) has wreaked havoc upon my life.

Also, my mother had polio as a child. I remember growing up many times watching her limp, looking at the deformed foot that she had and living with her in her compromised state. She just was not a well person and died when I was 16 years old at the age of 40.

I also had the chicken pox at 23 years of age and felt like I was gonna die. End result folks:

VACCINATE YOUR KIDS!!! It takes so little effort, but to not vaccinate your child, can change yours, and your child's life in a heart beat. To me take it from personal experience...do it!

Ok It's one week to Super Bowl

Who do you think is going to win?