USS Nevada
I very much appreciated Wilt Browning's guest column noting Jack Sherertz's outstanding service to our country and his participation in three of the pivotal battles of World War II ("Meet Mister Sherertz, decorated hero," July 3). I would like to supply one correction concerning the fate of the USS Nevada at Pearl Harbor.
Unlike the USS Arizona, which exploded, or the USS Oklahoma, which capsized, the Nevada was able to get under way before succumbing to Japanese attacks. When it became clear that she was about to sink, the battleship was beached near Ford Island so as not to block the entrance to the harbor. The Nevada was subsequently refitted and went on to serve with distinction in both the Pacific and European theaters of the war.
CHUCK THOMAS
Winston-Salem
Leaving millions unprotected
Private health insurers and pharmaceutical corporations exploit and underserve the public. Forty-eight-thousand Americans die annually who are without health coverage. Drug companies charge Americans triple what their medications cost in Mexico. Health interests compromise Congress with "donations," fleece the public for services, ignore the underclass and reject sick applicants. Universal health is Medicare for everybody. "Socialized medicine" shouldn't be limited to seniors.
Private health programs leave millions unprotected. We can do better. To break the corporate stranglehold, we must support non-profit universal health care.
We've underwritten the most expensive military complex in world history, with strong political support from militant right-wingers. Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush each doubled the national debt to pay for and deploy the military. They prioritized expenditures to attack nations abroad. Neither funded medical services for uninsured Americans at home. Perhaps an expanded Medicare program will serve as a financial deterrent to engaging in "pre-emptive" wars and military escapades abroad. We've acquired nothing but debt, hate and terrorism in response to our military misadventures.
"A mind is a terrible thing to waste." Be mindful that corporations in the military complex generate investor profit at public expense. Wars are expensive for a nation, but highly lucrative for war-hawk profiteers.
A board of directors is not a church committee. It reveres the almighty dollar, not the Almighty. A corporation is a legal document, not a person. Money earned is profit, not "free speech." When money becomes speech, only the wealthy have tongues.
JOSEPH J. CUTRI
Winston-Salem
Focus on the classroom
While the idea of Reynolds High School having its own stadium seems logical, it is not.
My concern is funding. While funding for education has been severely depleted, our focus should be on rebuilding the classroom. While I understand that the intent is to raise private funds for the construction, the ongoing expense will fall on the school's already strained budget.
It wasn't long ago that our concerns were the dropout rate and overcrowded classrooms. Any funds raised should be focused on restoring educational experiences. This means the hiring and retention of committed teachers, providing up-to-date teaching materials and technology, and providing access to continuing education for faculty in order to stay current with new teaching methodologies, etc. These things will have a much more meaningful impact on our students.
I would never suggest that team sports are not important to education, quite the opposite, but we need to look at this in balance with the entire scope of education.
Lastly, just a couple of years ago we asked our teachers to take a pay cut. Now there is an effort to spend millions on a stadium? This would have a direct impact on the morale of the classroom, to be sure.
While a new stadium may be very nice to look at, it will only add to our problems, not solve any that desperately need to be addressed. Let's keep our eye on the ball here, folks.
BOWMAN GRAY IV
Winston-Salem
Buying influence
The Associated Press reports how Countrywide Financial Corp. offered discounted mortgages to Fannie Mae executives and to members of Congress involved in the consideration of legislation restricting the sale of subprime mortgages ("Lender discounts used for influence," July 6). If such legislation had passed in a timely fashion, maybe the 2008-2009 burst bubble could have been avoided.
Is it not about time for some of these miscreants in both parties to be tried and convicted instead of being re-elected?
HOWARD FLOCH
Clemmons
Tournament Bridge is indeed cutthroat, but lot's of fun too. I once played against Omar Sharif at the North American Bridge Championships in Phoenix. At the 1998 NABC at the Reno Hilton, there were nearly 15,000 tables of Bridge over a 10 day period. Kansas City was actually one of my favorite spots, all the hotel venues were connected by covered walkways over the streets and there was a HUGE Crayola store (KC being the home of Crayon and Hallmark).
