When? Are you sure?

This is too good to believe. Sit down before watching or you'll laugh yourself into a wall.

I'll take Two!

Looking around at the curios he noticed a very life-like,
life-size bronze statue of a rat. It had no price tag but it looked
so striking that he decided he must have it.

He took it to the owner and asked,
"How much is the bronze rat?
"Twelve dollars for the rat, and a hundred dollars if you bring it back."
"I'll take the rat and I won't be bringing it back."

As he walked down the street carrying the bronze rat, he noticed
that a few real rats had crawled out of alleys and sewers, and began
following him down the street. This was a bit disconcerting, so he
began to walk a little bit faster. Within a couple of blocks, the group
of rats behind him grew to over a hundred, and they began squealing.

He started to trot towards the Harbor. He took a nervous look
around and saw that the rats numbered in the thousands, maybe in the
millions, and they were all squealing and coming towards him faster and faster.
Terrified, he ran to the edge of the water and threw the bronze rat as
far out into Galveston Bay as he could.
Amazingly, the millions of rats all jumped into the water after
it, and were drowned.

The man walked back to the curio shop. "Aha," said the owner,
You're bringing it back !"
No," said the man. "I came back to see how much you
want for that little bronze Mexican over there?

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Reagan’s Speech at the Brandenburg Gate

It was on June 12, 1987, that President Ronald Reagan gave his famous “tear down this wall” speech in West Berlin, an event that marked the beginning of the end of the Soviet Union.

Here are some excerpts from that speech:

“Behind me stands a wall that encircles the free sectors of this city, part of a vast system of barriers that divides the entire continent of Europe. From the Baltic, south, those barriers cut across Germany in a gash of barbed wire, concrete, dog runs, and guard towers. Farther south, there may be no visible, no obvious wall. But there remain armed guards and checkpoints all the same -- still a restriction on the right to travel, still an instrument to impose upon ordinary men and women the will of a totalitarian state.

“Yet it is here in Berlin where the wall emerges most clearly; here, cutting across your city, where the news photo and the television screen have imprinted this brutal division of a continent upon the mind of the world. Standing before the Brandenburg Gate, every man is a German, separated from his fellow men. Every man is a Berliner, forced to look upon a scar…

“…In the 1950's, Khrushchev predicted: ‘We will bury you.’ But in the West today, we see a free world that has achieved a level of prosperity and well-being unprecedented in all human history.

“In the Communist world, we see failure, technological backwardness, declining standards of health, even want of the most basic kind-too little food. Even today, the Soviet Union still cannot feed itself. After these four decades, then, there stands before the entire world one great and inescapable conclusion: Freedom leads to prosperity. Freedom replaces the ancient hatreds among the nations with comity and peace. Freedom is the victor.

“And now the Soviets themselves may, in a limited way, be coming to understand the importance of freedom…

“…There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace. General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

(SOURCE: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library)

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Quote of the Day

Here's an excellent quote by Thomas Sowell in the National Review. Don't you wish congress could apply his common sense to the immigration problem? Read his article by clicking the title.

People who are pushing for a "guest worker" program show not the slightest interest in what has been happening under guest-worker programs in Europe. Facts are apparently irrelevant. So is logic. Guests are people you invite to your home. Gate crashers are people who come without being invited. Home invaders are people who break in, despite doors that have been shut to keep them out.

Enjoy!
Don

Democratic is a process
democrat is what they are...

Where's the Fence?

Amnesty Bill Fails Senate

Have the Republicans grown a spine? Did they get the picture? The Amnesty Bill was a massive failure! Hip hip hooray!

Mexicans who have gone through the system and obeyed the immigration laws don't want illegal Mexicans to be awarded citizenship.

Let's hope the fence gets built and illegals are treated as the criminals they are.

Here's a great link for building the fence!

Enjoy,
Don

Democratic is a process
democrat is what they are...

Don't Say It!!!

Are there words or phrases you can't stand to hear? Every generation has it's group of fad or over used words and phrases. Some are very interesting others are STUPID! The interesting words will come another time.

Here's a list of words and phrases I could go years without hearing and never miss them.

Actually - Why use it at all? If it's not already "actually" what is it?

