And Now For Something Really Scary...

...click on the link and watch the news video (sorry you have to watch a short ad first) about a new missile system. The world is a scary place and getting worse day by day. Oh yeah, before I forget, I'll take two.

All the best,
GB

We Are The People Our Parents Warned Us About - Part II (now I am the parent)

When I was in my teens and young twenties, one of our favorite sayings, among my friends, was We Are The people Our Parents Warned Us About. Little did I ever expect there would be a Part II to that saying but now that I am a parent and now that I have seen what is in the pictures, I can attest - Part II is upon me except this time: I am the parent and my son just may be one of the guys I warned my son about! Of course, I say that tongue in cheek, my son is a good man. Yet, when I saw him tonight, his first night as a motorcycle owner, I almost needed to have a good stiff drink. Thing was I had just finished a good wee dram of Knappogue castle Irish Whiskey and another was not needed. What was it they used to say about having a drink: Take Courage. Well I have entered a brave new world of sorts tonight (even if he dragged me into it), one in which it seems I just have another thing to be happy to see my son doing worry about. Man this is pretty neat scary.

Now maybe it scares me because I never rode myself except as a passenger. Quite a few knuckleheads I knew of my friends from my younger years rode but I never had the balls since I was pretty accident prone and did not want to tempt fate. Some had Harleys, some had Triumphs, some had Yamahas (one of the few rice burners, as they called them, that they would even consider if I remember right) and maybe one had an Indian and one a Honda. I seem to recall all had accidents, most very minor. My brother rode too, a Harley. He too had an accident but and is still in pain from it today. Oh well, accidents happen but I am pretty sure Brendan will be a good and safe rider as he is a driver and a shooter. I will keep my fingers crossed.

Fact is, he went to take motorcycle lessons about 2 months ago. He had a long wait between then and now to get the bike since he was waiting for the seller to pay off his loan, then for the title to clear, then to get insurance, register it and so on. It was also being checked and worked on at a dealership, basic maintenance is all, and paid for by the seller as I understand. He picked it up this afternoon. I hope he has not forgotten any of his lessons; he is out riding tonight. Shit, did my mother (only real parent I had) worry about me like this - probably worse since I was not as good a kid as is my son! He is a good kid, so why should I worry? I mean if I can trust him with a brand new car on the road, and both an AK-47 and an AR-15 in the house and at the range, and trust him as my hunting partner, I should be able to trust him with a motorcycle - shouldn't I! Oh well, as I said, it is a brave new world into which he has dragged me and I am not going to worry too much, I am just going to take courage. He will be okay. Of course, if I ever seem him try to pop a wheelie I may just have to pop him one on the front of his dome; then again, I think he knows better.

By the way, the bike is a 2002 Yamaha V-Star 650cc with 4,000 miles on it. That is about all I know about it besides that it looks pretty darned scary cool with Joe Cool himself mounted on it - don't ya think!

All the best,
Glenn B

ps: See anything spooky in the picture? Take a look at the window in the top shot (click on the pic to enlarge it first). Those two bright dots are eyeballs, all 4 of our dogs were flipping out when he showed up on the bike and one was right at the window when I took the shot.

Happy Meals Versus San Francisco The City Should Come Out The Loser But It Is Up To You

I would not spend even one penny of your money, let alone my own money, to travel to San Francisco or do business with anyone therein. They are beyond the realm of normality in that city as I see it. They are, in my opinion, so anti Constitutional, so pro disgusting behavior, so pro illegal aliens and now with the Happy Meal ban have proven themselves to be nothing more than a group of kooks run amok with nanny-state control issues as to be totally repugnant to me. The people of San Francisco, on the whole, it seems to me, are the penultimate leftists of the world and those of the entire state of California a close second.

If McDonald's Restaurants bow down to the powers that be in what seems to me to be this modern day equivalent of Sodom, well the chances are I will never spend another penny with McDonald's either. What I think McDonald's should do is fight an all out legal battle and start a campaign to have their customers speak out about this. If that fails then close all restaurants within San Fransisco. Why, because if they bow down or even if they do nothing now then more such legislation is sure to come from other kooks throughout the nation. My bet would be NY city will be next. Chances are that within 5 or 10 years you will only be able to get vegetable burgers at fast food restaurants if this keeps going. Sure, you can say it is an isolated incident, just taking place in one city and a city of loons at that; let me remind you that NYC already forced restaurants like McDonald's to post calorie counts or shut down. Also, bear in mind that our latest Supreme Court Justice Kagan believes it Constitutional to allow the government to control what you eat. Maybe not as isolated an incident as you may have thought. The seeds have been sown nationwide from coast to coast. his is all purely nanny gone berserk type of over control and more is on its way unless it is stamped out now.

Proponents say this will stop childhood obesity and help reduce cases of childhood and adult diabetes, one on Fox News this morning even implied that these meals cause cancer! Want to make a difference in childhood obesity and diabetes, then allow parents the liberty to exercise parental rights and force their kids to work-out in gyms and to allow parents to give their kids a whack on the ass if they catch them snacking between meals. This is a parent's job not the job of a city government. Government is no substitute for good parenting, good parenting requires a sense of responsibility not a sense that someone else will do it for you. Someone else doing it for you is a nanny state mentality or a welfare state mentality. Then again - isn't that the mentality that is rampant in California?

What can you do? Buy more Happy Meals. Contact McDonald's via letters at: McDonald's Corporation, 2111 McDonald's Dr., Oak Brook, IL 60523; or email at: http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/contact_us/social_responsibility/social_responsibility.html. Let them know that you support them and not San Francisco's new law. Also let them know that if they bow to the new law in San Francisco without a legal battle that you will no longer support them or buy from them. Contact the mayor of San Fransicko Francisco and tell him you will not visit the city nor spend in it. Contact the governor of California and tell him likewise. Also make sure to contact the Congress people for your own state and let them know you will not stand for overbearing government like this in your area. Stop it now or live with it later.

All the best,
Glenn B