by Kat | Jul 4, 2010 | General, Words
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she’
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
On this the 234th anniversary of our boldly declaring our independence from England, I think it is important to spend a few moments remembering our roots and examine what actually makes these United States of America so incredibly amazing.
What I believe makes this land so remarkable is its rich diversity.
My ancestors immigrated here from the Netherlands and Germany leaving their motherlands for far and distant shores seeking freedom and a chance at a new life exactly as the founders of this great land did.
Sadly, a growing faction believes that we should close the golden door to those who seek to go through it in the search of freedom and an opportunity at a new life.
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by Kat | Apr 20, 2010 | General, Words
Honesty is such a lonely word.
Everyone is so untrue.
Honesty is hardly ever heard.
And mostly what I need from you. – Billy Joel
Last week was ripe with scandal in both the banking industry and on Wall Street, first came the announcement that failed Washington Mutual (WAMU) seemingly perfected the art of Fraudulent Lending and close on its heels was the S.E.C. suing Goldman Sachs due to their Mortgage Backed Securities of Doom.
I believe that this is but the tip of the iceberg and that we will see many other firms joining WAMU and Goldman in this ongoing debacle.
Honesty, apparently, is obsolete in today’s world.
Who knew?
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by Kat | Mar 26, 2010 | General, Words
We have seen an historic event happen this week, the victory for all of us with the passing of the Health Care Reform over the weekend.
However, apparently this was not something that some of the citizens of this land were excited about.
In fact, they were so not happy about it that they have determined that they have the right to threaten those that voted for it…not only threaten, there have evidently been acts of violence against some!
Really people, can you not be more constructive that that?
Who knew that writing a letter intelligently expressing ones disagreement and dissatisfaction was passé?
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by Kat | Mar 22, 2010 | General, Words
After a Herculean Effort, President Obama saw the passage of the Comprehensive Health Care Reform bill by Congress late last night.
Reforms that will see coverage expand for millions of Americans who currently are uninsured or under-insured, Republican and Democrat alike! Even though Republicans tried hard to rally against it and they held fast to that stance to the end because, voting sadly held to the party lines, even though they also will benefit equally by passing of this bill.
Reform that just the thought of caused Rush Limbaugh to announce that if this bill passed, he might have to move to another country, one with universal health care, I might add.
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by Kat | Mar 5, 2010 | General, Words
The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differently – Friedrich Nietzsche
I have the distinct pleasure, or misfortune as it may be, of being an acquaintance of an actual card-carrying member of the infamous Bohemian Grove Club.
Telling stories was “Bill’s” favorite thing to do from shooting animals on an African Safari to his travel escapades; he had a story for every occasion, but most of all he loved telling about his trips to Bohemian Grove.
I remember at the time not being overly impressed by the tales he regaled us with; like the “martini machine” or to “running naked” in the redwoods with the likes of Henry Kissinger, Ronald Reagan, or James Baker. Lest you think I am kidding about the running naked in the redwoods, here is what President Clinton had to say about the Bohemian Grove, “The Bohemian club! Did you say Bohemian club? That’s where all those rich Republicans go up and stand naked against redwood trees right? I’ve never been to the Bohemian club…”
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by Kat | Feb 20, 2010 | General, Words
I was talking to a friend last night and was lamenting the fact that I did not know what I was going to blog about today.
Well, thanks to NPR, this gem crossed my path this morning!
I was on Facebook this morning and I saw this link on my wall so I clicked the link to read the story.
Stunned disbelief is a gross understatement for what I am feeling right now.
Evidently, there is nothing wrong with writing memos that sanctions the harsh interrogation of alleged terrorist detainees, outside of it being an exercise of poor judgment.
Clearly, there is no justice in the justice system.
I am left wondering if Bush’s shenanigans will ever catch up with him and his cronies.
If you are interested in reading the entire memo from the Office of the Assistant Attorney General, you can find it here.
