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Brian Mora N B S D's blog: "TRUTHTAP"

created on 11/03/2006  |  http://fubar.com/truthtap/b20718
Hi folks. Many thanks for stopping back in, first of all. And yes it has been a number of weeks since I have made it in, second of all. And I am sure that you have questions about how I am and where have I been, number three. Well, let me explain myself... During a recent four-week spell I was on the road extensively across the South and the Midwest. I am an inventory auditor and have to travel several days a week for my work due to my placement on a team that specialises in auditing (counting inventory in) a major home improvement centre's multiple stores. My particular district contains stores in Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Iowa --- a grand total of eight states represented. So, every Monday (occasionally Sunday or Tuesday) morning I have to get up early and drive 70-75mi east on Route 66 to Springfield. I prefer Route 66 as it is a bit more relaxed not to mention I don't have to negotiate around as many semis as I do on the I-44. After that I get into a company car and travel an additional distance of 100 to 400 miles depending on the location. When I arrive I check into the hotel then get situated then go to the first day's work at the first store. Sometime at about 9.00p or so I get done and then head back to the hotel then eat dinner then go to sleep until about 4.30a when I get up for the second day. Which starts by 6.00a in the outdoor garden, or electrical if the weather is inclement, then onto a massive lightbulb wall. Lately I have found that if I don't get a whole lot of plants and heavy equipment in outdoor garden I am more likely to finish lightbulbs before lunch at 10.45a, which lasts 45 minutes. And that is on top of a 10min break at 8.30a. We tend to go into other areas like decor, plumbing, kitchen and bath, en route to paint, which marks the end of inventory, usually after 1.00p and sometimes as late as 3.00p. When done, we either head to the next hotel or back to the hotel and then some of us get drunk and get really silly. I wind up staying in my room most of the time except maybe for a swim; I wind up watching The O'Reilly Factor, Hannity & Colmes, WWE RAW, and ECW, but sometimes I go walkabout and get dinner. In Kansas City I am content to settle for whatever I found at HyVee or Price Chopper (local supermarkets) or Walmart or even track down a barbecue or pizzeria, in St Louis I track down the local Jack In The Box, Del Taco, and White Castle, or find something from Schnucks or Dierbergs (local markets). I have gotten a bit more familiar with St Louis since starting to work support for this team which is actually based in Kansas City, but most of my teammates are based in Marshall, an hour east of KCMO, or Springfield. This past week I was in Independence and damn near picked up a Taylor Dayne live CD for $6 from the local Kmart, but I was too concerned about my finances. I could have just as well gotten that, bought a package of frozen burritos, and put up with extra flatuating for two solid days whilst living on the burritos... In my case I had four consecutive six-day workweeks starting on Sunday morning and ending on Friday night, with only one day for getting my affairs in order. A number of bills went unpaid till the cheques started rolling in. Things are looking uphill now... My work took me into Illinois several times, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, and even Indiana, which also entailed a few days staying in a hotel in Kentucky. That is the biggest reason that I have not been around lately. But I have also attended to a number of other online projects, including accounts on other sites like this. I have been active to some extent on Ujena Talent, Savvy (where my profile is a featured attraction by the help desk on that site as an example of how members on that site can arrange their profiles), FriendsEat.com, and yes, even a return to MySpace. Currently I am in process of rebuilding my friends list on that site, but I have found a lot of additional new friends there, closing in on 900 friends there and counting. My locations on those sites include the following: http://www.ujenatalent.com/masters/13949.html http://www.savvy.com/brian_mora http://www.myspace.com/freestyleconservative http://friendseat.com/foodie/1893/Brian I look forward to catching up to you here and on those other sites as well. I have built up a base of 1200 friends here and I apologise for neglecting any one of you here. Although I am spending more time on MySpace and Ujena Talent and otehr amounts of time helping my mother and other family members around their homes, I AM NOT ABANDONING YOU! I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU MY FUBAR FRIENDS FANS AND FAMILY! I am going to remain, even if I am not always here 24x7x366, but I shall make every effort to check in more often...
Hi folks. I guess you can tell from my profile that I enjoy listening to music. Let me talk to you about something I did on a website related to one of my favourite music groups. Currently they are not listed on the music section of my profile but that is likely to change soon enough. Anyway, let me share with you some short essays that as a part of a recent contest on the Sweet Sensation website, hookedonsweetsensation.com , that earned me an autographed double CD set of their 1988 debut CD, Take it while it's hot, and their 1990 followup, Love child. ================== You know what I would love to do in a whole day with Sweet Sensation? Well, some of that depends on what sort of financial situation I am in, what time of year it is, and what I am doing that day. But here are a few samples of how it could very well go... Scenario A 9.30a. I wake up to a knock on my door. I figure, Alright, what's going on? Wondering if my landlord is nicking me once again about being late with the rent on my one-bedroom apartment. Or maybeit's my next door neighbour, Liz, asking me to give her a lift to the bank or to the neighbourhood tobacco store, the drug store, or even Walmart, for beer and cigarettes especially for her boyfriend, or even for groceries. "ONE MOMENT PLEASE!" I grab a tee shirt from one of the drawers under my waterbed, a pair of golf shorts from another drawer in a storage unit near the light switch and put those on, and slip into my sandals. Then I have to run my hair under the shower for a moment because I have natural set hair, and it can be terribly unmanageable once it gets more than say crew-cut length. (I once got a haircut at a beauty college on a business trip to Nebraska auditing inventories for a Tractor Supply store and a Kmart in Kearney.) Anyway, after about 10 seconds under a hot shower and about one-and-a-half minutes with an old plastic comb, I'm just about ready. I go to the door. Sheila, Jenae, and Betty are all at my door...greeting me, and even hugging and kissing me...and of course I have to show them inside. They find pennants of my favourite teams, including the Florida State Seminoles, the Los Angeles Kings, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Oakland Raiders, and the one that draws their ire, the 2004 Boston Red Sox World Series Championship pennant. "BOO HISS! BOO HISS! We gotta convert you to a Yankees Fan!" yells one. "No way" yells another, "we gotta make him a Mets fan!" "Enough, all three of you...there's no need for that", I call out to them, as if I were a psychoanalyst trying to keep order in a group session. They see posters of Abraham Lincoln and the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr, an autographed portrait of the late boxer Johnny Copeland (he is in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame --- look him up), and even a huge poster of Expose' --- but no Sweet Sensation poster! "Sorry, ladies, I never found one..." "Well, we're just going to have to work on that one, eh?" Betty Dee chides me playfully. She, Sheila, and Jenae whip out digicams, snap some photos, then beg me to let me use my scanner/copier/printer to print them out. Then they start texting soemthing on their mobile phones or their IPhones or their Blackberrys or whatever... Meanwhile, Sheila asks me questions about a very old yellow-and-black STOP sign on another wall, the one with old-fashioned block letters that used to sit at a railway crossing down in Texas back in the 1930s. Betty is herself a bit shocked to see another yellow-and-black STOP sign on another wall, this one a 1940s model and one of the first with modern FHWA (Federal Highway Administration) fonts, in this case C-series,very much like the STOP signs you see today, but from years before the MUTCD (the Manual of Uniform Traffic Codes and Devices) proscribed red-and-white STOP signs...and Jenae is asking a few questions herself. (BTW most of the big green signs on the highways are using E-series, and most route markers are using D-series numbers.) "OK, let me boot up the computer, but I need to check the ink levels first..." I start my computer and then find that there is indeed enough ink to print some photos...so I have to load some paper and let the ladies download the contents of their cameras to my computer then I make a note to grab some blank discs when we go out later. I see a clock over my bed and say, "Oh SNAP! It's almost 10.00a! I need to get something to eat!" After printing out photos which Sheila, Jenae, and Betty hurriedly sign for me, I have to take them through the back door and lock up both doors to get to my car, a pewter 1998 Chevrolet Monte Carlo. I stopped parking it kerbside after a horenduous thunderstorm last June that left my car heavily damaged on the right rear quarter panel and moderately damaged elsewhere, the bonnet was replaced, the dents were taken out or even filled in, and the car was left with only minor scratches and dents in the boot and on the roof...and I may yet get those repaired sooner rather than later anyway...I am explaining about all this to the ladies as I hurriedly clean out the back seat of my car then set a 7UP bottle on the ground. I have to tell them that we have to see who gets to ride shotgun (here in the South that's a term we use for who gets to ride in the front seat next to the driver). They howl in shock as I situate Jenae, Betty, and Sheila in a triangle and then spin the bottle. It stops in front of Betty who tells the other two, Get in the back seat...I have to fold the driver's seat forward to let Sheila in, and Jenae gets behind Betty. Somehow I managed to rush the rubbish out of the car and into the Dumpster...then I tell everyone to fasten their seat belts. Then I crank up the stereo...which by some great miracle contains a Sweet Sensation CD... And then it's down the alleyway, onto a side street, then around the corner, and then onto a four-lane street which I take down to the robot at Florida Avenue, which is a good alternative route some folks use instead of the heavily-travelled Range Line Road. Those of you from Los Angeles know what the conditions on Range Line Road are like...because you regularly get stuck on the 405 at rush hour. Range Line is even worse. Even Kansas City is worse...especially at the junction of the I-435, the I-470, and US71 which is under construction, especially the roadbed on US71... It's a quick left on 15th, then down Texas Av. through a residential area, nice ranch houses everywhere, then left on 24th, then on to the hated Range Line in front of a local KFC, a local ice cream shop, and the local Lowes, then right on that street and down past Lowes and Sutherlands Lumber and Name Brand Clothing, past the incessantly-under-construction 32d Street junction (WHY CAN'T MODOT JUST PUT IN A BLOODY ROTARY?!?!?!) and on down to Waffle House just before we reach the I-44. I have to explain the whole concept. Jenae is immediately approving of the choice. Sheila is interested, and even Betty has no real problem with the diner. So we go inside... We sit down and I order my usual items, an order of hashbrowns scattered all the way and a waffle, and Betty appears interested in a steak dinner. (OK Betty, at least you can order that ANY TIME OF THE DAY OR NIGHT at Waffle House)...Sheila picks out an omelet and scattered all the way hashbrowns because what I ordered was interesting to her, Jenae goes for a platter with a waffle, sausage, cheese and eggs and cheese in the grits...and there's plenty of sweet tea for everyone... 