ReplyDeleteI retired retro-actively, how about you?
ReplyDeleteArdmore was more a canasta neighborhood, but a Buena Vista girl introduced us to bridge. We won a lot of money hustling the frat boys at Wake at a penny a point, then played in some tournaments.
DeleteWhen I was in college in Phillie I played in several national tournaments with one of my professors, but when I got married I quit playing.
A recent attempt to bring me back to fighting weight revealed that I still have the technique but have lost the killer instinct required for tournament play.
So I'm done...I cannot do the social bridge thing...pass the bridge mix, please.
You probably got a degree in 'peeping' while you were Philly, knowing you.
DeleteA Mid-Atlantic Sectional Bridge Tournament Winston-Salem, July 20-22. I'm actually a certified club director and teacher and did both a few years ago when I lived in Asheville.
ReplyDeleteIt is the latest surprise by the young Kim who last week stunned observers by jazzing up the ruling family dynasty's normally dour image when he appeared on state television in the company of a mystery young woman, cheerfully applauding scantily dressed female pop singers.
ReplyDeleteVice Marshal Ri Yong-ho, who was seen as close to Kim's dictator father, was relieved of his posts in the Workers' Party of Korea at a politburo meeting on Sunday including the powerful role of vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, the state KCNA news agency said on Monday.
Illness was given as the reason for the move on Ri, who is 70 years old according to South Korean government database. Health is often used as the reason when senior officials are sacked. Big event
Perhaps little Kim is preparing to adopt the Chinese model and bring the North into the modern world.
DeleteViet Nam did so several years ago and is currently doing fairly well compared to earlier days.
Dr. Cutri sends in his monthly fulmination about the entities that produce goods and services while ignoring another group of corporate entities that will spend several hundred million this election cycle. In saying this, our liberal friends here will cite me as being a narrowly focused ideologue. But what about old' Joe's monthly screeds, which every bit as doctrinaire, if not more so. Yeah, I know, comments from his quarter are visionary; from mine, repetitive and troglodytic.
ReplyDeleteYAWNNNNNNNNNNN...
DeleteI wouldn't worry about the scummy Democrats if I were you Stab. All they wanna do is get both hands on our shoulders and go at it with more taxes.
DeleteForty-eight-thousand Americans die annually who are without health coverage.
DeleteJoe Cutri
How many were in a hospital when they died, sir? Precisely. That's what makes your statement worth less than what I flushed this morning.
OT, did you exhale an equal opportunity yawn toward Cutri's diatribe?
DeleteThis forum has been a place of advanced learning for me. The other day I learned that turds have clean ends (although no one could tell me how to tell which end that is) and that you can wax them.
ReplyDeleteToday, so far, I have learned that taxes come from our shoulders...silly me, I always thought that they came out of our pockets. Perhaps some clued in soul can enlighten me on how this process works.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteIt is a shame that we have to go overseas to find sane commentary on our own economy.
ReplyDeleteThe American Economy
Probably because they are the only ones who can be objective. Americans have become far too partisan to see through the trees.
DeleteI heart the Economist.
DeleteInformative and interesting analysis.
Delete63% of Americans think the country is on the wrong track. The U.S. debt is more than the output of all of Europe. Yet there are these morons, like Rush, that still think we should support Obama and the Democratic agenda.
ReplyDeleteNo wonder our country is going down the tubes.
Good afternoon folks!
ReplyDeleteLTE 1: Thanks for the correction, Mr. Thomas. It was a nicely done article about one of our local heroes.
LTE 2: The good Dr. Cutri overstates the evilness of health insurers and pharms a tad. Drug making is a hit or miss proposition with many more misses than hits and the profits on their hits only last as long as the patent on the hits. As a result, they have to max out the profits on their hits in the allotted patent time to remain a viable company. Is providing optimal health care mutually exclusive with making a profit?
