Curmudgeon's Corner
cur-mud-geon: anyone who hates hypocrisy and pretense and has the temerity to say so; anyone with the habit of pointing out unpleasant facts in an engaging and humorous manner
Village Buzz - August 1st
The Robert’s Custard benefit for the three children of the Lubow family who were left without both father and mother as the result of a motorcycle accident was, by any standard, a huge success. The traffic kept on coming throughout the day as was attested to by the fact that Chief Pete Hoell had to help direct traffic during the mid-day and afternoon, and did so with a big smile on his face.
The Old Comedians...
Some of the funniest jokes I can recall came from the old comedians who seldom included foul language in their jokes. A good friend sent me a select group of these old jokes and this seemed a good time to publish some of those. My apologies in advance if I offend anyone with this selection:
Village Buzz - August 3rd
Sue Borden, Germantown Superintendent, was one of three finalists for selection as the superintendent of the Greendale schools but lost out to John Tharp, an assistant superintendent of middle and high schools in Williamson County, Tennessee.
Eye of the Beholder?
“In the eye of the beholder” is an old phrase that is often used when one of us talks of something another sees as beautiful while we fail to comprehend that ‘beauty’. It strikes me that there is plenty of opportunity for each of us to use that phrase, or to at least think of using that phrase, in our daily routines.
Chick-fil-A Demonstrations
If you are a regular reader of the Curmudgeon’s Corner blog, and if you review the comment postings that sometimes occur after a person has read one of the blogs, you will likely recall the nom de plume of the person I refer to as CSAM…CommonSenseAmoungMen. He asked what I believe about this issue.
The Veep Sweepstakes
The great VP prediction effort is fully underway. As speakers are announced for the Republican convention, the list of possibilities decreases since the person selected will not have been among the early speakers.
A Son's Eulogy...
The funeral and burial of Milwaukee County Deputy Sheriff Sergio Aleman was conducted yesterday and among those remembering him with a eulogy was his oldest son, Giovanni. The following appears in the Journal Sentinel this morning.
Ryan or Rubio or ?
Will Romney pick Paul Ryan or will he go in another direction? I have no idea which way Romney will go, but he could do a lot worse than Ryan. Republicans have a roster of what I choose to think of as aggravating apologists from which to pick a VP candidate. In Paul Ryan, Republicans have a person who I believe is one of the top three or four people in terms of intelligence, comfort in front of a camera, comfort in a debate on the issues and a genuinely likeable person when off camera. On second thought, Ryan is the top candidate with these attributes.
Hate Politics?
One of the benefits of a long life is the ability to reflect on the changes that have occurred. One of the detriments of a long life is the ability to reflect on the changes that have occurred. Given that this is the ‘high political season’, that is the subject of my reflections.
Ryan is the Choice
It is official; Paul Ryan is the choice to run with Mitt Romney for Vice President of the United States.
Political Bits & Pieces
Given the week-end’s announcement by Mitt Romney that his selection for the VP slot was Paul Ryan, it might be easy to lose sight of the importance of tomorrow’s election. It would be a shame to see the turn-out for that election somehow diminished in the process.
Town of Jackson 'Disaster'
Homeowners look at their property values as something that can be monetized when needed in the future. We count the unmortgaged values as part of our net worth, and track the ups and downs of the local marketplace almost as we do the Dow Jones average if we are fortunate enough to own stocks.
The Energizer Bunny
Tommy Thompson is now analogous to the famous Energizer bunny that just keeps on keeping on. At 71, he is running against Tammy Baldwin for the U.S. Senate. He’ll be 72 when seated, or soon after and would be 78 when the first term would be over. Many think Tommy would only be there for one term, but he is the Energizer bunny of politicians so one can never be too sure about one term or two terms.
Will He Stay or Will He Go?
Will Vice President Joe Biden stay on the ticket for the coming election, or will he be replaced? Some are venturing that President Obama is now considering Hillary Clinton as his running mate while others say that will not happen. The Drudge Report front page speculated on that subject this morning and, coincidentally in all probability, Sec. of State Clinton and VP Biden and the President are meeting/have met in the Oval office this morning.
OpSec...
A group of those critical of the President’s regular public disclosures concerning covert military/intelligence operations has developed a YouTube piece that you can access here.
Sue Black Fired?
Chris Abele, Milwaukee County Executive, during his regular weekly meeting with Sue Black, long time head of the Milwaukee County Parks system, terminated her employment. It obviously came as a shock to her and she claims no reason was given. She had survived the prior week’s meeting; what changed in that short seven day span?
A Cancerous Tumor...
A French newspaper published the following which are excerpts from a longer piece, during the past twenty-four hours, from a speech made by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad marking Quds Day in Iran. Of course, his tirade goes directly to the fact, in his mind, that Israel needs to be “finished off” soon. His specific statement in that regard was, “Israel is a cancerous tumor that will soon be finished off.”
Government Stockpiling Ammunition?
There have been news reports concerning government agencies being on a ‘buying binge’ for ammunition used in various caliber pistols. This has created a ‘buzz’ in some circles as to what this ammunition is to be used for, and in some cases raising the question of whether or not this is a calculated effort by government to limit the amount of ammunition available to citizens.
'Friendly' Fire?
We are losing a significant number of our armed forces members in Afghanistan by death from ‘friendlies’, those people clothed in soldier’s and policemen’s uniforms who open fire on our troops. We have lost ten U.S. troops in those attacks in just the past two weeks. There have been 30 attacks of this nature this year, up from 11 last year.
Where Are We?
I have been in many places, but I've never been in Cahoots. Apparently, you can't go alone. You have to be in Cahoots with someone.
Will We or Won't We...
Will we or won’t we…have voter photo ID up and running in Wisconsin in time for the Presidential elections?
Do The Right Thing...
I am achin’ for Akin to do the right thing and get out of the race for the Senate in Missouri. He has simply tainted himself beyond any ability to overcome in spite of what he seems to think. His remark about abortion was absolutely off the charts, and showed his inability to control what comes from his brain and from his mouth.
Shoot Some Soldiers...Grow A Beard?
U. S. Army Major Nidal Hasan has grown a full beard since his shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas.
2016, Obama's America
The film 2016, Obama’s America is playing across America and has created quite a stir amongst Obama’s supporters and his detractors. The film, a documentary, is well-constructed using interviews with various people who were in President Obama’s life at one or another points leading up to now coupled with clips of things that we witnessed in the 2008 campaign.
"Morning Joe"
I had the rare occasion to see some of the program titled ‘Morning Joe’ on Monday and to have witnessed the rabid dog approach of Chris Matthews as he ‘interviewed’ Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican Party.
Take Back the Capitol
A new Capitol Police Chief takes the helm in Madison, begins to tighten up the operation, and comes under criticism. It seems the Capitol that I remember as being a place for something approaching reverence, for introspection, for respect has now become a place for Segway Boy and his ilk to engage in perpetual demonstration.
It Can't Be Easy...
Have you ever seen a more Chameleon-like performance than that delivered by Juan Williams? He is most often the liberal-leaning foil on Fox News on Sunday mornings, but then sometimes takes on the role of fill-in for other Fox names (Bill O’Reilly, for example) that are more conservative. Depending upon his role at the time, he is either conservative or liberal.
