A Synopsis

Bristol Palin is writing her life story. Let me save you the price of the book.

Chapter 1: I was born in Alaska. I can see Russia from my house.

Chapter 2: I got pregnant by my high school boyfriend and my mom announced it on National Television at the Republican National Convention.

Chapter 3: Gave birth to a baby boy. Babies father gone.

Chapter 4: Appeared on "Dancing with the Stars".

Chapter 5: Bought a house in Arizona.

The End

Winter

Happy Winter Solstice to all and Merry Christmas to all my Christian friends.

The way some Republicans think

A friend of mine was chatting with a casual acquaintance a while back and mentioned an event they would be taking part in at church. The acquaintance said, in a surprised tone, “You go to church?” My friend said, “Of course, we go every Sunday. We are very active in our church”. The acquaintance then said, “but aren’t you Democrats?”

I want to own a Canadian

A friend sent this to me the other day and I just had to pass it along.

In her radio show, Dr Laura Schlesinger said that, as an Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance.

The following response is an open letter to Dr. Laura, written by a US man, and posted on the Internet. It's quite informative:

Dear Dr. Laura:

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination ... End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them.

1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there
'degrees' of abomination?

7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here?

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy
considerable expertise in such matters, so I'm confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Your adoring fan.
James M. Kauffman, Ed.D. Professor Emeritus,
Dept. Of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education
University of Virginia

P.S. (It would be a damn shame if we couldn't own a Canadian)

War. When do we quit?

I read today that the war in Afghanistan recently completed it's 105th month. This makes it the longest war in our history. Longer that Vietnam which lasted 103 months. When do we stop? When do we realize that we can't win? When is enough, enough? If we haven't won the hearts and minds of these people in almost 9 years I don't think we ever will. It's time to stop wasting American lives on this hopeless tragedy.

Some Things Are Worth It.

As I sit here, I have a robot cleaning my kitchen floor. I know this seems decadent , but the older you get the harder it is on the back to mop floors. I would never buy but this thing for myself but my daughter gave it to me when she discovered it doesn't work well in a house with two dogs. It is not the "end all" in floor cleaning but I'm not the "end all" in housecleaning either. It's round so it doesn't get into corners but I really don't care. Corners I can do by hand. The only draw back is that it's a bit noisy and it takes much longer than by hand. The up side is, you can set it, forget it and go play games on the computer. That's a win, win in my book.

Me, Me, Me

On the News tonight: A man standing on a Gulf Coast Beach expressed disappointment with the Presidents speech last night. He said, "I don't care about an Energy Bill, I care about paying the bills". I understanding the frustration of those directly affected by the oil spill but a Me Now, Me Only attitude won't fix the problem. As we deal with this catastrophe now we must also look at the big picture and plan for the future. We can not continue to be as dependent on fossil fuels are we are now. There are other clean energy sources and we must work on developing them NOW.