Month: February 2014

Getting a little tired of those snowy woods.  How about some snowy crocuses?

This time last year I had daffodils blooming.   This year I have the leaves but no blooms so far.

Will it ever warm up?  In 2014, spring begins with the vernal equinox on March 20 at 12:57 P.M. EDT.  Note that day light saving time will have started (March 9).  Spring is still a little more than a month away.  Even then, we could still get a blizzard.

However, the end of the week supposedly will get up to 60 degrees.  Call in sick early.  Avoid the rush.  Make a dentist appointment and cancel it.  Do whatever you have to do to seize the day.

The blogs have been on fire lately with accusations about this person and that.  Most of it, if not all of it, is Republican.  They seem to be devouring each other.  Everyone seems to be accusing the other of being in someone’s pocket.

Let’s just air our dirty linen  in public at this time.  First off, Elena and I neither one belong to a political party.  We usually lean Democratic but we aren’t party members.  I used to be about 15 years ago.  I sat on the Democratic Committee for the Gainesville Magisterial District for a couple years.  I have even voted Republican in local elections a time or two.

We do not take any money for anything related to moonhowlings.net.  NO tip jar, no nothing.  We have never been paid a dime for this blog nor do we want anyone’s money.  We pay for our webhosting  and our domain name.  That’s it.  The money comes out of our pockets. (but you all knew that anyway, didn’t you?)

I guess we will be left out of the mudslinging.  I can’t even follow it since I am not involved with the internal workings of the Republian Party in Virginia.  However, some of what has been written has been very familiar.  In fact, so familiar it seemed like a flashback.  It makes for fun reading, even if I don’t understand all the party-talk.

Actually, there is no evidence that TJ actually uttered these words.  They first appeared in 2004.  According to the Monticello.org website:

We currently have no evidence to confirm that Thomas Jefferson ever said or wrote, “Democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where 51% of the people may take away the rights of the other 49%” or any of its listed variations.  We do not know the source of this statement’s attribution to Thomas Jefferson.

So much for that.  The internet has all sorts of expressions attributed to Thomas Jefferson that people want to fit in with this great leader.  This is just one of them.

Let’s examine the words though.  Is that really what its all about?  51% of the population dominating the other 49%?  It does seem that the lines are that closely drawn.  Recent elections also confirm that we are pretty much split down the middle.  Are we all in one camp or the other or is there an overlap?

Our political leaders would have us believe that we were all Republican or all Democratic.  I am not so sure we are that polarized.  Furthermore, who is to decide what is Republican and what is really Democratic?  The word RINO clearly demonstrates that there is some sort of litmus test to be a Republican.  How about an explanation please.

Washingtonpost.com:

The House passed a yearlong suspension of the Treasury’s debt limit Tuesday in a vote that left Republicans once again ceding control to Democrats, following a collapse in support for an earlier proposal advanced by GOP leaders.

In a narrow vote, 221-201, 28 Republicans voted with 193 Democrats to approve a “clean” extension of the federal government’s borrowing authority — one without strings attached — sending the legislation to the Senate for a posssible final vote later this week. Two Democrats and 199 Republicans voted no.

The vote came two weeks before  the Feb. 27 debt-limit deadline set by Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, and once again underscored the House leadership’s inability to corral Republicans behind a debt-ceiling plan. “The natural reluctance is obvious,” said Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.), the chief deputy whip.

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Is it cold enough for you yet?  Is this the same polar vortex or a new one?

Will the pipes freeze?  Will trees fall?  Will the roof leak?  Will our vehicles go in the snow or stop on the ice?

Winter is a dangerous time of year.  Kids get hurt sledding.  People get stricken while shoveling snow.  Accidents happen all over the place.

It is expensive for homeowners to maintain their property.  Good luck, winter survivors.
Thursday Feb. 13, 2014-PWC Schools closed, code RED.  Friday also for PWC.

Manassas City is also closed.

“No promo homo” states are those that prohibit educators from discussing homosexuality in a positive way or, in some cases, at all. States that prohibit enumeration are those that don’t allow local school districts from enacting policies aimed specifically at preventing bullying over sexual orientation or gender identity. (Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network)

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Let’s take a walk on the wild side.  Let’s go where angels fear to tread.  Let’s talk about the most recent poll regarding Catholic attitudes bout the social issues.  I think most of us are quick to ASSume that all Catholics feel one way or the other.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

A disclaimer before we go on.  I am a daughter of a lapsed Catholic and a wife of a lapsed Catholic.  My husband was practicing until he was in his mid-30’s.

Washingtonpost.com:

Most Catholics worldwide disagree with church teachings on divorce, abortion and contraception and are split on whether women and married men should become priests, according to a large new poll released Sunday and commissioned by the U.S. Spanish-language network Univision. On the topic of gay marriage, two-thirds of Catholics polled agree with church leaders.

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What’s all the flap over? Victoria Nuland tells it like it is. Here is the commentary:

The actual conversation is under the fold.  The Russians are sneaks, the Germans are pissed.  The Germans seem to stay that way at us there days.  I sort of like Victoria Nuland.  She is growing on me.

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Politico.com:

James Carville, the “ragin’ cajun” Democratic strategist, has signed on with Fox News, the network announced Thursday.

“James’ successful and storied career in politics over several decades is an enormous asset to Fox News,” Bill Shine, Fox News’s executive vice president of programming, said in a statement. “We are privileged to have him lend his breadth of experience, wit and dynamic perspective on the network.”

Why?  Does he need money?  Attention?  I considered it disloyal until a friend suggested that perhaps Carville was the only one strong enough to stand up to the barrage of crap that will be dished out my Fox News.  That is something to consider, for sure.

How long do you think he will last?  Carville does not suffer fools.