ALLURE
HERES a new mag I've been missing. ALLURE. It came to our house
and it appeared to have a young, beautiful girl on the cover who was wearing
only a brassier and panties. WOW! Is
this really legal now? I grabbed it and tried to fine the article regarding how
hey managed that. I got side-tracked as there was virtually nothing in the
entire rag but advertising. I finally ran across a small article regarding the
cover model, who purportedly was wearing a transparent dress. Sure enough, when
I looked closely, there were s,mall vertical lines on an clear plastic dress!
Well, I was certainly fooled by that old ploy.
Anyway, while I was at
it it I counted the add pages versus the written content, (not easy to tell the
difference, sometimes). And found an astounding 96 full page adds mostly
directed at young women who were already beautiful. There were only 16 pages of
text! And this will only cost you $10 a year to buy mostly adds that the mag
already is getting paid for by the advertisee. I''m truly appalled by this
mis-use of time and money. At least it's not my time & money.
INFLATED VALUE
The sports folks are currently involved in buying up the best
batters, pitchers, quarterbacks, Etc. .
And I am utterly flabbergasted about how much these guys are making. Here is a
young guy who is being paid 20 million a year, but I suppose you have to look
at the fact he has to pay about half of that in taxes to our government.
(Bummer, only left with 20 mill?) I guess the only other guys who make as much
are the Hip-Hop guys (What the hell is that?).
AMSTERDAM
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| GLASS DOME OVER SCHEEPVAART MUSEUM |
FAUX FASHION
Once in a while I come up
for air and notice some new fashions going around. I was especially surprised
when I noticed that most of the super sportsperson were wearing beards, and
some really long! Everyone who plays with a ball (Base, Basket and foot) seem
to be getting bearded up all of a sudden. I have mixed emotions about that as I
have been hirsute for about 50 years now and like marijuana, didn't think it
would become mainstream at some time in my lifetime, anyway.
I am also noticing hat
it seems 'fashionable for men to walk around with their shirts outside of their
pants. Now this is a no brainier, as it is really a stupid look. But even worse
than that, young girls (and their mothers) are all getting the Australian
shoe/boot call Ugg, which has got to be named for a short version of Ugly!
While we're dissing the
new fads, let me vent a bit about why there is such a thing as high tables in,
restaurants and even rental apartments (( this is what I call "a current fashion").
I suppose this is another of those wonderful inventions by your favorite Interior Desacrators.
THE EDUCATORS
Let's talk a bit about our
teachers. This as kind of similar to our health programs. Whenever we see a chart
of our standing World-Wide, We spend less
on our teachers and less more on Health Care but get less and Less for
each one. But before I get into ranting
about those, how about so many of our citizens have to have multiple jobs? I can
understand a little of it as I had generally about 5 different jobs at the same
time but I was a student, earning my way thru architectural school, not being
supported by any Veterans tuition, and was too bright to get a student loan
that would pay for it all (Parties!) and owing about a $100,000 as soon as I
graduated. Who would be so dumb as to do that? I can now see that a college
degree can be required to get those cushy jobs like Kindergarten Teacher. Most think they are merely "Baby
sitters" and that is what we really need, as that allows the mother to
get a real job and support her kids. This is an area that I do not know much
about, except what I read. But I have a feeling that our school system is
pretty ,much regulated by the State and this bothers me. There are rules that
limit the number of students, our type of history, etc. How about looking at that problem from the
top down, instead of gnashing our teeth about low paying jobs? (First, how much is adequate housing?)
Is there any way to look at how so many of our people are on
welfare? We have already built gigantic
housing projects and the inmates (oops, excuse me!) turn it into a terrible,
drug infested, violent environment, and it is therefore demolished *Pruitt-Igoe (
New York?) .
To quote a teacher ;"Isn't it amazing one can teach in a city in this country but not afford to live in it? Values in this country seem to be that entertainment, be it sports or Hollywood, is worth so much more that folks who teach our children.
To quote a teacher ;"Isn't it amazing one can teach in a city in this country but not afford to live in it? Values in this country seem to be that entertainment, be it sports or Hollywood, is worth so much more that folks who teach our children.