10.45a. After tipping the employees and paying our tab we get back on Range Line but only long enough to make our way to the Springfield onramp...and then I take the Route 249 exit back into Joplin. We pull off at Newman Road and make a left turn at the all-way stop then explain about the construction going on all over Joplin and even the rest of the Four States area (Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri) as I drive them past the coterie of ranch houses and an occasional apartment complex along Newman Road toward MSSU (Missouri Southern State University). That immediately catches the ladies' attention. So we drive past the campus and I give them a little history lesson. Oh no. I gotta get some petrol. And how convenient...Betty drank so much tea at breakfast, even though women have an advantage on men in bladder capacity because of a wider pelvis despite all of the other organs, eliminatory and reproductive alike, she still needs to use the lavatory. Fortunately we find the Texaco station and I pull in then hand the cashier two $20s and Betty gets directed to the toilet, emerging a couple of minutes later. (Now you know why some of the new Quik Trips and other corner markets are now being built with TWO women's restrooms. I know the one off the I-270 at Route 180 just outside St Louis has that sort of arrangement.) Jenae and Sheila have to follow in suit. It's 11.30a. We have just pulled into Northpark Mall, in front of the Sears/Steve & Barry's/TJ MAXX entrance. The ladies squeal with such delight I have to calm them down a bit, but then they go inside and I accompany them on their shopping rounds, through TJ MAXX, Old Navy, Sears, New York & Company, the whole lot. 2.45p. The girls are getting hungry again. Fortunately I am eager to offer them someplace to eat. They take their purchases to my car, and I have to open the boot with the remote. The ladies practically jam my trunk full with their purchases and then we get back in, another round of spin-the-bottle, and this time Sheila gets to ride shotgun. I drive them down the hated Range Line Road just to show them how BLOODY AWFUL the congestion is...and it's terribly slow. Somehow, talking with Sweet Sensation has kept me cool. We finally pull in to the local Cicis Pizza and at first Betty is a little suspicious. Then we go inside and two employees including a manager greet us, "HI! WELCOME TO CICIS!" I order four adult buffets and four soft drinks. Then Sheila's eyes light up at a pepperoni alfredo pizza. Jenae sees me lift a piece of spinach alfredo pizza onto my plate, and sweet Betty Dee has to ask me as I take a piece of barbecue beef pizza with cheddar cheese, "What is THAT?" I laugh and put some on her plate. "Welcome to the South, my dear...where even our PIZZA is barbecued..." As we eat and talk and even laugh, and I even catch glimpses of Fox News as well and comment on them, from how MoveOn.org are violating the RICO Act again to how Fred Goldman is acting just like Adolf Hitler, we tend to really start bonding. It's about 4.00p. We just pulled into my mother's driveway. I have to take Sweet Sensation inside to meet my mother. Sheila is instantly attracted to the decor, sort of an Asian thing with lots of photographs of family members living and dead alike, including my late grandmother whom I buried last year following a long battle with Alzheimers and osteoporosis. Betty is captivated by my mother's big orange-and-white Angora/Maine Coon mixed-breed cat Thomas, and surprisingly he doesn't even flinch from her, he lets Betty hold him, pet him, cuddle him...and then Jenae is drawn to my mother's other cat, a growing female grey-and-black Maine Coon kitten named Nimue', who is a little feisty and also almost as big as full-grown cats of most other breeds. And Mum is taking the time to tell them about me, about my growing up in California, my years in high school and college, showing them her books, her music collection, her movie collection. 6.00p. I invited Mum along for dinner with Sweet Sensation. Sadly she is too tired to join us. We leave shortly afterward and then I take the ladies for a drive. A LONG drive. And this time Jenae got to ride shotgun. We are back on Zora this time headed east and then after turning right at the all-way stop we are back on 249...and soon after on US71, cruising toward Fort Smith. I explain how much southwestern Missouri has grown in recent years, as well as particularly northwestern Arkansas, and even explain the expansion of US71 from a two-lane road to a four-lane expressway in recent decades. We even cruise past the McDonald County Walmart just a few hundred metres from the Arkansas line and I explain how that was the last county in Missouri to get a Walmart... We cross the Arkansas state line and follow an old four-lane road until the freeway starts and soon we reach Rogers. I have to take Jct 85 off of what is now the I-540 and turn left, then another quick left. We are on "Restaurant Row" in Rogers and I bring them onto a driveway that leads into Coltons Steak House and Grill. Trust me, if you are in Arkansas, Louisiana, or Missouri (especially Springfield and Jefferson City), you MUST stop at a Coltons and have a steak, a burger, a chicken sandwich, what have you. If the food doesn't win you over, the service certainly will. And then there is the atmosphere, wooden floors, buckets full of peanuts, a Texas-style interior with lots of wood everywhere, a sculpture of a longhorn steer's head, and country music in the speakers. (Sorry about that, fellow freestyle fans) Betty and Jenae are quick to order steaks, Betty contemplates the T-bone, Jenae the filet mignon. Sheila considers the St Louis-style ribs. I choose a chicken fried steak myself. We also order some buffalo wings and tumbleweeds, the latter of which is the Coltons version of an onion blossom. And I go for the baked sweet potato, ditto Betty. Jenae prefers the baked potato, ditto Sheila. The ladies even feel confident about ordering drinks with their dinners, but since I'm the designated driver I'm sticking to Mr Pibb. And all three are delighted with the endless rolls. When we get to the desserts the ladies take to the cheesecakes as I choose a root beer float. Back in Joplin at about 9.00p, I take Sweet Sensation to a nightclub downtown where, what a miracle, there is plenty of freestyle mixed in with the hip hop and techno and we find ourselves dancing the whole night through. I tell the bartenders I'm a designated driver so I'm sticking to Coke. Betty doesn't drink a whole lot, Sheila is a bit more reserved about drinking, and even Jenae doesn't feel the effects too much. 2.00a. It's about time to wrap it up. I ask if the ladies would like to go get some coffee or something. They accept the offer. We have already left the club and driven around town for a while. So now it's back to Waffle House, this time all I want are hashbrowns scattered all the way and sweet tea. The ladies simply order coffee, and Betty is the only singer from Sweet Sensation to order any food --- in her case pecan pie... 3.00a. We just got through with Waffle House and now it's time to say good bye for now...maybe we will see each other again...and the ladies don't want to leave me just yet. I know I don't want to leave them either but this has been a long day...and of course I have to hug and kiss each of them...just don't let's let it become good-bye...I know I enjoyed my day with Sweet Sensation... Scenario B It's early afternoon. I am just wrapping up my last area of inventory for the day. My area manager surprises me by bringing Sweet Sensation to an aisle where I am finishing the last area in a home improvement warehouse. They had been passing through and decided to visit me after I had told them about my itinerary for the week. They greet me as I head to a shopping cart where an audit collector has been set up to collect my last transmission of the day. The district manager tells me to transmit and close out then clock out on the time clock which is on another machine we use for counting inventories. I start talking to them and then the DM asks me how did I like that surprise. I am certainly enjoying this already...and we have just met. Then Jenae starts by offering me a hug. And I come out of that with a lipstick imprint on my cheek. The same thing with Sheila. Then it's Betty's turn. Hers landed right on my lips! I am almost in shock. Ann couldn't have made me that weak kissing me like that, let alone Jeanette and Gioia. I start to fall but a team leader catches me, asking me, are you all right? I answer, HELL YEAH!, just like Stone Cold Steve Austin, and everyone laughs. Anyway, I'm glad that this is just a local inventory, so I could just as well drive home. But not with Sweet Sensation around --- first we have to get something to eat, so we drive down the hated Range Line Road, Joplin's answer to the 405 in LA, to Applebees, because I am ready to eat, and then I realise...not only am I eating a meal with Sweet Sensation, but I am FINALLY eating at the Applebees in JOPLIN! I had eaten at several other restaurants in the chain, but NEVER at the one in JOPLIN! I don't even know why... By 3.30p we had finished eating and were now driving around Joplin and Webb City,and I even stopped at my Auntie Sherley's and Uncle Bob's house, finding both at home, and I introduced Sweet Sensation to my uncle and auntie...Why not dear old mum? That's coming later. They all take time to get to know each other and then my cousin's older daughter comes in after driving in from Springfield where she is attending university. My cousin herself drives in with her husband, her son, and her younger daughter...and certainly we take the time to get acquainted, with my auntie telling Jenae and Betty and Sheila about everyone, including myself... Uncle Bob has called Mum who drives over in a white Subaru to visit and also joins in the impromptu corroborree erupting at a two-story house along the Kansas City Southern railway tracks. Then she invites me and Sweet Sensation over for dinner...and of course we accept. During the evening I had to take the ladies shopping, first to Northpark Mall and then to Kohls, before we got to Mum's house. 7.00p. Chicken and dumplings are now being served to everyone, with Betty, Jenae, and Sheila taking their places on the chesterfield, eating from tray tables, as I am doing from another chair across the room. Mum even puts on a DVD for everyone to watch. 10.00p. Mum is about ready to turn in for the night so we say our goodbyes to her for the night then I take the ladies to the club...and of course we end up dancing the night away... 2.00a. We are wrapping up for the night, saying our goodbyes because of course I have to get up early in the morning for another inventory... Scenario X I have just finished moving into my new house...a rather expansive two-story townhouse with a number of bedrooms and bathrooms, a study, a kitchen, a den, a dining hall, and lots of garden space, plus a pool and a four-car garage. I hear the doorbell ringing a series of Westminster chimes at 9.30p and then I turn down the Mark Levin Show on the mini-stereo in the study. I look out at the front door and find SWEET SENSATION greeting me with a very excited "HELLOOOOO!" I was pleased that they had made it past the front gate and the water gardens lit up with pastel-coloured lights. I invited them in and showed them to the lounge, where I turned on my stereo. We started talking, reminiscing, even noshing on crudite platters and fried ravioli and mozzarella sticks and egg rolls...and of course I had the sweet tea flowing....(Can't you tell I've been hanging out at FriendsEAT.com?) We definitely enjoyed listening to a varied assortment of cassettes and CDs, spending all night dancing and snacking and enjoying ourselves...and enjoying the various features of the house, right down to the solar panels shaped like mission-style roofing tiles like you would find in Boca Raton and the solar sheeting sprayed onto the windows used for generating even more energy, the lift that moved from top to bottom and back again, and even the windmills at each corner of the house, using turbine-like cylinders instead of condor-Cuisinart propellers. Sunrise. I wondered if anyone wanted anything to eat and I surprised the ladies by offering to cook breakfast. I started making biscuits and then gravy using ground beef and condensed mushroom soup (which, when you season it properly, makes a very good gravy for biscuits and Texas toast). I sliced some melons and grabbed some vanilla yoghurt then poured some OJ --- the kind that comes from oranges not the NFL hall of fame running back who has once again become the biggest whipping boy for the liberal media (curse you, Fred Hitler, Nazi Graceless, Jerky Couric, and Scarface VanCistern) since George W Bush after we the people elected him in 2000 when we the people elected a president for the first time in 12 years --- into some large crystal-cut goblets and even poured chocolate milk into more staid-looking glasses. Then it was time to serve everyone. As we enjoyed our fruit and yoghurt and biscuits and gravy we continued chatting further and further... Early afternoon. WE started waking up, coming from separate bedrooms, I from the master, Jenae, Sheila, and Betty from their respective guest bedrooms, and then went into the garden. I called my mother, my cousin, my aunties, and my friends, then walked over to see the neighbourhood beautician, and invited them over for a barbecue. We started talking rather animatedly, and Betty even grabbed some spices, Sheila helped me prepare the barbecue sauce by chopping fruits for the blender, and Jenae grabbed some mustard and hot sauce for the sauce. I fired up the barbecue spit and then the stereo, preparing chickens, turkey breasts, burgers, brats, steaks, ribs, potatoes, and vegetables for the grill. My family and then my friends started arriving. Of course the ladies were starving, so I grabbed a packet of taquitos I had just bought at Walmart and fried them in the deep fryer, then laid out crisps and guacamole before frying up some chips. And of course everyone wanted to get to know Sweet Sensation --- so I encouraged everyone to get to know as many people as possible...you know there were loads of autographs signed left and right...Lots of family anecdotes were told to Betty, to Sheila, to Jenae...who were somehow not overwhelmed... Sometime after sunset. Betty, Sheila, and Jenae were fairly exhausted after gorging on barbecue and crisps and salads and tea, 7UP, Dr Pepper, A&W...but they STILL wanted to stick around for one more evening anyway. Yup...ya know we are headed back to the club... I guess there are many other scenarios we could entertain, but I have other things to do right now and definitely other folks might like to weigh in...For all we know, all three of those scenarios might become true...even if only in our dreams...in some home movie that goes straight to Youtube or Ifilm...or maybe even in the Twilight Zone. (RESPECT TO ROD SERLING) ============= I must tell you that freestyle-oriented dance music might not be everyone's cuppa, but I suggest you get ahold of those discs. You can even get those discs from oldies.com. One thing I noticed is they come in a case with a plastic divider between the two halves, for holding both discs with. I was already familair with that design as it turned up on the 1999 Seb Fontaine double disc, Prototype. The sheer energy of the beats and distinctive Latin rhythms will hook you and many of you will even appreciate the lyrics...and of course even the impressive beauty of the female vocal rock trio's iconic redhead lead singer Betty Dee will strike one's fancy... I would say prepare to be impressed...and enjoy the very type of music that dominated the world of dance music in the late 80s and early 90s...and has made a comeback as so many freestyle acts like Sweet Sensation --- as well as contemporaries like The Cover Girls, Exposé, and Seduction --- are currently regrouping and even touring again.