LTE 3: Valid points on priorities from the eminent Mr. Gray.
LTE 4: That's just business as usual in DC. Is there a non-miscreant out there running for Congress who has not already been bought by whomever is paying the campaign bills?
The word "profit" is an evil word to TB's like Joe, except of course for the fees he charges/charged.
DeleteRe:Hearts
ReplyDeleteI learned about the game of hearts as a member of the UNC Marching Tar Heels on a 23 hour bus ride from Chapel Hill to Houston for a bowl game. The following semester, the section of the dorm I was living in made playing hearts accompanied by 2 - 3 Dominoes pizza, beer and a mary jane bong a nightly occurrence.
Now that's what I'm talkin' about. . Ah yes, The Bluebonnet Bowl, UNC 16-7 over Texas.
DeleteNew Year's Eve in Houston after a victory must have been "Sweeeet"
DeleteFamous Amos Lawrence and Infamous Lawrence Taylor were both on that team
DeleteWe had a raucous celebration in the hotel after the game. The hotel managememnt was not amused.
DeleteCliff Powell, a freshman TE on that team, worked for me for several years.
Deleteoh yea, I can just imagine.
DeleteIn fact, I seem to recall a number of cops in the place.
Deletelol, the fact that you can recall anything indicates you weren't partying nearly hard enough,
DeleteI was hoping to get laid with one of the more drunken ladies (preferably a cheerleader), and I wanted to remain sober enough to remember the experience :) Unfortunately, the rooms I had access to were occupied which put a crimp in my plans...along with the fact the objects of my desire were already with other guys or sober enough to turn me down.
DeleteJust remembered how the night ended :) I wound up in a hotel room with one of my objects of desire who was sober enough to turn me down, but we watched a movie together (All That Jazz) while drinking vodka with some chaser. She was actually a very sweet girl whom I liked a lot in addition to lusting after.
DeleteMajor John Yesulaitis.
DeleteYep, Major "Y". I believe he was the director of the US Marine Corpse Band (or one of the Armed Services bands) prior to taking over at UNC. He met everyone who was anyone including the Queen of England. Allen Reep was his assistant. I thought Allen would take over after Major "Y" retired, but I think someone said he didn't have the proper credentials. It was a very sad day when Major Y passed. Jeffrey Fuchs has been the band director since Major Y retired. I try to get to the band reunion every year.
DeleteMarijuana causes damage to DNA.
Deletehttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090615095940.htm
A perfect example of internet trollery...some like-minded people are having a pleasant discussion of something that interests them and suddenly some jerk throws in some totally unrelated piece of crap and the thread is ruined.
DeleteAny legitimate psychologist can tell you that this is a classic example of Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD), which is a serious mental condition that is, unfortunately, for the most part, untreatable.
It is described as a pervasive pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood.
It is characterized by at least 3 of the following:
1. Callous unconcern for the feelings of others.
2. Gross and persistent attitude of irresponsibility and disregard for social norms, rules, and obligations.
3. Incapacity to maintain enduring relationships, though having no difficulty in establishing them.
4. Very low tolerance to frustration and a low threshold for discharge of aggression, including violence.
5. Incapacity to experience guilt or to profit from experience, particularly punishment.
6. Markedly prone to blame others or to offer plausible rationalizations for the behavior that has brought the person into conflict with society.
The diagnosis includes what may be referred to as amoral, antisocial, psychopathic, and sociopathic personality (disorder).
In addition, a number of widely accepted scientific studies have shown that excessive watching of TV and/or listening to the radio lowers your IQ. It doesn't matter whether you are watching "Dancing With The Stars" or a serious documentary or listening to Rush Limbaugh...the negative effect is caused by the passive nature of the activity, as opposed to say, reading a book, which requires full engagement of the mind.