OUTER SPACE
I do understand something about collateral building (Civilian benefits of War research, such as the iphone, satalites, etc.) but I don't
have a number at hand that relates how much we budget on the Space program. I am concerned that the funding
and development of outer Space takes precedent over our Health Care. What
percentage of their budget do the Scandinavians spend on space inquired when
they seem to have the health part of he equation pretty well handled. There are
innumerable satellites zipping around our earth and they are a result of our
other searches for the end of the universe, or something. Let's put off our
trip to Mars after we've solved our Health program. I recently saw a list of some of our space
programs and there were 50 massive programs throwing shit in space , hoping for
what?
Maybe we can leave collapsed stars and black or white holes alone
for a while, and concentrate on problems at hand.
SEX AT WORK
It's not all bad! Remember, I met my 1st and 3rd wives at the
workplace.
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| HORTA'S BALCONY, BRUSSELS |
The Art Nouveau architect , Victor Horta, built his house (Now a museum) with wonderful hand built twisty steel pieces, most built-up as this was before rolled steel I beams. To us, we can't quit figure out how the crafsmen were able to fabricate such forms. This done about late 1890's.
BOOK REPORT
Excerpts from A FAILED
DRUG WAR (Plus some of my rantings.
Stopping the Drugs)
Jut like the war on Alcohol, or Prohibition, kept Alcohol out of
the hands of millions of our population,
while engendering a vast crime syndicate, similar to what we are
experiencing but it has become a
world-wide problem.
Why did he realize this
after so many thousands of people have been killed while hard drug use has
increased vastly. They have finally realized that interdiction programs like
Anvil, are negated almost instantly, and instead of wasting money, it would be
better spent on treatment and harm reduction.
In 1920's , It took our government twelve years to realize that prohibition
wasn't working The violence was extant, but nothing close to the violence that
is occurring today. In Mexico, Middle America, South America and the Middle
East
These bureaucrats were a
little confused and naive about the different drugs they were supposed to
suppress. cannibas[1]
(Formerly known as Marijuana), Cocaine (From Coka) and heroine (from Opium). Users were more dangerous than
arid core addict as "they were willing and able to proselytize" which
made them "highly contagious"
Never mind that a pot head would normally never ever want to be near a
Heroine addict.
OPIUM - The cause of the Opium War in late 1800's between China
and England, China was trying to get her subjects off the drug, but England
couldn't care less as they were in it for profit. .
WEED - A weed used by the
American Indians mostly for religious purposes, It became prevalent enough by
the 1930's to cause the US Government to
make a move ( a new medium) to show what a terrible thing it would be to be
happy. For a few hours.
COKA - A plant that was
used (chewed) by the the Inca nation for millennia but was processed by some
Americans into a short term high in order to work at the high altitudes to Peru
& Colombia.
Our , lawmakers never realized it, but there it's a vast
difference between the above drugs.
There will always be people who are easily addicted to a
particular item, whether it be smoking, drinking or drugs. I've own people who
over-use cannibas, and their life can be
a problem, (They drive slow, are peaceful, and can't remember anything.)
In 1988, the RAND cooperation study concluded that interdiction (
SEIZING) could not work. It cited six previous studies that had reached the
same
When we invaded Afghanistan, we were surprised at all the Opium
fields and farmers there. We didn't know what to do so we eradicated the
farmers life income, just as we do in Columbia, Peru, and other countries that
do not have a use problem.
Why do you suppose there are so many people in the
US who use the
harder drugs?
We are currently having
a epidemic of Opoid over-use. I assume this is derived from Opium, and didn't
we stop importing Chinese in the 1800's because they were all using this
(Smoking)
Iv'e been a felon all my
adult life as I have used pot in lieu of alcohol to have a bit of fun with. One of the problems anyone has had to study
the effect of grasswas that it was so illegal, no one could study it unless they
were using it.
COSTS?
If we stop this madness,
how do we fire the thousands of people who are making a living off this "Interdiction".? IN 1989, CONGRESS APPROVED 2.2 BILLION FOR
BUSH'S 5 YEAR PLAN TO ERADICATE COCA FROM THE FARMS IN ANDEAN AREAS OF SO.
AMERICA.