Cat Care The Hard Way

I was shocked to see my cat start vomiting on Friday. I discovered I had lain down on top of his vomit after I had gotten back from paying a few bills and getting roach traps and an outlet strip from the local Home Depot. I had given little if any thought until I discovered Garfield was still vomiting, not holding down anything at all. Then on Sunday he was ejecting clear vomit... Labour Day. Monday. I was worried sick, not knowing what exactly to do. I started running searches on Google, AllTheWeb, and Ask.com, wondering why Garfield wasn't holding down anything. I had read in some of my searches that he might have had renal damage or intestinal problems...or maybe that I might have given him my chest cold...Either way he was not feeling well... Today I got back from the local Atwoods farm supply store after finding some electrolytes for animals. I had not given it much thought for quite a while until I had given him about two-thirds of the first batch, roughly 160cc ...that I had underestimated the amount of electrolytes needed for each batch. At least the vomiting had stopped but I was worried about Garfield not having used the litter box for that time. I had learnt that his nose had been warm and dry; my mother, who has raised cats for a number of years, identified that as a sign of a cold...and unfortunately humans can transmit colds to their cats...not to mention that they can tolerate some dehydration but need to be monitored. I finally gave him about 36cc of the correct dose, and though he puts up a fight at his, well, feedings, he is pretty lethargic, moving about very slowly, with loose skin on his back...which may be a fortunate sign. I am hoping for a miracle...maybe because even with the colds I have had in the past I have not experienced anything like this with Garfield. Now he is laying where his food dish normally would be. Now I am toying with whether to reintroduce solid food tomorrow or Thursday or even Friday, and I know I may have to switch to a higher-priced cat food as a result. But right now I am leaning more toward NeoSure or even baby food --- one veterinarian's receptionist whom I consulted advised me to try baby food. Right now I am focusing on getting him properly rehydrated and keeping him somewhat nourished, as I have also taken to spraying vitamins into his mouth throughout the day and night. I guess it is safe to say that sometimes our most innocent companions are prone to illnesses we may not have control over...and maybe I should not have waited 10 years to discover this. But then again Garfield has been a very good companion during the past 10 years, and you could say that he has been a great pet. I guess I am just scared about what is happening... Any advice anyone can provide I would greatly appreciate...Thank you...
Hi folks. Hello friends. Hello fans. Hello family. Hello readers. Maybe I could stand to give you folks an account of why I've been off "FUBAR" for the past few weeks. Three weeks ago, I had just turned on my old computer and found it stalling and crawling instead of starting up like it was supposed to do. Then I took in to "Geek Squad" inside "Best Buy" and they let me know about a week later that there was nothing left for them to do with that unit. So I had to wait for a couple of weeks till I gotpaid again...and now I have finally gotten a newer unit with an AMD Athlon 1.6GHz processor and finally gotten it to work. It will be a while before I get it to where it feels familiar but that will be taken care of in good time. And then there is the matter of why I'm offline almost more than I am online. As an inventory auditor, click here for my employer, my job has taken me on the road quite a lot lately. Working on a detail auditing Home Depot stores throughout the Midwest and Mid-South has given me lots of opportunity to see other interesting areas. Most recently I worked a one-day detail in the Kansas City area; I have so far travelled as far as Illinois, Arkansas, Little Rock, and the Lake Of The Ozarks area. Earlier this year I travelled to Nebraska for a couple of store inventories, but at a Tractor Supply and at a Kmart in Kearney, not a Home Depot. I have found a few interesting places to eat on the road as well. In Fort Smith I found an old-fashioned drive-in THAT SERVES BEER! If you find yourself along Business US71 near Downtown Fort Smith, check for a place called Ed Walker's Drive In. One of their specialties is the "Razorback Burger", their take on a bacon cheeseburger honouring the University of Arkansas' mascot. If you're from the West Coast chances are you've heard of the Jack In The Box fast food restaurant chain, maybe you even eat at those places. I was impressed to find Jack In The Boxes all over the St Louis area and even ate lunch at an Alton IL Jack In The Box one day. I was pleased to find some of the old standards, like tacos, Breakfast Jacks (ham, egg, cheese), and Jumbo Jacks still on the menu. I hadn't eaten in a Jack In The Box since leaving California during the Clinton Anointistration...and was pleased to see that even with their addition of burgers and sandwiches on Ciabatta bread some of the basics were still on the menu. One thing I have learnt to do is start shopping at Walmart for food and drink and relying on that more whilst on the road for meals. This is because most of the places where I have stayed have had at least a refrigerator in the rooms, and even microwaves as well. As a result there have been days I have taken home as much as one day's worth of per diem the district manager gives out for staying in the hotel/inn/motel and put that in the tank of my car. When we counted stores in Little Rock and Conway we stayed at a hotel that was not far from a cluster of restaurants, nor far from a Walmart Supercentre. Pretty much everything was a short walk but you need to get something to drink in that intensive heat and humidity...Water, juice, 7UP, Sprite, Sierra Mist...anything will do. Last week after leaving Fort Smith we found our accomodations altered so that we had to drive about 50 minutes one way to the second store in Oklahoma...due to a PGA tournament. I was immediately reminded of a rant, routine, or interview, or whatever, where comedian George Carlin called for abolishing golf courses and building housing projects on them. I mentioned that to a corner market cashier and policeman and they both laughed, recalling his days as the "Hippy Dippy Weatherman". I must admit that there have been a few challenges with regard to getting this new machine to work but in the end I will get back up to speed...
In recent months a number of Democratic House and Senate leaders, as well as an Independent Senator who, with socialist views, tends to poll with the Dems, have called for the reimposition of an insidious form of censorship that would stifle the development of radio. This form of censorship was imposed upon broadcasters from 1949 to 1987 but was repealed when it was found to have constrained open political discourse. Enter the so-called 'Fairness' Doctrine. Initially introduced by US House Representative Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) in January as a means of "reforming" the media and forcibly instilling "balance", simply because people like him have failed in talk radio. You may recall that Air America Radio --- a patently left-wing radio network whose commentators were more often than not loaded with irrational partisan hatred --- had a similar message that could already be heard in the following outlets: * ABC News * CBS News * Cable News Network * CNBC * MSNBC * NBC News * National Public Radio * Public Broadcast Service * Associated Press * Most major newspapers like the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, the St Louis Post-Dispatch, and the Washington Post * Most major news magazines like Time, Newsweek, and US News & World Report And in the end the network wound up losing so much money, at least in part because they PAID stations to carry their material, that they have since entered receivership and are trying to recover. And word is that Communist organisations like Communist Party USA (which was heavily funded by the Soviet Union), the Maoist-influenced Revolutionary Communist Party, and World Can't Wait are all complicit in the efforts to censor the airwaves. Representative Hinchey --- joined by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, an Independent who has left-of-centre views --- have been supported in their efforts by patently anti-American left-of-centre billionaire George Soros, who has financed a number of left-leaning groups like the Massachusetts-based "Free Press" and other mellifluous-sounding front groups in effort to undermine freedom of speech and maybe even American society as a whole. Soros has also funded organisations dedicated to decriminalising dangerous illegal drugs, even to the point of sending security guards to attack those who protest his methods at public exhibitions. And whilst the controlled media have been ignoring his numerous and ethical violations in his quest to steal power from and even censor the American people --- they have habitually mongered hatred toward independent media outlets like talk radio and internet-based news sites like NewsMax and WorldNetDaily and even bloggers, and even Fox News (which like MySpace, is a part of NewsCorp, albeit in a different division) as well, all because they have found ways to report the news without injecting their left-of-centre political biases and spin into the news. They have also attacked the military, enforcement of immigration policy, business, and even innocent people like the Duke lacrosse players falsely accused of rape, not to mention overexaggerating social problems like homelessness, and even demonised religious conservatives. Another leftist group, the so-called Centre for American Progress, have bemoaned the dominance of conservatives in talk radio by calling it "structural imbalance" in a fake report. Now, the conservatives are fighting back, not only by contacting their Congressional representatives, but also by introducing, then passing, a bill that would prohibit the reimposition of the "Fairness" Doctrine without an Act of Congress. The National Association of Broadcasters' CEO and president, David Rehr, has himself condemned the "Fairness Doctrine", citing the numbers of media outlets available today, with more than 13 000 radio stations, more than 1 700 television stations, and a myriad of websites with visual, video, and audio outlets catering to basically any viewpoint in America. One needs to remember that with the Left --- especially in the editorial desks --- openly promoting a more neoliberal viewpoint that condemns America, condemns conservatism, and condemns freedom --- the marketplace has opened with the advent of myriad cable and satellite channels, including more television news sources, the growth of real talk radio, and the growth of internet-based news sites --- thus leading to the successes of folks like Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and Neal Boortz. And that is the basic rule of the marketplace: You MUST be able to deliver a product the people actually want. With the liberal media dominating print and television news, millions of Americans have chosen to go with real talk radio; Air America Radio failed precisely because the audiences decided that they did not want to hear the same thing that they could easily see on no fewer than six television news channels, read in most major newspapers, or read in most major news magazines. But because the Left have failed to attract an audience they seek to force-feed their message to the general public, most of whom have determined that they do not want that type of agenda embedded in their news coverage. And ironically one of their own hosts has been badly burnt at least in part by another controversial talk radio host who aggressively shut down a rival: Al Sharpton, who himself hosts a show carried on 21 stations, led a campaign to bust Don Imus off CBS Radio and MSNBC over his controversial derogatory remarks about the Rutgers University women's basketball team. Whilst Imus himself did a lot of damage to his career and his credibility --- he willingly apologised publicly and again to the Rutgers team --- incidentally on the same night New Jersey Democratic Governor John Corzine was injured in a wreck caused by a speeding state trooper who crashed the SUV through a guardrail at 91 miles an hour and Corzine was not wearing his seat belt. But inasmuch damage as he did to himself with his racist comments --- Imus also apologised, and after he was basically driven off the air by racists like Al Sharpton (who has openly condemned Whites and may have contributed to the deaths of several Hispanic employees of a neighbourhood clothing store that burnt in the late 1980s) and Jesse Jackson (who is infamous for his anti-Semitic remarks) --- he even saw fit to file a lawsuit against CBS for breach of contract. Sharpton was further aided and abetted in his efforts by a rather left-leaning group, Media Matters for America, who not only attempted to have Rush Limbaugh removed from Armed Forces Radio but are funded by Soros as well. Was the Don Imus affair a dry run to make a charge against the ever-dominant talk radio host Rush Limbaugh? One county government in Florida did consider withdrawing their association with a Miami-area talk radio station because the station carry his show. And now Senators are debating the matter, just after the House passed the Broadcast Freedom Act. Maybe you too could get involved in this effort, as the reality is people from both the left AND the right regularly get their points heard on real talk radio. Here is a site that will help you get started on that. And if we don't start standing up to the censors who would want to silence real talk radio right now, there is no question that a onesided media would be forced upon the populace --- and then the next step would be forcible viewing and/or listening of the same onesided media --- and then other outlets would soon wind up under government censorship diktats. Whether or not you agree with Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity and Michael Savage and Neal Boortz and Glenn Beck and Bill Bennett, you have got to admit that the reimposition of the "Fairness" Doctrine would interfere with your freedom of speech, not to mention your freedom of choice in how you get news, information, and commentary, not to mention even entertainment.