Usually - This word is used too much. It means there is an exception but nowadays it’s used as an absolute. How many times have you wanted to know the policy of something and the answer is "USUALLY we don't do that". I always ask what the exceptions are. You should, too.

Kind of or Kinda - 'Kind of' is a phrase that shows similarities but nobody uses it that way. I kinda think you shouldn't do that. Class, we're kinda going to take a test. And the best for last... I'm kinda pregnant.

These ones - Does this need explaining?

So, but, anyway - How many times have you heard that used? Most of the time the Amway speaker is at a loss of words and regurgitates 'so, but, anyway'. Even a fool is considered wise when he's silent.

Like - For over 50 years it's been used to start sentences. Like, ya know?

I think so - Are people so mindless that they don’t know what they’re doing? Are you wearing glasses? I THINK SO. Did the ball hurt you when it smashed your face? I THINK SO. How about “I THINK we have a doctors appointment. Where are you going? (While seated in an airplane at 33,000 ft) I THINK I'M TAKING A PLANE TRIP. Are you a teacher? I THINK SO. The last one is frightening.

Fundamentalist - It’s mindlessly used to put someone down or to make someone feel superior over another. These same people don’t realize that all forms of rational thought begin with “Fundamentals”. Fundamentals are the foundation of everything we do. Being a Fundamentalist means you have a foundation on which to build.

Have a nice day - It’s fine if someone means it but I can’t tell you the last time that happened. It’s just something people without thinking. It means nothing.

Me and - This is a pet peeve deluxe. Me and Joe are... AKKKKKKKKKKKK! STOP IT!. Never start a sentence with 'me'.

Sorry - It's no longer a feeling of regret. It’s down right rude to knock someone down because you’re not paying attention and then say “sorry, teehee”. It shows contempt when somebody takes some of your Freedom Fries without asking and says, “sorry”. Besides, if you do something on purpose why would you say you're sorry?

Hi Guys - Not necessarily when addressing some friends, but when it comes from the hostess or waitress at a nice restaurant it’s so crude. I don‘t want giggly and bubbly. I want service and I want to be left alone. It should be banned from all eating establishments.

Profanity, anywhere or anytime is never appropriate.

It’s not a big deal - Somebody cuts in line, It’s not a big deal I do it all the time. Someone destroys something of value to you, It’s not a big deal I’m insured.

The Man upstairs - God is not some good ol’ boy. He deserves honor to His name.

It can’t be done - Yes it can. Unless you're kenny g trying to make a soprano sax sound good. Maybe there's an occasional exception, that is, as long as I approve of it.

Hypocrite Hillary

In 2002 Mrs. Clinton voted for going to war with Iraq. Until recently she said she would never deny funding the troops and would never be in favor of imposing a pull out date.

Well, well, well...

In the past 10 days she's done just that. She was one of the 14 senators to vote against funding the troops and she wants a pull out date.

Democratic is a process
democrat is what they are...

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Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage!

Here's a great article written by Chris Demorro, staff writer for the Recorder Online at Central Connecticut State University.

The Toyota Prius has become the flagship car for those in our society so environmentally conscious that they are willing to spend a premium to show the world how much they care. Unfortunately for them, their ultimate ‘green car’ is the source of some of the worst pollution in North America; it takes more combined energy per Prius to produce than a Hummer.

Before we delve into the seedy underworld of hybrids, you must first understand how a hybrid works. For this, we will use the most popular hybrid on the market, the Toyota Prius.

The Prius is powered by not one, but two engines: a standard 76 horsepower, 1.5-liter gas engine found in most cars today and a battery- powered engine that deals out 67 horsepower and a whooping 295ft/lbs of torque, below 2000 revolutions per minute. Essentially, the Toyota Synergy Drive system, as it is so called, propels the car from a dead stop to up to 30mph. This is where the largest percent of gas is consumed. As any physics major can tell you, it takes more energy to get an object moving than to keep it moving. The battery is recharged through the braking system, as well as when the gasoline engine takes over anywhere north of 30mph. It seems like a great energy efficient and environmentally sound car, right?

You would be right if you went by the old government EPA estimates, which netted the Prius an incredible 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 miles per gallon on the highway. Unfortunately for Toyota, the government realized how unrealistic their EPA tests were, which consisted of highway speeds limited to 55mph and acceleration of only 3.3 mph per second. The new tests which affect all 2008 models give a much more realistic rating with highway speeds of 80mph and acceleration of 8mph per second. This has dropped the Prius’s EPA down by 25 percent to an average of 45mpg. This now puts the Toyota within spitting distance of cars like the Chevy Aveo, which costs less then half what the Prius costs.