Bennet, our drug czar, promised a 10 percent reduction in use by
'91. Aur DEA budget trailed.eduction by 1999. Between '90 and '07, street
prices declined by 80 % . During the same period, DEA budget triples. What
is happening these days is Rebellions and Insurgents are being funded by the
growers of Pot, Coka and Opium.
I n 1998 our we. (The DEA)
killed Escobar in Columbia, but before too long, new bosses took his place & business
as usual continued as long as we have a population thaat needs it.
This was a new thought,
Clintons drug tzar said "If you want to fight a war on drugs, talk to your
children. ". Do you mean education? We all know that can't work, don we? We spent 5 billion in 6 years fighting the
insurgents & drug Guys in South America. , yet our DEA budget increased by
three fold. Is anyone paying attention?
We have incarcerated
320',000 of our citizens in our huge jail system. The most in the world,
Our drug budget for 2006? Was 25 billion , yet we spent 40% for treatment. I don,t remember anyone trying to convince me from smoking a joint once
in a while.
The US has tried paying
Coka farmers to switch crops what what would you do?
Drugs. Are not a security threat . It has come to light that we
couldn't even get Canada to a test how really bad is for us Only after
prohibition can we get studies that show that cocaine & hereon are not so good for us. (Surprise!).
We don't seem to have
any regrets when we spray farmers fields with Paraguat. Is this defoliant
toxic? Do we care? What is happening when most of our citizens are approving of
legalizing cannabis? This must be pretty traumatic to the DEA who have put so
many of our otherwise citizens in prison, ignoring the catastrophic effect it
had on so many family's. Are we gone to let all those thousands to go free now
that the law has changed? Why is it that
we are the biggest problem in the world
Where most of the drugs end up in the USA?? Past presidents (Reagan) have
declared "We’re running up the battle flag, , we can fight the drug
problem, we can win". Do they really believe it, even after we failed so
miserably with. The booze wars.?
In Nicaragua, the
villagers have nothing but scorn for the local authorities, the Army, The drug
traffickers as well as the Americans who have brought. All this down upon them
and their families. The collateral damage to local villages is tragic. They
believe " All they care about is the drugs. Not who dies, not the evidence or
the legal procedures, Just the drugs." That's about the same mind-set as
the Drug traffic eras, isn't it?
The. Amount of Coka
needed to supply the Global Market is relatively small: a plantation of two
hundred thousand hectares (about the size of Long Island) would be enough. The
U.S. Has chased this plantation around the world, why not grow it here for our own folks and forget all about the "War on Druds"?
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| LUNCH TABLE AT THE BUTCHER OF PANZANI, ITALY |
A VISIT TO DARIO
The most famous butcher in Italy is Dario Cechina, in a small village in Chianti region. Known for his disdain of his customers and their whims, he has opened a nearby open air restaurant where he serves about three dishes, A large steak-burger, a some other part of a cow, and a vege type ,which I had. Notice his paper place mats are a digragm of the various cuts of a cow.
COUNTRY PROBLEMS DUE TO DEMOCLEROSIS.
The most famous butcher in Italy is Dario Cechina, in a small village in Chianti region. Known for his disdain of his customers and their whims, he has opened a nearby open air restaurant where he serves about three dishes, A large steak-burger, a some other part of a cow, and a vege type ,which I had. Notice his paper place mats are a digragm of the various cuts of a cow.
COUNTRY PROBLEMS DUE TO DEMOCLEROSIS.
Or
MY HUMBLE SOLUTIONS TO OUR MAJOR PROBLEMS
WAR. Our military budget is
insane. Five times greater tan any
other country and over 60% of our Federal budget. We don't need to build an
Empire. So let's divest ourselves of Puerto Rico,
Guam and all the other small islands we desire in order to have
an airfield in the middle of the vast ocean For our policing of the rest of the
world.
SEX It took us a while to
realize that AIDS was a deadly disease due to a lifestyle we didn't
appprove of but also found that
heterosexuals did suffer from it and we finally got it where everyone
didn't die from it. Now we're trying to understand that women Want to be men,
and vice versa. What to do?