Right now I am dealing with a pressing matter that happened in front of my apartment last night: We were hit with a wave of severe thunderstorms and even a few tornadoes. Southwestern Missouri, including Joplin, was heavily hit. Trees were knocked down across town; a neighbour had the top half of his tree knocked down and another tree right in front of my complex was knocked down too. Right away a van from the local ABC affiliate arrived and I spoke with the station's lead news anchor about the tree that had fallen into the street and even onto my car. It was all over the local news yesterday. Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us    Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us (LEFT: Photo of the fallen tree, about 6.00a on Friday (2007-06-08)) (RIGHT: Tree was only partially cut away later that morning in a half-assed job by the City of Joplin Streets Department, who refuse to finish the job, though it fell on a city parkway, city street, and city sidewalk) Fortunately it looks like my insurance provider are willing to work with me and I may yet take them up on a car rental, but probably only for a compact or subcompact. It looks like I will need to send the car to the local Chevrolet dealership's body shop...and my landlord has been stuck with the job of arranging for the removal of the remaining branches...all because the local bureaucrats are playing too much cover-our-asses and not NEARLY enough git-R-done! When the TV crew arrived I was made aware of the dent in my right rear quarter panel nearthe boot and rear window...and the broken antenna as well. Looks like several hundred dollars' worth of repairs... Fifty years ago, if something like that were to happen, the city would have gotten in gear and they wouldn't do a half-assed job by stopping only when they got to a car...ON A PUBLIC STREET, COVERED IN BRANCHES SCATTERED ON THE PUBLIC STREET AND EVEN ONTO THE PUBLIC PARKWAY AND THE PUBLIC SIDEWALK! Nowadays they refuse to do their jobs, out of fear of getting sued. RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT! Their irrational fear of getting sued itself is going to get them sued for not doing anything about the problem. Leave it to selfish government officials and bureaucrats to steal from your pockets and pay cheques whilst they refuse to do ANYTHING to improve public safety. This is why it is PAST TIME we started revolting on this sort of horse manure. OPEN WAR ON ALL SUCH DO-NOTHING BUREAUCRATS WHO REFUSE TO FINISH THE ENTIRE JOB THAT THEY STARTED. OPEN. FREAKING. WAR.
I AM SICK AND TIRED OF THE ENMITY AND BACKBITING THAT HAS ERUPTED IN THE BULLETINS LATELY! Last weekend one of my family members here on Cherrytap (c. 10 February '07) was subjected to an inordinate amount of vengeful hatred by a few spoilsports somewhere else on Cherrytap...and I even saw the outrageous "Boycott so-and-so's Happy Hour" bulletins. Myself, I refuse to get involved, and I will tell you why. When someone wants to start some static with someone else I make an effort to avoid it unless there is a perfectly good reason. And even then I make an effort not to spread the evil words and deeds of others. I am disgusted with the conduct of two particular members of this site --- one of whom has exercised irrational partisan hatred particularly toward our president and his political party, and the other who chose to embed a music track into a profile belonging to one of my friends, in a way that it cannot be stopped or paused. And yes, I could say things like, "FAN ME THEN ADD ME" is a traitor who deserves to be deported to Cuba or Venezuela or Viet Nam, and "(R)IGHTEOUS" is an arsehole who is ruining other people's profiles when all he has to do is simply ignore people who insert their music into his profile comments, but I refuse to stoop that low, because it puts me lower than them. And if you do the same damn thing, then YOU TOO are descending to that low a level! And besides that, what good does that kind of drama do this site? NONE. Absolutely no good can come off this sort of destructive activity whatsoever. I am not here to drag people's names through the mud. And I think that folks like B. Street deserve better respect. This is why so many people are upset about this ... one of my new friends posted a bulletin giving the loud and clear that anyone circulating that kind of horseshit like a BOYCOTT of someone's Happy Hour risks losing her as a friend. And BTW whatever you think you have heard about certain folks --- you might want to give them some respect when they sponsor Happy Hour. Why, if FAN ME THEN ADD ME sponsors a Happy Hour, I'm not going to boycott it just because I chose to block her (1) because of her incessant Bush-bashing (2) and her irrational partisan hatred (3). I'm still going to participate anyway. And if (R)IGHTEOUS sponsors a Happy Hour, I'm not going to get into some dumbassed boycott just because I think he acted like a jerk by embedding a music track onto someone's profile in a way that prevented other users from being able to stop or pause the track! FUCK THAT! What the HELL are you REALLY here for anyway?! Are you really here to meet interesting people or are you here just to start stirring shit?! Come on, people, it's only CHERRYTAP for fuck's sakes! If you don't have the ability to get along with others, get the BLOODY HELL OFF this site! And if YOU DO have a problem with someone else, then FOR FUCK'S SAKES, IGNORE THEIR ASSES! YOU HAVE A FUNCTION: IT'S CALLED BLOCK THIS USER, USE IT FOR ALL THE MALCONTENTS WHO YOU HAVE SUCH A HORRIBLE PROBLEM WITH THAT YOU CAN'T GET ALONG WITH THEM! That's right. I want to make myself perfectly clear: I consider myself to the RIGHT of conservative. Next to me, Michael Savage is a COMMUNIST and Neal Boortz is a SOCIALIST! But I think that Rodney King was needlessly brutalised with that same kind of hatred by jackbooted fascists in the Los Ku Klux Klan-gel-SS Gestapo...and those policemen ALL deserved to be in prison. And I think it is necessary to draw some wisdom from Rodney King, amidst all the violence and mayhem, justified or otherwise: CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG? And if you HAVE such a problem with someone that you can't deal with them, don't start some dumbassed boycott, don't do something chickenshit like embedding something that others cannot turn off --- JUST IGNORE THEM AND MOVE THE HELL ON!!! And if someone like Tom and Jami decides to sponsor a Happy Hour, you should be GRATEFUL because it's their damn money that keeps this site running! What's so bad about someone else's US$100 giving you the opportunity to continue enjoying this site without you having to pay a penny? Why don't YOU put up YOUR US$100 and sponsor your OWN damned Happy Hour?! Dammit to hell, we need to start showing some RESPECT toward each other, either by learning to live with them or ignoring them --- NOT BY STOOPING TO THIS INFANTILE CRAP ABOUT BOYCOTTING HAPPY HOURS AND THAT KIND OF DRAMA! It's this type of crap Nirvana were trying to address when they wrote a song bearing the same title as this blog entry! I haven't started deleting people from my rather sizable friends list but I just might have to if any of them start or keep pulling this CRAP! DAMMIT THIS IS AN ADULT SITE --- LET'S START ACTING LIKE IT FOR CHRIST'S SAKES ALREADY!!!! There. Just had to get that off my chest.
As we commemorate the 96th birthday of President Ronald Reagan...whom we buried in 2004 after he passed away from complications arising from his long battle with Alzheimers Disease... I would like to present some words of wit and wisdom from the President. You can disagree or agree with the Gipper all you want but at least you should get some laughs and maybe even food for thought... "Here’s my strategy on the Cold War: We win, they lose." "The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I’m here to help." "Of the four wars in my lifetime none came about because the U.S. was too strong." "I have wondered at times about what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through the U.S. Congress." "The taxpayer: That’s someone who works for the federal government but doesn’t take the civil service exam." "Government is like a baby: An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other." "If we ever forget that we’re one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under." "I’ve laid down the law, though, to everyone from now on about anything that happens: no matter what time it is, wake me, even if it’s in the middle of a Cabinet meeting." "It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first. Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it." "Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book." "No arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women."
You may have heard recently that I just got deleted by MySpace TOS on 1st November...and I have been furious about this. I had just made a major recovery in less than a month only to get dumped over what they called "a violation of terms of service" and they did not specify. And to top it all off they refuse to stop sending blog post subscription notifications or event invites, either they ignore or refuse to listen to my phone calls or phone messages, read my emails or letters, or correct whatever bugs on their site keep me from opening another new account on my email address. I was innocently using the services of the site, innocently networking and making new friends on 1st November, when suddenly I found myself facing the following message: Invalid ID, The member has closed their account, or the profile has been deleted, and then I discovered an email from MySpace telling me that my account had been deleted for a "violation of Terms of Service". And here goes their laundry list of accusations in quotes followed by my facts: "Your MySpace account has been deleted for violating our Terms of Service. " So-called "violations" which they did not specify, but just gave their usual laundry list of false reasons. "This is usually due to one of the following: Of which I had NONE OF. "* Covering our banner ads with HTML" I wouldn't know how to do that so that's out of the question "* Harassing other users" Impossible. I may have rebutted someone whom I disagreed with here and there but in the end it's my Constitutional right to rebut anyone whom I disagree with, and I make every effort to politely differ with such people.. "* You do not meet the minimum age requirement " I'm 35 so that obliterates that reason. "* Spamming the classifieds, forums, bulletins, or other sections of the site " I NEVER did any of that; I simply USED the FEATURES of the site in protected free speech. "* Attempting to artificially inflate scores" I don't know how to do