This can be extended to excessive surfing of the internet, particularly including crackpot and other ideologically extreme sites designed to play upon the ignorance of the sites's visitors.
If you look at the sequence of 8 posts below, you will see the same kind of process at work...an unrelieved stream of nonsensical posts on subjects that no rational person gives a shit about.
Yep
DeleteI saw where drug use was mentioned like it was a positive, and it's not. So I made a comment. And a truthful comment I might add, unlike so many of yours, Rush.
DeleteSee?
Delete6. Markedly prone to blame others or to offer plausible rationalizations for the behavior that has brought the person into conflict with society.
It is not Dunce's fault that he interrupted someone else's conversation. It is dotnet's for mentioning drugs. Dunce just had to butt in where he is, as always, unwelcome.
But Dunce's justification is that his comment is "truthful"...just like some asshole Southern Baptist who goes around asking people if they are "saved". The answer in both cases is "None of your effing business."
And is Dunce's statement "true"? Well, not really. The study he cites "assumes" that marijuana users consume 3-4 marijuana "cigarettes" per day.
Obviously, they know little about marijuana usage.
1. Most marijuana is not consumed in "cigarette" form. Most is loose leaves packed lightly into a pipe of some sort...lightly because marijuana does not burn as readily as cigarette tobacco.
2. Almost nobody smokes marijuana alone. It is a social thing, so a "pipe" is shared with anywhere from two to six or seven friends.
3. The total consumption for any marijuana user would be less than one "cigarette" per day.
But, as always, stupid is as stupid does.
We all know you're a 'pot' head Rush. Don't try to hide it. That's why you are trying to defend marijuana use.
DeleteChief of Police in Kernersville runs into two suspects in custody with his car. I can see Sheriff Schatzman, getting in the bag, and doing something like that. But the Chief of Police in Kernersville?
ReplyDeleteHillary called 'Monica' in Egypt.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4TtTbPZOhc
Monica Clinton....takes a political hit in Egypt.
Deletehttp://www.theblaze.com/stories/monica-monica-hillary-clintons-diplomatic-visit-to-egypt-seemingly-falls-flat-amid-widespread-protests/
Liberal media: We'll get Zimmerman convicted of 'something'!
ReplyDeleteWoman accuses Zimmerman of sex abuse dating back to when he was 8 years old. Woman say 'everybody' knows that the Zimmermans hate black people.
________________
A woman identified only as Witness 9 tearfully told Florida authorities investigating George Zimmerman for the fatal shooting of an unarmed teen that he molested her for 10 years, starting when she was 6, according to a new round of evidence released Monday.
________________
Witness #9 told investigators she didn't witness the shooting, but she's listed as a 'witness'. You gotta love the liberal nonsense that's going on in the Zimmerman 'investigation'.
Romney stands his ground on tax returns
DeleteCBS headlines
___________
Think the liberal media doesn't manipulate the news?
Quite a hero you have in Zimmerman, Bucky.
DeletePrecisely my point for pointing out the negative press above. The above information is totally irrelevant to whether or not Zimmerman used self-defense in the shooting of Martin.
DeleteIt's obvious that you, among others, are looking at Zimmerman through the eyes of the media and not through the facts of the case.
The molestation accusations are not germane to the shooting case. I mentioned the accusation simply to note the possible character of your hero. It may be that Zimmerman warrants trial on molestation charges.
DeleteNearly two-thirds of Florida voters support the state's seven-year-old "Stand Your Ground" law, but they are closely divided on whether George Zimmerman was justifiably defending himself when he killed Trayvon Martin, a new poll shows.
Deletehttp://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2012/07/fla-poll-finds-wide-support-for-stand-your-ground-/1
Where did they find this woman? The FBI concluded that Zimmerman didn't have racial motivations in the shooting. Yet this woman says, everybody knows the Zimmermans hate black people.
DeleteThat sends up a big red flag to me.
She may be an absolute NUT. In which case, she would be perfect for Rush.