However, if that was the only issue with the Prius, I wouldn’t be writing this article. It gets much worse.

Building a Toyota Prius causes more environmental damage than a Hummer that is on the road for three times longer than a Prius. As already noted, the Prius is partly driven by a battery which contains nickel. The nickel is mined and smelted at a plant in Sudbury, Ontario. This plant has caused so much environmental damage to the surrounding environment that NASA has used the ‘dead zone’ around the plant to test moon rovers. The area around the plant is devoid of any life for miles.

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis.

Through a study by CNW Marketing called “Dust to Dust,” the total combined energy is taken from all the electrical, fuel, transportation, materials (metal, plastic, etc) and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime of a vehicle. The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.

The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles. That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use less combined energy doing it.

So, if you are really an environmentalist - ditch the Prius. Instead, buy one of the most economical cars available - a Toyota Scion xB. The Scion only costs a paltry $0.48 per mile to put on the road. If you are still obsessed over gas mileage - buy a Chevy Aveo and fix that lead foot.

One last fun fact for you: it takes five years to offset the premium price of a Prius. Meaning, you have to wait 60 months to save any money over a non-hybrid car because of lower gas expenses.

Mission Accomplished II

As one visitor mentioned in the comment section of the last post, the reason the his speech is called Mission Accomplished is because of the sign that's hanging behind the President.

Incidentally, the sign wasn't located in the immediate background. It was placed high on the top of the control tower (aka the island) for all to see as they approached port.

Why was it there?

The sign was signifying the end of the USS Abraham Lincoln's 10 month deployment. One of the longest, if not the longest, on record for a United States Navy ship. It was hanged at the request of the crew members because they had accomplished their mission. That was a proud moment for the crew of the USS Lincoln, which the media snubbed in favor of criticizing the President.

What the mainstream media didn't tell you is that the sign had nothing to do with the operations in Iraq. The President's speech stressed that point when he said in the speech:

"We have difficult work to do in Iraq."

"The transition from dictatorship to democracy will take time."

"The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on September the 11, 2001."

Does anybody really get a sense that a mission had been accomplished.

Mission Accomplished?

Today is the anniversary of the Mission Accomplished speech the President gave on the USS Abraham Lincoln. For laughs, I looked up the speech and read it. Then, like a slap in the face, something was missing. I read it again and again. Much to my surprise the thing that was missing was the phrase "Mission Accomplished". It's no where to be seen.

So why is it called the "Mission Accomplished" speech? The only thing I can think of is because them mainstream media elite want you to believe he said it. Why would somebody want to lie to us like that?

Maybe they're filled with so much hatred that they'll do anything to discredit somebody they don't like. It's obvious to me they hate the truth.

Another Tragedy

After the initial shock of the shootings at Virginia Tech the pundits started throwing out their usual slop of 'what ifs' and 'if onlys' around. One of the first cry out of the shoot was the need for strict gun control. Naturally, that's what this country doesn't need. For some reason it doesn't sink into the heads of these extremists that law abiding citizens don't commit these crimes. The crimes of shooting people are executed by people who have no regard for the law. Another thing that doesn't reach the gray matter in their skulls is the fact that criminals will always have access to guns. Any type of guns. They purchase them from criminals who sell other criminals guns.

Virginia has a conceal and carry law. By the way a concealed weapon is not a handgun. A concealed weapon is a weapon you can't see. A handgun in a holster that's hanging from your hip is not a concealed weapon. A shotgun or bazooka under a trench coat is a concealed weapon. At any rate, you can carry a weapon anywhere except on the campus of a school. It's not a state law, it's a decision made by the board of regents of that university. If Virginia Tech allowed law abiding citizens to carry concealed weapons maybe the criminal wouldn't have been able to kill 32 students.

He's not here for He is risen...

Matthew 28:6
He is not here; for He is risen

Illegal Aliens Go Home!