that. "* Scripting the site" I don't know how to do that either. "Your account cannot be restored. If you choose to return to MySpace, please follow the rules. " What? I PLAYED by the rules and they still deleted me anyway. And to add insult to injury they still send me blog subscription posts for that account which they terminated on that afternoon for no specific reason whatsoever, just someone's false word and never giving me a chance to defend myself beforehand. This is all the more reason News Corporation should terminate the administrator who fraudulently dumped my profile with almost 900 friends, for the SECOND TIME in one month. I have since reported this to the Southland Better Business Bureau, the Santa Monica Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Attorney General's Office, and MySpace's parent, News Corporation, amongst other sources. As it turns out neither the California AG nor the BBB would accept this matter. Interstingly enough, I have received responses from CNN, NBC Nightly News, Channel News Asia (http://www.channelnewsasia.com), Front Page Magazine (http://www.frontpagemag.com), and even John Kasich, host of Fox News Channel's Heartland...and even the ACLU. Nothing from the ACLJ (American Centre for Law and Justice, http://www.aclj.org) yet though...I have also found a few websites that even address this sort of problem and there are details in my postscript... I tried not to dwell on my past problems, but unfortunately they are bothering me greatly and I am enraged by this. Somehow I am able to deal with this in a rational manner but it is very difficult given my propensity toward anger. But there is a silver lining forming so far: On Monday morning (13/11) I filed for an injunction from and with the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri seeking a halt to continued emails MySpace continue to send about blog post subscriptions and event invites for an account I can no longer use because they dumped me on 1 November with almost 900 friends. Today I received a response that it had been assigned to a magistrate judge and I decided to accept the assignment and mail back my response in the affirmative. It now comes down to assigning a court date, and meanwhile I continue taking screenshots of email notifications I continue to receive on MySpace for that closed account. In my filing I submitted about 60 pages of evidence including even the graphics that I would use on my page, including some that supported certain political candidates and causes, but mostly of my own creation or adaptation, and also form emails that kept coming back from MySpace showing that they were refusing to address, or ignoring, the problem, instead of fixing their technical bugs, and even sending articles about the site's founder, Brad Greenspan, suing to stop the censorship on that site. The evidence also included NINE screeenshots, plus I continued taking screenshots DAILY, until the notifications stopped on the night of the 14th, which I will present at any court proceedings. I am pleased that a federal judge is taking interest in this matter. Hopefully we can put the brakes on what has become an out-of-control management style for a terrific website that has allowed people to connect with one another, even to the point where we discover more about ourselves as well as about others, even discovering angles of personalities of people whom we would never ordinarily meet or even show interest in. And I hope to return to MySpace in future but I don't see it happening until or unless I receive an affirmative ruling that protects freedom of speech and I wonder if it is just my freedom of speech...or if it might affect a larger group of people. I urge you to sign the petition to stop censorship on MySpace at http://www.petitiononline.com/free99/petition.html and send a loud and clear message to MySpace, their parent NewsCorp, and even to your friends. You may repost this in a MySpace bulletin to your friends if you like. Also have a look at where I turned up on Censorspace.com. Brad Greenspan, the founder of MySpace.com AND Censorspace, as well as FreeMySpace.com, along with Trent Lapinski, wrote this article about my problems with MySpace censorship on http://censorspace.com/?p=45 and you can even comment over there if you like. It is important to note that even corporate censorship---especially when conducted by a company that commands almost 90 percent of the web traffic in its category, social networking---is absolutely 180 degrees WRONG! And I have also started contacting companies who advertise on NewsCorp services like MySpace and Fox News. So far I have contacted Toyota, Samsung, LL Bean, Stauer Watches, Vonage, and Chase about their advertising on NewsCorp services---and telling the truth about MySpace. Maybe if more people would contact companies like that who advertise on NewsCorp services like MySpace and Fox News maybe the companies can put pressure on NewsCorp and specifically MySpace. Then maybe they will change their business practises...or start losing precious advertising dollars. And with strong ratings in the cable/satellite news category Fox News and NewsCorp cannot afford to lose ad revenue because of something that MySpace are doing (ie censorship). And don't try to argue that "well, it's their site and they have the right to dump whomever they want". That's bull crap. Companies aren't protected in the Constitution. People are. And discrimination laws, including arbitrary discrimination laws, are being violated by MySpace, who are also comnmitting acts of fraud, bad faith, breach of contract, and anti-trust violations, because they are also blocking people's ability to upload videos from Stickam, Vidilife, and even YouTube...and are even targeting users of Photobucket and Imageshack. What if MySpace users want to USE non-NewsCorp content in their profiles? That's THE RIGHT OF THE INDIVIDUAL USER! Who is to say that NewsCorp and MySpace WON'T censor sources like ABC News (American OR Australian), CNN, MSNBC, NPR, CBS News, or even a local newspaper NOT owned by NewsCorp? The company MUST adapt to the will of the users---NOT the other way around. So get on board, sign the petition, and DEMAND that MySpace STOP ALL CENSORSHIP ACTIVITIES NOW! Censorship---whether by government diktat or by that of a company aiming for monopoly status---is 100 percent UNACCEPTABLE particularly for a free society like ours.
Welcome to my new blog here on CherryTap, TruthTap, which is designed to give a rather thorough and unique view of the events of the world we live in and life in general. In this first edition we shall explore some of the issues that may not be making the news and even some that are... UNNECESSARY MESSING WITH THE SIGN FONTS...AND YOU'RE PAYING FOR IT In some states you have started seeing a strange new font appear on some of your highway signs. You may hvae noticed that a number of the letters and numbers don't look quite the way they used to. The reason: The federal government have started publishing standards for how to implement this new font, called "Clearview". And you are paying for this rather radical adjustment to your signage. It is already becoming more commonplace throughout Arkansas, Texas, and Pennsylvania. But just because PennDot, ADOT, and TxDot like it, is it really necessary? The study says yes...and the idea is that instead of using standard FHWA (Federal Highway Administration) fonts which come in series A through F with a super boldfaced E Modified font, the latter of which has become de rigueur in Oklahoma and to a lesser extent Missouri, but which has become standard for most state route markers in Oklahoma, with the exception of the new Oklahoma state markers. The new Oklahoma markers debuted in January with an outline of the state near the top of the frame and the usually D-series FHWA font numbers near the bottom, with some three-digit numbers getting C-series and a few B-series. But back to the Clearview/FHWA Standards: I really don't see the need for a new font if the enhanced visibility is only a small fraction (11 to 15 percent) or even if the font uses a smaller footprint in some cases than the FHWA counterpart. And besides, if the conditions are heavily fogged, or if you are experiencing reduced vision, it doesn't matter what you use on your signs, you are going to have greater difficulty reading the signs. The FHWA's, TxDot's, and Penndot's own studies show that there is not that much improvement in the visibility in Clearview Series 5WR over FHWA Standard Series D or E, though Series E---that is the font you most commonly see on most highway signs in the United States, Spain, Holland, South Africa (which are using more Normschrift, the font series common to road signs in Germany), Australia (though the state of Victoria, which have begun implementing UK-style letter-number combination route designations, like M1, A2, and B3, are also using Transport, which is common to UK roads and to some extent Pennsylvania), New Zealand, and most provincial highways in Canada. This may be a sign for you to take better care of your eyes in the first place, see an ophthamologist as necessary, I have, and used to use reading glasses for a while in my teens, and later wore prescription sunglasses, and definitely DO NOT forget to take Vitamin A or at the least eat Vitamin A-enriched foods like carrots. Also to note that states need to start making larger signs with much larger fonts, which is the experience in Oklahoma and Missouri. Modot are now using larger and bolder fonts with slightly smaller route markers which may well be a disadvantage on that part if you are trying to figure out what route you are about to take especially in dark and/or inclement conditions. As for ODOT, you can see clearly that their experience is to use bolder fonts and sometimes larger route markers, at least in Tulsa you will see wider route markers for Interstate 244 with bolder numbers. It is not uncommon to see US Highway Route markers still bearing the bolder numbers although most US highway signs bear D Series. okrtmarkerexample1gi6.pngokstateroutemarkersnewawz5.png (LEFT/TOP) New Oklahoma state route markers which debuted in January 2006 (LEFT/CENTRE) Old Oklahoma state route markers used since the 1960s, was a recommended FHWA standard design (LEFT/BOTTOM) Old Oklahoma route markers from the 1990s and 2000s with FHWA Series E Modified numerals (RIGHT) Freeway sign from Interstate 244 and US412 (Martin Luther King Memorial Expressway) in central Tulsa. Note the I-244 marker's E Modified numbers. examplesseries17hx6.png (TOP LEFT) Current FHWA standards; (TOP RIGHT) Clearview proposal; (BOTTOM) My solution Maybe I should offer my own solution to the problem: Fill the whole sign, larger markers as with Oklahoma, larger fonts as with Missouri, but even bigger still, FILL THE SIGN with text and route markers, as much as 25 percent larger markers and 25 to 35 percent larger fonts, that way there can be no doubt about the legibility of the signs. And we won't need another series of fonts to mess with either. ============== LET'S HELP SAVE KEITON KNIGHT NOW! But who is Keiton Knight? FROM KEITONKNIGHT.CO.UK : Keiton is 7 years old and has been suffering from cancer for nearly 4 years now, he relapsed in the last month of treatment in July this year with a different type of cancer which left specialists baffled, as it is very rare for this to happen. After an exhausting search for a suitable bone marrow match, surgeons have recently informed Keiton’s family that Keiton’s bone marrow type is so rare that a match may never be found, they were also told that due to the aggressions of Keiton's cancer they don’t think he will live past 6 months without some type of stem cell treatment! The best option is for Keiton to have cord blood transplant (stem cells from the umbilical cord of a new born baby) which doesn't require the extremely close tissue-type matching, which is why one has now been found for Keiton. BUT the UK hasn’t performed this type of transplant too often, and it is now apparent that to give Keiton the best chance of survival he needs to go to the USA where they specialise in this. This life saving procedure alone costs $600 000 and Keiton and his mother Paris must spend two months in Duke Hospital, Durham NC USA which is one of the most experienced centers for this procedure in the world. On top of this, Keiton and Paris must spend a minimum of 6-8 months living close to the hospital whilst receiving outpatient care. There are several possibilities for this, depending on funding.
helpkeitonnowkj2.jpg
=========== GEORGE SOROS: A CRIMINAL THREAT TO AMERICAN LIBERTY?