DeleteHe (O'Mara-Zimmerman's lawyer) added that its disclosure risked leading to "widespread hostile publicity which would substantially impair the Defendant's fair trial rights, and would pose a serious threat to the administration of justice."
Delete_______
Looks like it happened fairly quickly given Stab's comment.
Race baiter Biden throws meat to the NAACP, and they eat it all up!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTEhELBawqg&feature=relmfu
The 'Weiner' may get it out again, and run! Oh Geez.....Democrats have no shame post Clinton.
ReplyDeleteI can't 'wait' until Johnny runs again. And, believe it or not, there are fools, like Rush, out there that will vote for these deviants.
DeleteThe Omen, June 6,2006 at 6am. Damien Thorn is played by an actor named Seamus.
ReplyDeleteIt's all coming together now, if Romney is elected, we become the United States of Deseret. It's kinda catchy.
DeleteVan Buren Township, Mich., gay couple Nick Graham, 28, and Dustin Dreese, 32, shopped for new cars for six months before settling on a Focus hatchback and an Edge crossover.
ReplyDeleteThe two said it's true that they wanted to buy from a company that shared their values. But like all consumers, they really wanted great vehicles, including space for a car seat if they expand their family in a few years.
"We didn't buy a gay car," Graham said. "At the end of the day, what amenities are you going to give a gay person that a straight person isn't going to enjoy?"
__________
I answer that! How about a bathroom stall with stirrups?
You're pushing it.
DeleteActually, Dunce's latest post is the pluperfect (in the original Latin meaning plus quam perfectum, "more than perfect") example of what I was saying above...a bunch of meaningless gibberish followed by a calculatedly vulgar punchline that he thinks will provoke a response, all the time not realizing that his punchline reveals far more about his vulgarity and the truth of who he really is than he means for us to know.
DeleteIt looks like the past couple of days were spent playing bridge? I don't play but my parents did- often and well. I'm told that bridge is a little like sex---if you don't have a good partner, you at least need a good hand?
ReplyDeleteExcellent, WW!
Delete:D
You just took an over trick.
DeleteWW, you are a naughty boy, and born way too late.
DeleteYou should have been down in the Mississippi Delta in the early 20th century writing blues lyrics.
Our parents forbade us to listen to the blues for very good reasons...they knew that, being bright and inquisitive kids, we would quickly figure out what all that great stuff really meant.
"Don't you go messin' with my jelly roll..."
We had a jelly roll cake on the table most every week, but by the time we were 12 or so, we knew what a jelly roll really was.
Ha, ha, over trick, indeed.
DeleteAs soon as we figured out what a real jelly roll was, we wanted one.
Or, at least, we thought we did.
Of course, when we finally found one, we weren't all that sure what to do with it.
Evidently my take on bridge is correct. Wordly mentioned an over trick, my parents often used the term "rubber"...I knew right then I needed to stay away from this game. OT, did you ever go into a drug store and buy some different "rubbers" and then ask out loud "where's the fitting room"?
DeleteNot me! My friends and I were too well known to all the druggists to go prowling around drugstores.
DeleteI'll admit that we did try trolling through restrooms in certain establishments that were rumored to have machines dispensing non-bridge rubbers, but the usual result was that either there was no machine, or the machine was "out" of product or not working at all. Coin and bill dispensers have improved greatly in the intervening years.
Our first "score" came from an older girl who gave us a handful and suggested a couple of younger girls that we might contact. Even though we examined these products carefully, even tried some on, finding them mostly to be too large for our "equipment", we were just too chicken to contact the suggested girls. We now know how wrong we were in that case.
My first real experience came through another older girl who had no interest in rubbers, bridge or otherwise. Considering my lack of experience, and, I suspect, hers as well, the moment fell somewhat short of earthquake level.
Of course, that is not what I told my friends, who revered me as a god for a few weeks until the story began falling apart due to the Jezebel's inability to keep her mouth shut.