EDUCATION. Young people should understand more about the
ramifications of College. First of all, you don't need it if you don't know
what you want to learn, like a profession. Trade schools are a great way to
learn a trade and become a useful citizen, and make a good living. There is a
peculiar relationship between earning capacities and college grads. Why is it
that some teachers, with a degree, earn less than someone in the trades? There
should be a better relationship between earnings and how much time one spends,
learning to say nothing of the costs involved. Look at me; four years of College (Paid my way) plus
several years as an apprentice really learning the trade. But actually making
minimum wages for years. Even now, as my own boss, I don't make much money, but I love what I' m
doing. Is there a requirement for that?
A few of my college friends, Jazz musicians, spent years in college with
me, then earned a living with their music and not as an architect after they
graduated.
HEALTH We set up up
jingoistic phrases like "Single Payer". What does that mean? Who is
the single payer? Your employer? Your government? You? And if you're a self employed
entrepreneur? How do other countries do it?
Maybe we can't afford to give you a re-cycled Heart or lung , since you
spent most of your life living a dissolute existence?
We tend to focus on morality issues like "Abortion" and
such.
Our drug policy is strictly a morality issue, from 1930's. What a surprise to find marijuana has so many
health benefits, to say nothing of the fun you can ave if you can figure out
the zillions of types of cannibas (The new word for it). (Also, how to spell it. I just figurered out how to spell marijuana).
POLITICS Talk about
Crazy! Our politicians, who we voted for
(kind of ) are now so beholden to the money they receive from
"Lobbyist" that it is really the Lobbyists who are running the
country. I guess when you get so big, the only way to talk to your politico is
thru a lobbyist. Why don't we just vote for the Lobbyists?
GUNS Why do gun folks
need assault weapons for? They can't use them for hunting squirrel &
deer. Does anyone know why they need AK47 for target practice Every one in a while, a loony massacres a bunch of innocents for an unknown reason. I have given this problem at least 10
minutes thought and here is my solution;
I don't know how many schools we have but it would be nuts to arm all
the teachers and supply them with guns, with which they wouldn't know how to kill
another human. But , hire one teacher in each school who is a veteran with
lots of gun skills give him/her a nice Utzi to keep in a class room locker and
if a nut comes along, shooting students, he can take him out , at least
make it a level playing field.
ACCESSIBILITY. Has
anybody calculated how much it is going to cost us citizens to change A LL THE
CORNER CURB CUTS IN AMERICA to conform to the requirements of the ADA (American
With Disabilities Act). I stand by helplessly watching my small town
(Sebastopol) tear out and replace all the
corner ramps in all the cities every ten
years. Meanwhile, I',m avoiding potholes
In the street that is an embarrassment to us poor car drivers.
SEX?
I'd like to inject my two cents worth here as SEX in the
workplace isn't all bad. Remember, I met mt 1st wife and 3rd wife in the
workplace. The first one lasted a year but the last one is lasting over 30
years! ( This one is "until death
do us part") A note to the young
who still feel the need, all my weddings had very few people around, especially
the last one in Greece, when the mayor of Pahlio Pasihico was a pretty
excited and the Brit expatriot were the only ones around. You don't need such
extraneous people to muck up the moment.
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| A LUNCH SALAD IN CHIANTI Some things are so simple and beautiful, like the small salad on our street table in Castellani. |
"WANT TO END THE VIETNAM (IRAQ, AFGANISTAN) WAR? PUT IT ON ABC AND IT WILL BE CANCELLED IN 13
WEEKS".
PISA LEANING
It cost the Italian government several million euros per inch to
stop the destruction.
It was moved back a total
of 16" . They probably figure that is far enough as they still need the
tourists to awe at it.
HAVE I LEFT OUT ANY REAL ISSUES?
LOCAL ISSUES? (That directly affect us)
BIKES OR CARS?
PEDESTRIANS When we can
convince our pedestrians that when crossing a street in a crosswalk, whether it
is flashing with light a on the side not in the pavement, THEY ARE NOT IN A SAFE ZONE. IT IS DANGEROUS
CROSSING THE SREET and one must be aware of that. How many times have I seen
pedestrians walking across the street, unaware they are in a target zone?
A NOTE ABOUT LOVE?
My experience has been
that when a friend dies, it gives me an Idea how much I loved that one.
But recently, I read a cogent concept that we might ask ourselves occassinally..
"Make a list of those that you would make you devastated by their loss."
.
