Nellybelle to the Rescue!

Quick, who was Nellybelle's driver and Roy's sidekick?

I was sure it was Andy Devine and not Gabby Hayes. Remember Midnight the cat? Pluck your magic twanger, Froggie!

It was Pat Brady!

'Course, here's Roy boy saving Nelly's bacon. Anyone remember how Pat got tossed? Anyone?

Maybe it was those thrilling days of yesteryear, but America has lost her civility. Courtesy does not appear to be part of the paradigm anymore. We have become politically correct in our speech which means we don't talk about anything important. Even our cherished freedom of speech will get your ass fired from a good day job. Forget about working at the White House.

Chris Rock'll tell it like it is. "Martin Luther King was assassinated! President Lincoln was assassinated! Tupac and Biggie Smalls was jus' 'a coupla' niggaz got shot!" Wonder what the hubub would be if Charles Rangel got shot 'stead 'a Gabby Giffords.

What happened to the Peanut Gallery? Were they throwin' the peanuts or were they on the receiving end?

It would appear the advertisers figured out people didn't care what they watched on TV, it was just dots on the screen.

People thought Marshall McLuhan was some kind of genius because he said "the medium is the massage." Dumbest thing I ever heard of, or of which I have ever heard. Dumb shit! There's no message to the medium, much less massage, unless some one has come up with smellavision since I last watched. Be hard to miss something like that. Wait, stay tuned for the Super Bowl, sports fans.

Not much to do with sport, either. Television, the medium, has no essence, no ethos at all. It is just dots on the screen. No feeling, no compunction, no civility, devoid of any intrinsic virtue.

It is a nothingness to which we ascribe whatever value we wish. The medium is a lie and people have used it to lie effectively. Most of the characters in TV drama are devoid of any character at all. They appear as subhumans going through the motions without feeling, without joy, without sorrow, without redeeming social value. What happened to virtuous pursuit? What happened to the idea we would ultimately defeat the bad guys? Now everybody's a bad guy, some are just a little worse than others.

"We fell in love with atrocity. We make pornography and we call it news."

Even the advertising is a pack of lies. Most of us don't need that crap or have those symptoms or can make light of those side effects. But it all looks great on TV! The worst shit in the world looks great on TV for some reason. If that's what the producer wants. That stuff in between the commercials? Know what the advertising people call it? Filler. You got it, filler.

Is it any wonder America has lost its soul?

Bring out children home from Iraq and Afghanistan so they can enjoy the fruits of their own creation rather than continue to suffer, and suffer deeply, that especial mendacity propagated by those assholes on Capitol Hill.

At least, Nellybelle had some charm, some definable virtue.

Reality Impinges Upon Morality

Paul Krugman's Tale of Two Moralities appeared in the New York Times a couple of days ago:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/14/opinion/14krugman.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=homepage

It is, perhaps, the most succinct portrayal of the political divide in America. It just happened to be written by the Nobel economist. Call it the dilemma of the strong and the weak. "When the going gets tough, the weak get screwed."

America's founding fathers never envisioned the less fortunate have-nots (the weak) dictating happiness to the more fortunate achievers (the strong). Never mind the fortunate ones fought and died for what the have-nots insist is their fair share.

The loyalists, back in the day, never gave a hoot for the oppressed. They still don't. They're hanging on to their handout from the King.

The oppressed took up arms against British enslavement. It wasn't enough to leave British oppression behind. Britain brought oppression to the New World where it continues to flourish today. It's called democracy.


Funny how the roles have reversed themselves. Used to be the loyalists were the strong, fighting to keep the king on the throne. Now it's the weak, fighting to keep their entitlements. We call it a fight, but it is rhetoric where lies masquerade as truth. More like charade.

The founding fathers never envisioned Islam, either. Check out the rhetoric of the revered imam Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. Revered by whom? Good question. Jerry Jones would be salivating at the turnout.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5YJaFbDe-A

Take a minute and relish Haraketbeydoun and listen to the music. Intoxicating.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S_GLB5i-9E&NR=1

Now, take a look at Lebanese Shiites gathering to celebrate Ashura. This took place a week or so before Christmas a year ago. It's an annual thing with the Shia, never mind. A bit different from Martin Luther and John Wesley.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrkcmFvTU04&NR=1&feature=fvwp

The ritual mutiliation of the scalp is self-inflicted in the case of the adults.

So, how do we reconcile the Ivory Tower and the working man whose livelihood has been outsourced by the taxman?

"We ask them if they're the enemy and if they say 'Yes', we shoot them!"

Move Over Gen. Petraeus, Joe Biden's On The Way

Harken to yesteryear when Mighty Mouse would save the day.

Today must be the nadir of American leadership, not just in warfare. The 20th Century was bad enough!

If the headlines are to be believed, Joe Biden will save us from ourselves planning the American withdrawal from Afghanistan.

With the Prince of Leaks on point (Biden) and the King of Korruption (Karzai) working things out, we might as well invite the Taliban. What about Secretary Gates and a representative of the Chinese? Why not wheel Gabby Giffords in for the show?

We've managed to turn tragedy into farce. Somehow it doesn't seem destined to play on Broadway.

Gabby, Get Your Gun

People in Congress, wake up!

OK the shooter was a nutball and Gabby just happened to be available.

The issue is that the new Congress is poised to be just as unresponsive to the needs of the people as the one before it.

All this deficit reduction talk and spending cuts is just talk. Our elected representatives are passing out shares of the public treasury to old people and refusing to admit it, much less doing anything about it. Talk about special-interest politics. What happened to the common good? There won't be any common wealth left after Congress is finished redistributing it.

Medicare, Social Security, entitlements in general, are a virulent disease crippling our nation when we need to be lean and nimble. We have lost our way and the Chinese appear indomitable.

It's clear that the system is so broken that there is no solution within the system.

Loughner may be insane. He may be a criminal. He sure ain't no dummy. And what's the response of our enlightened Congress? They're gonna close down. Maybe we should just shoot them all!

Bring our boys and girls home from Afghanistan! Petraeus has betrayed us!

Remember Westmoreland? Remember McNamara?

Speaking of idiots, sending US Secretary of Defense to China is nothing short of provocative. It's clear our leadership has lost touch with reality. Too much time on the beach in Hawaii?

America A Child Grown Old

Drunk on surfeit, blinded by power, the Romans of the first century feasted on the emptiness of cruelty.

Jesus saw it coming. We Shoot Prophets, Don't We? He told that woman to weep for herself and her children. He knew they would kill him. His suffering would last but a few hours. The cup of sorrow he carried was for the poor, dumb bastards who would suffer for a seeming eternity under guys like Pilate. The sword has its moments. Given the state of Medicare, maybe not a bad way to go.

So, in expectation of greater pleasure, the world becomes a disappointment. Glorious sunshine is overlooked because it's too hot or too cold. The exquisite sensation of wind on the face is ignored 'cause we just got dissed by de boss. Freakin' retards.

Even the vainglorious Number Two (Ian McKellan, aka Gandlalf, in The Prisoner remake) is savvy enough not to have been blinded by his dungeon masters - "The world is not a pretty thing when you look at it too close. We fell in love with atrocity. We make pornography and call it news."

We have lost our collective soul. We have not grown up, we have simply grown old. The tragedy of life is of our own making. We relieve our misery belittling our loved ones.

Alas!

Bring our brothers and sisters home.