Much attention has been paid to Hungarian-born immigrant George Soros who has made his billions on the backs of foreign currencies. He tried to break the British pound sterling and the Malaysian ringgit, then had to deal with French authorities regarding suspect investments.
And now he has squarely targeted the American government.
Soros has dumped millions upon millions of his money into fringe leftist organisations like MoveOn.org and other Communist front groups in effort to hijack democracy as we know it and steal Congress from the people, even dumping millions into the media for falsehood-riddled and defamatory advertisements, openly attacking a sitting wartime president. He has even tried to infiltrate a conservative political action committee.
And this pattern continues even after he poured millions into an effort to hijack the George Walker Bush presidency but as we all know more than enough Americans stood up to Soros and the likes of MoveOn.org---a neocommunist front group established by supporters of the media-selected phony president Bill Clinton when they did not like the truth being told about Clinton's myriad scandals including his lying to a grand jury---and yet both Soros and MoveOn.org are cursed with one thing in common: their irrational partisan hatred.
They are consumed with a reckless and vengeful intolerance of anyone who disagrees with their closedminded viewpoint, their flawed drumbeat of hate the President, hate Congress, hate George W Bush, hate Dick Cheney, hate Condoleezza Rice, hate, hate, hate.
They also play the blame game, blame the President, blame Congress, blame George W Bush, blame Dick Cheney, blame Condoleezza Rice, blame, blame, blame, blame them for Iraq, blame them for Afghanistan, blame them for the terrorist attacks of 11 September, blame, blame, blame, especially when many of their own principals:
* APPEASED those who CAUSED the acts of 11 September by failing to address the 1993 World Trade Centre bombing AND the Nairobi and Daressalaam embassy bombings in 1998 AND the USS Cole bombing in 2000 (1)
* Worked with a president who HAD HIS CHANCE to pop Osama BinLaden and behead AlQaeda before they could gain the power that they have gained (2) and BLEW THAT CHANCE whilst engaged in sexual play with an intern (3)
* DISMANTLED the military by consistently cutting the budget time after time, to the point where military aircraft were SCAVENGED FOR PARTS (4)
* ABUSED the military to cover up presidential scandals at home to no avail (5) putting them under international dictates (6) and even destroyed the good name of Michael New when he refused to wear the blue UN helmets (7)
* AIDED AND ABETTED illegal aliens in the United States (8)
* AIDED AND ABETTED convicted felons (9)
* AIDED AND ABETTED election fraud (10)
* AIDED AND ABETTED illegal aliens invading Serbia from Albania (11)
* ATTACKED the sovereignty of the United States (12)
* ATTACKED the sovereignty of the republic of Serbia for innocently defending themselves from terrorist invaders (13) * APPEASED the flooding of Red Chinese products into the American marketplace by overlooking their human rights violations for the sake of cheaper products (13) further damaging the American manufacturing industries (14) and showing blatant hypocrisy toward their union backers by favouring cheap goods from and slave labour in Red China over quality-made American goods built by union labour in the United States (15)
* ATTACKED the freedoms of gun owners' rights (16)
* ATTACKED the freedoms of unborn rights supporters (17)
* Tried FORCING socialised medicine upon an unwilling American populace which openly protested their national "Hillarycare" tour (18)
* And even tried to attack the success of talk radio hosts critical of the Clinton anointistration by proposing the reimposition of the so-called Fairness Doctrine in 1993 (19)
* APPEASED North Korean dictators Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il by giving them two-way talks that led to them getting oil for their country in supposed exchange for shutting down their nuclear power plant (20)...but as we all know, Clinton let Il off the hook and didn't hold him to account, now they have nuclear weapons.
* And all have been glorified by the controlled media with their similar partisan tendencies (21)
So I don't see where their principals have anything to stand on. These people reacted with rage in 1994 when we the people decided that for the first time in 40 years we really truly were going to have a Congress by the people for the people of the people not the media. The result was the Republican revolution and many new measures were passed, though the President did veto many of those, but he had to be dragged kicking and screaming to approve welfare reform then claimed all the credit.
Most recently that same faux President erupted at Fox News' Chris Wallace in an interview, falsely claiming he had a plan to catch BinLaden. We all know that he didn't even try.
Just showing you all of that so you can see the background of the supporters of Former President Bill Clinton.
And that is the sort of background that fuels the contempt that Soros and MoveOn.org have for President George W Bush and for the Republican Congress.
Truth is they also have contempt for the majority of Americans who WANT secure borders, who WANT to protect their freedom, who WANT to finish the job in Afghanistan and Iraq.
And let's look into Soros' background even more:
Soros has funded campaigns to decriminalise doctor-assisted homicide and dangerous drugs like cannabis.
He has also heavily funded Democrat campaigns as far back as 2000.
He has singlehandedly collapsed the Thai economy. (That article link ALSO contains more information about his movements that helped stifle privatisation in Russia and fuel the rise of antisocial socialism. They even conveniently and falsely and grossly underreported the numbers of Nato-killed Serbians.)
He has employed methods similar to those used by Enron executives.
He has established "Democracy Collaborative", another neosocialist group that sponsored John Kerry in his failed run for the presidency.
He spent more than $80.000 on one of his organisations dedicated to defeating laws criminalising drugs in effort to unseat a county prosecutor in New York state in the 2004 Democratic primary...in a method that violated state and federal campagin laws.
He then pushed MORE money into Fenton Communications---a leftist PR firm that claims MoveOn.org as a top client---which then pushed a greater bid focusing on an irrational anti-American, anti-war message. (And helped push the campaigns of Wesley Clark AND Howard Dean for the DNC nomination.)
He also accused US House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-IL, of a "smear campaign" when Hastert confronted Soros on the source of his $7bn fortune.
And a grieving parent who tried to warn the National Press Club at a 2004 press conference of the threat that George Soros poses to American freedom liberty sovereignty and democracy with his drugs legalisation plans was brutally assaulted by hired criminal thugs who dislocated Steve Steiner's shoulder. Mr Steiner is the founder of Dads And Mad Moms Against Drug Dealers (DAMMADD)...and paid to attend a conference where draconian security personnel dictated that if one person at a table dared dissent everyone would be dumped out.
He led a workshop an April 2005 workshop in Arizona featuring 70 wealthy individuals on how to push his brand of Marxism, a meeting convened by a former Clinton Commerce Department official, and on which Democrat party officials were kept informed.
And he gave more than $24m of his money to organisations like MoveOn.org in the 2004 election cycle alone in effort to steal the White House and the Congress from the American people.

