You are currently browsing the monthly archive for August 2019.
Why it is so important to have a mechanic you trust.
Wonderful song to sing.
O Star (the fairest one in sight),
We grant your loftiness the right
To some obscurity of cloud—
It will not do to say of night,
Since dark is what brings out your light.
Some mystery becomes the proud.
But to be wholly taciturn
In your reserve is not allowed.
Say something to us we can learn
By heart and when alone repeat.
Say something! And it says, ‘I burn.’
But say with what degree of heat.
Talk Fahrenheit, talk Centigrade.
Use language we can comprehend.
Tell us what elements you blend.
It gives us strangely little aid,
But does tell something in the end.
And steadfast as Keats’ Eremite,
Not even stooping from its sphere,
It asks a little of us here.
It asks of us a certain height,
So when at times the mob is swayed
To carry praise or blame too far,
We may choose something like a star
To stay our minds on and be staid.
Know it when you see it so you can oppose it. :)
writes in Counterpunch on the US Trade War:
“Those who have lived in Montana will well remember the hot controversy over the miles and miles of sidelined rail cars that appeared during the Great Recession a decade ago. They were stored by the thousands along unused rural tracks. It was so bad they drew a harsh rebuke from the public and elected officials when the ugly yellow cars adorned with urban gang graffiti were moved to the banks of the blue-ribbon section of Montana’s world famous Missouri River downstream from Wolf Creek. To say they were incongruous with Montana’s natural beauty would be a huge understatement and, once enough pressure was applied, they were moved to other areas.
Well, the flatbed cars used to transport the enormous number of containers that come in from China are once again appearing on miles and miles of Montana’s railroad sidetracks. If this canary could talk, it would tell you it’s because the imports from China have fallen so significantly that the railroads now have an oversupply of flatbed cars and have once again taken to storing them in the hinterlands of Montana.
Unfortunately, the news from the canary gets worse. As reported in the Washington Post last week, Montana’s family farm bankruptcies were 50% or higher in 2018 than in 2017. Montana is joined in the flood of family farm bankruptcies by Idaho, North Dakota, Utah, Minnesota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Michigan, Illinois, Alabama, South Caroline, North Carolina, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and New Hampshire. Given that agriculture has long been touted as the leading industry in Montana, that statistic should shiver the timbers of citizens and politicians alike.
In response to Trump’s move to slap on even more tariffs, the Chinese government announced it will now cease to buy American agricultural products. Mind you, that’s not “cut back” on purchases from U.S. farmers and ranchers, it’s “cease.”
The sidelined rail cars and family farm bankruptcies are impossible to see from penthouses atop Manhattan’s skyscrapers or down on the Wall Street where the traders play high-stakes poker with other peoples’ money — but they are certainly visible here in the hinterlands where the canaries are tipping over.
Trump told Americans “trade wars are easy to win.” But that’s coming from a guy who thinks a “trade war” means stiffing the contractors at his failed casinos — not fighting with the most populous nation on the planet and its enormous economy. The signals from the hinterland clearly show we are not winning. It’s past time to get rid of the “fool on the hill” and put our nation back on a sustainable path to a more sane future.”
Is the trade war hurting China? Maybe? But I think more damage is being done on this site of the pond.
The CBC’s reporting on Hong Kong:
“The anti-government protests present one of the biggest challenges facing Chinese President Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012. And with the ruling Communist Party preparing to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic on Oct 1, the crisis in Hong Kong has come at a sensitive time.
Beijing has struck an increasingly strident tone over the protests, accusing foreign countries including the United States of fomenting unrest.
Scenes of Chinese paramilitary troops training at a stadium in the city of Shenzhen, which borders Hong Kong, gave a clear warning that mainland intervention by force is possible.”
These protests are not going to end well.
China is a world power and has the political and economic clout to do whatever the hell it pleases in Hong Kong.
I foresee an abrupt media black out coinciding with the military going into Hong Kong and reestablishing the correct type of order for the area. It will be bloody and ruthless, but necessary from the government of China’s point of view. Real democracy is a threat to the status quo and is intolerable state of being for the elite classes.
The protesters must be prepared for this eventuality and decide whether they are willing to pay the price in blood for their freedom. There is no other way to purchase liberty.
“A group of religious protesters interrupted a drag queen story-telling event for children in Ottawa on Saturday, claiming the event was “child abuse.”
Organizers say the interruption was “hateful” and “bigoted” and called the police. No one, however, was arrested.
About 100 parents and children attended the Westcliffe Community Centre, in Bells Corners, for a storytelling event by Adrianna Exposée, a local drag queen.
The event was meant to teach children about inclusiveness but took a turn near the end, with a protester flinging insults.”
I find this a little puzzling, because really, what is going on here? We have a dude in womanface reading stories to children. People, however happen to be dressed, read to children all the time.
Inclusiveness? Of what exactly? More child drag queens?
Let’s define what a drag queen is:
Drag queens are performance artists, almost always male, who dress in women’s clothing and often act with exaggerated femininity and in feminine gender roles with a primarily entertaining purpose. They often exaggerate make-up such as eyelashes for dramatic, comedic or satirical effect. Drag queens are closely associated with gay men and gay culture, but can be of any sexual orientation or gender identity. They vary widely by class, culture, and dedication, from professionals who star in films to people who try drag very occasionally.
The activity, which is called doing drag, has many motivations, from individual self-expression to mainstream performance. Drag queen activities among stage and street performers may include lip-syncing, live singing, dancing, participating in events such as gay pride parades, drag pageants, or at venues such as cabarets and nightclubs.
So my question(s) are this? Why is accepting exaggerated stereotypes of females under the banner of ‘inclusion’ a good thing?
I do not see the value of setting that sort of example for children. Women are not a collection of patriarchal stereotypes, but rather individual human beings with variable personalities, goals, and desire.
Should we not be promoting this view of what women are?
bleatmop
Mystro
Dead Wild Roses 
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