Did anybody see Bill O'Reilly's show on Friday night. Geraldo Rivera was on it. The topic was about the illegal alien that killed two girls in Virginia while driving drunk. Although it turned into a shouting match, and at one point it looked like a fight would break out, O'Reilly made excellent points while Geraldo kept arguing if the drunk driver had not been illegal this wouldn't be news.

I believe our judges need to enforce the laws for driving drunk. Too often the criminal isn't given a sentence for his crime. Instead the criminal is given another opportunity to drive drunk. That's not acceptable.

Drunk drivers who kill should be given the full sentence.

As far as illegal aliens are concerned, they have no business being in this country. Secondly, they have absolutely no business committing crimes in this country. When an illegal is arrested they should serve their time and then be deported.

Come to think of it, when an illegal alien is arrested they should be deported.

Don

Democratic is a process.
Democrat is what they are.

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Another Source for Global Warming?

If believing Hollywood celebrities doesn't provide enough proof of global warming consider this...

There has been a dramatic increase in penguin movies.

Mallard Fillmore 4/5/2007

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Is She for Real?

This afternoon I was watching the news and was caught by the Pelosi debacle in Syria. Has anybody else noticed how she's been behaving around the enemies of the free world? She acts worse than a giddy school girl on her first date. What's with all the hopping around on her toes and giggling?

It's disgusting.

Pelosi, who is heading the "Look at Me" tour of the Middle East, met with Assad on Wednesday. Not only did this anger the Bush Administration but she indicated to Assad and the world that she had delivered a message saying that Israel was ready to engage in peace talks.

"We were very pleased with the reassurances we received from the president [Assad] that he was ready to resume the peace process. He was ready to engage in negotiations for peace with Israel," Pelosi said.

WHAT?

What the Giggler of the House failed to mention were the only (reasonable) terms Israel will acknowledge for negotiations. I added the 'reasonable' part.

Vice President Chaney said, "She made a nonsensical statement."

He's right. Come to think of it, nonsensical statements are about all she's ever uttered. She's incapable of thinking a partial thought all at once. Has Pelosi ever known what she's talking about?

Prime Minister Olmert emphasized that although Israel is interested in peace with Syria, "that country continues to be part of the axis of evil and a force that encourages terror in the entire Middle East".

"In order to conduct serious and genuine peace negotiations, Syria must cease its support of terror, cease its sponsoring of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad organizations, refrain from providing weapons to Hizballah and bringing about the destabilizing of Lebanon, cease its support of terror in Iraq, and relinquish the strategic ties it is building with the extremist regime in Iran," it said.

Whether or not Syria implements these measures will determine if Syria is sincere about making genuine peace with Israel, Olmert said.

Humor Site

If your interested in a laugh try the site Pickles, Grapes and Elephants

You're welcome to contribute, too. Use the comments.

Don

Mercury Fears Should Be Put to Rest!

This should put any fears about fish and mercury poisoning to rest. Click Here or the title to get to Consumer Freedom site.

Here's another good report about 'mercury scares'

There hasn't been any real danger since those chemical spills in Japanese waterways back in the 50's and 60's.

The Cato Institute

Hey, the courts got it right! Go the the Cato Institute, click the name, and see how some hand gun laws were found unconstitutional in Washington, D.C.

Trivia: Did you know...

In the 2^nd amendment the word “militia” does not mean the military. During the time of the writing of the constitution the word militia meant 'an armed public' or 'citizen soldiers. The public in England couldn't own firearms to protect themselves. The object of having an armed public is to prevent a “Tiananmen Square” event from happening on our soil.

Support your rights to bear arms.

Did You Know?

A about 3 weeks ago I got this email called "Did you know...". Just like most of the emails of this type it was loaded with wrong information. I decided to correct them. Most of them were sayings that people have taken for granted as being true. If you tell a lie over and over people are going to believe it's true. P.T. Barnum said, "a sucker is born every minute."

• Money isn't made out of paper, it's made out of cotton. PARTIALLY TRUE 25% Linen 75% cotton. US MINT

• The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp (marijuana) paper. NOT TRUE It was written on parchment. Drafts may have been written on hemp paper, which isn't marijuana paper any more that hemp rope is marijuana rope.