But of course the controlled media are hellbent on ignoring his evildoing in favour of mongering fake scandals against the majority Republican leadership and thus the Republican majority in this country are further threatened as George Soros seeks to encourage government by the media for the media of the media not the people...and you know it needs to be the other way around.
The media conveniently defame the upstanding character of Halliburton whilst ignoring a real threat to our freedom from George Soros whose personal wealth is more than half that of the needlessly maligned company.
And whilst Republicans raised large amounts of money on their own, and through a wider variety of donors---George Soros was cited as having donated to the left-leaning Media Fund and MoveOn.org, thus furthering his reputation for having bought MoveOn.org and a number of left-wing organisations. It has even gone to the point where MoveOn.org have now claimed they own the Democrat party...with pride!
He also bankrolled Ned Lamont's theft of Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman's party nomination in the Democratic primary in that state Since then Senator Lieberman has received a major boost from REPUBLICANS...including even those in the WHITE HOUSE...who have sacrificed their own party candidate in that race, a man named Schlesinger, for the sake of keeping the treasonous fringe out of power, particularly in a state where independents outnumber both Democrats and Republicans.

And George Soros is indeed responsible for hijacking a major political party.

Someone needs to tell George Soros that we the people have taken back our power to choose our leadership. We the people will never tolerate those who seek to steal power from us by thinking they can "buy" their way into power.
And George Soros has clearly shown us how much contempt he has for the American people as a whole as well as our government and our way of life. Why didn't he simply move back to Hungary and try to improve the way that those people live instead?! What is he doing here in America if he doesn't like it so much?
O, I see. He is trying to steal power from us so he can impose his neocommunist hegemony upon the masses. This is where we absolutely positively MUST wake the hell up and see the light. This is where we need to see how much of a threat George Soros is to our freedom. This is where we MUST see where the REAL culture of corruption and criminality reside: well within the Democratic party and the neocommunist neosocialist neoliberal fringe minority movements, both of which are heavily funded by George Soros.
It is now way past time to start investigating George Soros. You read this right: We need a US Attorney or the Attorney General to indict Soros---already convicted in France of insider trading---for his fraudulent dealings in American politics.

Where We Can Stick Soros

We can bust George Soros under the following laws:

Federal Election Code, Section 437g, Subsection (A)(12)(d)(1)(A)(i) Any person who knowingly and willfully commits a violation of any provision of this Act which involves the making, receiving, or reporting of any contribution, donation or expenditure—
(i) aggregating $25000 or more during a calendar year shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both

On which we have MULTIPLE charges involved in just the 2006 campaigns alone let alone the 2004 and 2002 campaigns.

Federal Election Code, Section 437g, Subsection (A)(12)(d)(1)(B)
(B) In the case of a knowing and willful violation of section 441b(b)(3) of this title, the penalties set forth in this subsection shall apply to a violation involving an amount aggregating $250 or more during a calendar year. Such violation of section 441b(b)(3) of this title may incorporate a violation of section 441c(b), 441f, and 441g of this title.

The law goes yet even further. Check out the following further penalties:

(C) In the case of a knowing and willful violation of section 441h of this title, the penalties set forth in this subsection shall apply without regard to whether the making, receiving, or reporting of a contribution or expenditure of $1,000 or more is involved.
(D) Any person who knowingly and willfully commits a violation of section 320 (2 U.S.C. § 441f) involving an amount aggregating more than $10000 during a calendar year shall be—
(i) imprisoned for not more than 2 years if the amount is less than $25.000 (and subject to imprisonment under subparagraph (A) if the amount is $25000 or more);
(ii) fined not less than 300 percent of the amount involved in the violation and not more than the greater of—
(I) $50000; or
(II) 1000 percent of the amount involved in the violation; or
(iii) both imprisoned under clause (i) and fined under clause (ii)


Of course Soros could indeed claim ignorance and try to get a lesser sentence and fine, but it is doubtful that he will get that sort of outcome; he is on his way to prison and getting some of his wealth liquidated, maybe even deported back to Hungary where he came from. Check this out anyway:

Federal Election Code, Section 437g, Subsection (A)(12)(d)(2)
In any criminal action brought for a violation of any provision of this Act or of chapter 95 or chapter 96 of this title 26, any defendant may evidence their lack of knowledge or in tent to commit the alleged violation by introducing as evidence a conciliation agreement entered into between the defendant and the Commission under subsection (a)(4)(A) of this section which specifically deals with the act or failure to act constituting such violation and which is still in effect.
Federal Election Code, Section 441a (a) Dollar limits on contributions.
(1) Except as provided in subsection (i) and section 315A (2 U.S.C. § 441a-1), no person shall make contributions*—
(A) to any candidate and his authorized political committees with respect to any election for Federal office which, in the aggregate, exceed $2000;
(B) to the political committees established and maintained by a national political party, which are not the authorized political committees of any candidate, in any calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed $25000;
(C) to any other political committee (other than a committee described in subparagraph (D)) in any calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed $5000; or
(D) to a political committee established and maintained by a State committee of a political party in any calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed $10000.


*Sections 102 and 307 of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA), Pub. L. No. 107-155, amended section 441a to modify contribution limits. This section was further amended by section 319(b) of BCRA to cross-reference new section 441a-1 and new paragraph (i). These amendments apply with respect to contributions made on or after January 1, 2003.

This next section applies to organisations like MoveOn.org which have ALSO put themselves at risk of being shut down for their OWN campaign violations, in addition to that of their primary benefactor George Soros:

(2) No multicandidate political committee shall make contributions—
(A) to any candidate and his authorized political committees with respect to any election for Federal office which, in the aggregate, exceed $5000;
(B) to the political committees established and maintained by a national political party, which are not the authorized political committees of any candidate, in any calendar year, which, in the aggregate, exceed $15000; or
(C) to any other political committee in any calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed $5000.


Another section applicable to groups like MoveOn.org in this matter, as well as those established by Soros, especially with regard to donations like those from George Soros and others like him, is Section 441a Subsection (f) which reads as follows:

(f) Prohibited contributions and expenditures.
No candidate or political committee shall knowingly accept any contribution or make any expenditure in violation of the provisions of this section. No officer or employee of a political committee shall knowingly accept a contribution made for the benefit or use of a candidate, or knowingly make any expenditure on behalf of a candidate, in violation of any limitation imposed on contributions and expenditures under this section.


If we take into account the assault upon Steve Steiner we may find that the next few provisos also apply to the hired thugs who attacked Steiner, the organisers, and possibly even Soros himself:

§ 594. Intimidation of voters
Whoever intimidates, threatens, coerces, or attempts to intimidate, threaten, or coerce, any other person for the purpose of interfering with the right of such other person to vote or to vote as he may choose, or of causing such other person to vote for, or not to vote for, any candidate for the office of President, Vice President, Presidential elector, Member of the Senate, Member of the House of Representatives, Delegate from the District of Columbia, or Resident Commissioner, at any election held solely or in part for the purpose of electing such candidate, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.

(This article certainly applies to a now-dismissed staffer of a California GOP congressional candidate in a recent article.)

