Sense and Nonsense

Let's Reinforce Gender Stereotypes!

By shopping in the Lilly's Kids Holiday Catalog. See it here at Jezebel.com   (Be sure to go through the photos of individual catalog pages!)   Lilly's Kids didn't exist when I was little.  That must be why I dress up in princess clothes and wear a lot of pink. Damn. (h/t to Kara Elverson)

Why Dogs Hate Halloween

I'm with them.

This Pathetic, Enervated Blog

So:

I have had a number of thoughtful, considerate readers of this blog (you know who you are!) who, prompted by the inactivity at this blog site for the past month, have inquired about my health, my mortality, my sanity, and my masculinity.  Only my beloved wife can vouch for the last.  As for the others: I am healthy, alive, and no more crazy than before.

You're disappointed, I know, to hear all that.

On the other hand, it will gladden the hearts of some of you to know that I have been insanely busy in the past month.  What (you ask) has kept me so busy?  Big house projects. A big celebration in Boston of my beloved wife's long-term contribution to a better environment. And  a celebration of my elderly mother's 90th birthday (accompanied by out-of-town relatives (you know who YOU are)).

What the hell (you say)?!  Can't you handle all that and STILL keep up your steady stream of vitriol about Republicans, conservatives, and other sorts of lowlifes?

The answer: No. I cannot.  I'm old. Feeble.  Infirm.  Tired.  I need Sarah Palin back in my life to raise my political libido. 

Okay.  Maybe I don't need Sarah Palin back.  (But what would be wrong with that?  We could beat her like a drum.)  Maybe THIS is what I need: I need YOU to comment here. Write in and SAY SOMETHING, for godsake.  DO something.  ANYthing.  This goddam blog is going the way of dog poop unless you STEP UP TO THE PLATE NOW and PARTICIPATE.   Say something, for chrissake.  I'm not going to whistle into the wind any longer. 

Over and out.

Your Ass Doesn't Deserve It. . . . Nor Does Yours.

And, YOU, over there!  . . . I'm dead certain that YOURS does not.

Help to stop the idiocy of cutting down virgin forests to make ultra-plush toilet paper. 

Don't buy it.

There Oughta Be a Law

No Kidding

Sick Society

Take a look at this graph:  

Via Prosebeforehos.com:  

The image represents how much cash separates the top 1% from the bottom 99% of the population in the United States. It gets worse:

    During eight years of the Bush administration, the 400 richest Americans, who now own more than the bottom 150 million Americans, increased their net worth by $700 billion. In 2005, the top 1 percent claimed 22 percent of the national income, while the top 10 percent took half of the total income, the largest share since 1928….

    The highest incomes come from executive pay at top corporations. In 2007, the ratio of CEO pay to the average paycheck was 344 to 1, lower than the record 525 to 1 ratio set in 2001, but substantial.

This gross inequality is perpetuated and exacerbated by the shameful compensation practices of the big corporations and banks.   Get a load of this item from Political Irony, which says that Morgan Stanley, despite just posting its third quarterly loss, has set aside 72% of net revenues for bonuses.   Good lord. What a sick society.

American Men Haven't a Clue

I started reading Bella English's work in the Boston Globe over 30 years ago.  She's always been a sharp and wry observer.  Today, she nails the American male -- at least, the majority of us who think we're George Clooney. See here. 

Do You Think?

See Cartoons by Cartoon by Pat Bagley - Courtesy of Politicalcartoons.com - Email this Cartoon

Why Are We So Fat?

Well, maybe you're not, but many of the rest of us are.  Writing in this week's New Yorker magazine, Elizabeth Kolbert offers a fascinating (and disturbing) look at different strains of thought and research about why so many Americans are overweight.