• A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top. Would somebody please do this? I've never seen it done

• Susan Lucci is the daughter of Phyllis Diller. NOT TRUE About.com

• 315 entries in Webster's 1996 Dictionary were misspelled. This isn't the Merriam-Webster dictionary. They didn't publish a 1996 edition. The term Webster's is a generic form of dictionary. Anybody can call their dictionary Websters. I wrote M-W and got the answer.

• The 'spot' on 7UP comes from its inventor, who had red eyes. He was albino. NOT TRUE He wasn't albino. Snopes and look at his photo in the 7Up site.

• On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents, daily. The only place I could find this was on websites that had this same email. In truth it's a very rare.

• Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine are brother and sister. TRUE IMDB

• Chocolate affects a dog's heart and nervous system; a few ounces will kill a small sized dog. Chocolate toxicity depends on the amount of theobromine in the chocolate. A toxic dose is about 45-50 mg/lb. As most white chocolate contains little theobromine, it is usually not enough to cause symptoms. Milk chocolate contains smaller levels of theobromine, so it would take more to cause symptoms. Some dogs have a higher tolerance than others, but that is the general guideline. Unless your dog was given many chocolate bars at a time or you were feeding him 1-lb bars of chocolate (or baker's or semi-sweet chocolate, which contain more theobromine and are fatal is smaller amounts) it would probably not cause great harm-- mild symptoms include diarrhea, hyperactivity, and vomiting-- but some dogs may be more sensitive so I would not try it personally! It also varies according to the dog's age and health. Found on a veterinary site.

• Orcas (killer whales) kill sharks by torpedoing up into the shark's stomach from underneath, causing the shark to explode. NOT TRUE sharks don't explode.

• Donald Duck comics were banned from Finland because he doesn't wear pants. NOT TRUE Snopes.

• Upper and lower case letters are named 'upper' and 'lower' because in the time when all original print had to be set in individual letters, the upper case' letters were stored in the case on top of the case that stored the smaller, 'lower case' letters. ALMOST The letters were in the same case but in different rows. Upper-case were in the row above the Lower-case. Wikipedia, which isn't a totally reliable source.

• Leonardo DA Vinci could write with one hand and draw with the other at the same time, hence, multi-tasking was invented.) DOUBTFUL Nothing has been found to say he could do this. He was left handed and wrote much of his journals in mirror form. President Garfield could write in two languages at the same time.

• Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood. NOT TRUE They were plaster. IMDB.

• The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan; there was never a recorded Wendy before! NOT TRUE. According to genealogists there are several people named Wendy in the US census before Peter Pan. There were 2 Chinese emperors named Wendi

• There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with: orange, purple, and silver! English dictionary. The Scottish have hirple (to walk lamely) and chirple (a young ewe)

• Leonardo Da Vinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years paint Mona Lisa's lips. NOT TRUE Egyptians had scissors in 1500 BC (before Christ) Mona Lisa was painted from 1503 to 1506. Do the math.

• A tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion will make it instantly go mad and sting itself to death. NOT TRUE A scorpions venom has no effect on themselves.

• The mask used by Michael Myers in the original "Halloween" was a Captain Kirk's mask painted white. Very possible.

• If you have three quarters, four dimes, and four pennies, you have 1.19 You also have the largest amount of money in coins without being able to make change for a dollar (good to know.) Do the math

• By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you can't sink in quicksand (and you thought this list was completely useless.) It's very difficult to sink in quicksand. I've been in quicksand.

• The phrase "rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law, which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb. NOT TRUE rule of thumb is used in measuring by carpenters. There are other uses but nothing about beating a wife.

• The first product Motorola started to develop was a record player or automobiles. At that time, the most known player on the market was the Victrola, so they called themselves Motorola. NOT TRUE Motorola made car radios and add 'ola' to it because it was a popular suffix.

• Celery has negative calories! It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with. It's the same with apples! NOT TRUE Apples are loaded with sugars

• Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying! NOT TRUE When your tears touches onion mist it becomes VERY VERY MILD sulphuric acid. Chewing gum isn't going to help. I was told this by a chemist.

• The glue on Israeli postage stamps is certified kosher.. DOUBTFUL I've check kosher sites and there is nothing about postage stamps. Not everybody licks stamps. They'll use a wet sponge or let the post office do it.

• Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries. WHY? Can't find any proof of this.

• Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a space suit damages it. NOT TRUE. Passing gas does not compromise the suit. NASA
  

OY!