§ 606. Intimidation to secure political contributions
Whoever, being one of the officers or employees of the United States mentioned in section 602 of this title, discharges, or promotes, or degrades, or in any manner changes the offi cial rank or compensation of any other offi cer or employee, or promises or threatens so to do, for giving or withholding or neglecting to make any contribution of money or other valuable thing for any political purpose, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.
§ 1505. Obstruction of proceedings before departments, agencies and committees
Whoever, with intent to avoid, evade, prevent, or obstruct compliance, in whole or in part, with any civil investigative demand duly and properly made under the Antitrust Civil Process Act, willfully withholds misrepresents, removes from any place, conceals, covers up, destroys, mutilates, alters, or by other means falsifies any documentary material, answers to written interrogatories, or oral testimony, which is the subject of such demand; or attempts to do so or solicits another to do so; or
Whoever corruptly, or by threats or force, or by any threatening letter or communication infl uences, obstructs, or impedes or endeavors to influence, obstruct, or impede the due and proper administration of the law under which any pending proceeding is being had before any department or agency of the United States, or the due and proper exercise of the power of inquiry under which any inquiry or investigation is being had by either House, or any committee of either House, or any joint committee of the Congress—
Shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than five years, or, if the offense involves international or domestic terrorism (as defined in section 2331 [of 18 U.S.C.]), imprisoned not more than 8 years, or both.


So evidently we have some serious cases of election fraud we could slam Soros and even associations affiliated with him, from MoveOn.org to the Open Society Institute. We have so far 11 ways to break Soros and his evil neocommunist empire. But that's not all of it: The Racketeer and Influenced Corrupt Organisations Act, Title 18, United States Code, Section 1952 (relating to racketeering) would also apply to both Soros and to groups like MoveOn.org, as would Section 1956 (relating to the laundering of monetary instruments).
If we had a United States Attorney or an Attorney General willing to prosecute this matter we could easily send Mr Soros to prison for an extended term...and/or even deport him back to his native Hungary. We could also seize his wealth and use that to finance the Justice Department or at least the United States Attorneys offices. And to be able to use $7bn to the REAL advantage of the people would be a credit (1) and a benefit (2) to the United States...but only if we put the heat on our government. This is where YOU have to pick up the ball. This is where YOU write, call, EMAIL, your Congressman, your Senator, your Representative, the Department of Justice, the United States Attorney's Office, and you DEMAND a full investigation into George Soros, if not also the organisations that he financed.
And then we would see some REAL cleanup of the political financing scene. THAT is what American politics needs...not a flawed Voter Disenfranchisement Act that muzzles the common man and the common woman for 30 to 60 days before a primary or an election yet gives the controlled media a free pass to continue as they see fit promoting their choices with biased coverage.
And then we truly would have government BY the people FOR the people OF the people NOT the media!

So is George Soros REALLY the man who bought the world? Not necessarily but he is certainly trying hard to buy Congress and the American government. And here is where AMERICANS must come in.
Yes, that's right. If you are an American that includes YOU!
Start by spreading the word about the criminal threat people like George Soros pose to our freedom, our liberty, our republic, our democracy, our way of life. Tell your friends, your neighbours, your partners, your lovers, your family, your fellow employees the whole truth about Soros' evil gameplan. Get involved with groups like StopMoveOn.org---NOW!

YOUR FREEDOM DEPENDS HEAVILY UPON IT. Get your friends involved...it is the ONLY way we will defeat the menace of George Soros. =========== UNDERSTANDING THE COLLAPSE OF AIR AMERICA RADIO You may have heard recently about the collapse of the left-of-centre Air America Radio network. What more can we say about purposefully biased talk radio based upon irrational partisan hatred (1) that basically aped the same content already readily available in most broadcast and print outlets(2)? The same ideological bias heavily ingrained in Air America Radio was already heavily ingrained in the people occupying most editorial desks in the controlled media. Already that viewpoint was heavily represented via ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, National Public Radio, CNBC, MSNBC (originally a joint venture between NBC and Microsoft), and even Cable News Network (whose founder Ted Turner has donated BILLIONS to the United Nations and espoused rather left-of-centre views), to speak nothing of the print media, like the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Atlanta Journal and Constitution, San Francisco Chronicle, St Louis Post Dispatch, Kansas City Star, Miami Herald, Time Magazine, Newsweek, US News & World Report, Ms Magazine, The New Republic, Mother Jones Magazine, and Rolling Stone Magazine. And if you read or even work for any of those outlets aforementioned this is not a slight against you. You are NOT the problem even if you choose these media outlets. I understand why and I get it. My problem is less with the reporters so much as the reportage and the editors... So after the Fairness Doctrine was repealed in 1987---it had been in place for a few decades beforehand, when it was imposed to ostensibly seek "balance" and "equal time", when all it did was hamstring broadcast outlets so that real talk radio was crippled---real talk radio began to grow. I am sure you know the major names, I don't have to repeat them to you. There was a push to reimpose the "Fairness Doctrine" in 1994 in response to the surging success of Rush Limbaugh. That was stopped with public outcry and the 1994 election. Of course those in the controlled media and certainly in Air America certainly for the most part failed to understand that when idea-based media were put into the public marketplace it became evidently clear that the independent sources, like those on the internet (Drudge Report, WorldNetDaily, Newsmax) and again on talk radio, along with the now-10-year-old Fox News Channel, just to name a few examples, along with newspapers like the New York Post, New York Daily News, Los Angeles Daily News, Washington Times, and The Daily Oklahoman, were prospering and prospering quite heavily because the people were choosing those sources in increasing numbers. The reason for that is the independents tell the truth that is often obscured in the controlled media whether by omission, denial, or revisionism. THAT is what the people were demanding. And THAT helps explain the strong success of Fox News which have for the past several years crushed both CNN and MSNBC, along with the success of real talk radio: The independents make every effort to present BOTH SIDES of the issue, not merely a onesided version of events. Air America may well have gambled too much on their anti-Bush, anti-American agenda, and the gamble has caused them to roll "snake eyes". They hardly made much of an impact, performing well only in San Diego, Tampa, Miami, Portland, Seattle, and Cleveland. Their New York (#1 radio market) flagship WLIB-AM ranked even LOWER in Radio & Records books than they did in their previous incarnation as a Caribbean music-format station, PLUS that flagship practically bailed on them. Add to that their poor performance in the Los Angeles market (#2), where their affiliate KTLK-AM ranked at barely a sixth of the rating that KFI-AM---a major talk radio giant carrying Rush Limbaugh; KTLK-AM also trailed badly behind KABC-AM (Sean Hannity) and even trailed KRLA-AM (Michael Savage)---and their consistently poor performances across the country, rarely getting much more than a 1 share---and you can see clearly where the low demand for their ideology on the radio really came into play against Air America. Air America may still be able to survive but they may have to go to internet and satellite radio outlets. They of course may still get burned as long as they keep up their irrational partisan hatred which most Americans, Left Centre and Right alike, have tired of. ============ ARE MYSPACE CENSORING CERTAIN USERS WITH FRAUDULENT AND ARBITRARY DECLARATIONS OF "VIOLATIONS"? The administrators at MySpace.com dumped my account in violation of the law AND my First Amendment freedom of speech rights yesterday afternoon and now they won't allow me to create a new account! I was innocently using the services of the site, innocently networking and making new friends, when suddenly I found myself facing the following message: Invalid ID, The member has closed their account, or the profile has been deleted, and then I discovered an email from MySpace telling me that my account had been deleted for a "violation of Terms of Service". I'M GOING TO DISPROVE THEIR LAUNDRY LIST OF FALSEHOODS RIGHT NOW: "Your MySpace account has been deleted for violating our Terms of Service. " So-called "violations" which they did not specify, but just gave their usual laundry list of false reasons. "This is usually due to one of the following: * Nude images, sexually suggestive or violent photos" Of which I had NONE OF. "* Covering our banner ads with HTML" I wouldn't know how to do that so that's out of the question "* Harassing other users" Impossible. I may have rebutted a liberal here and there but in the end it's my GOD-GIVEN right backed by the United States Constitution to rebut any lies uttered by the Left. "* You do not meet the minimum age requirement " I'm 35 so that obliterates that reason. "* Spamming the classifieds, forums, bulletins, or other sections of the site " I NEVER did any of that; I simply USED the FEATURES of the site in protected free speech. "* Attempting to artificially inflate scores" I don't know how to do that! "* Scripting the site" I don't know how to do that either! "Your account cannot be restored. If you choose to return to MySpace, please follow the rules. " WHAT!? I PLAYED BY THEIR RULES AND THEY STILL DUMPED MY ACCOUNT, IN VIOLATION OF THE LAW! This is all the more reason News Corporation should terminate the administrator who illegally dumped my profile with almost 900 friends, for the SECOND TIME in one month, and all the more reason MySpace.com need to be prosecuted for fraud and for civil rights violations! And I have learnt in recent weeks that other conservatives have been targeted accordingly. You might not agree with my politics but you SHOULD understand the reality: We are not always going to agree, but it's far healthier to agree to differ than it is to go around being totally disagreeable. Would I go back to MySpace? Yes, if they took care of the technical glitch keeping me from opening a new account, which keeps sending me blog subscription entries from my newly-dumped account! But do I have contempt for their selective enforcement of their terms of service? ABSOLUTELY. I make every effort to play by the rules...and I still got burnt. Where is the sense in that? Maybe the Santa Monica Police Department or the Federal Bureau of Investigation or the California Attorney General's Office might have an answer. Maybe some of the local TV stations or newspapers or networks or media sites---controlled and independent alike---might pick up the ball. And this is by no means a problem with Tom Anderson per se: He takes a lot of grief for being a trailblazer. But others will improve upon that trail and pave it. Today's social networking two-lane road will become the divided highway of tomorrow, even with slip roads... =========== A FUNNY VIDEO...IF YOU CAN HANDLE THE...AHEM, YOU KNOW...EXCUSE ME... I thought I would take a moment to share this video with you. It originated on a Dutch television programme for children.



I am presently in no mood for laughing but you might go ahead and laugh at this pig's silly joke on the farm girl... Well, folks, that is about all until I can build another blog entry from the TruthTap here on CherryTap. SEE YA!
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