Happy New Year?



A new year is coming. An important new year for America. A Presidential Election year.

Welcome to 2016.

2016 is a do-or-die year for America. In 2016, if a liberal Democrat is again elected President, the country will continue on its liberal path and, as a direct result, is highly likely to collapse - politically, socially and economically - from internal strife, infrastructure terrorism, excessive political correctness, more government over-regulation, out-of-control government overspending, and a stupefying $20 trillion of unmanageable government debt.

Be careful what, and who, you vote for. Your life, your freedom, and your country depends on it.






Broadband NOT faster


U.S. Broadband Speeds Tripled in 3.5 Years

Really? That's what you're telling me?

Really?

from pcmag.com

"In an effort to keep up with an increasingly data-dependent society, U.S. broadband speeds have tripled over the past 3.5 years.

The Federal Communications Commission's fifth Measuring Broadband America report, released Wednesday, said average download speeds increased to nearly 31 megabits per second (Mbps) in September 2014 — up from 10 Mbps in March 2011."



I don't know where the FCC measured broadband speed but it wasn't in my neighborhood, in the second largest city in America. I live in Los Angeles, close to several major movie studios, and my DSL broadband speed has NEVER been faster than a measly 5 Mbps! In fact, I just tested it and my download speed is 5.16 Mbps. And, no, there is no faster broadband service available in my area from my provider, AT&T. So, according to MY internet speed, the FCC's report is completely untrue. Really? Yes.

Now let's take a look at the US cities that have the fastest Internet connection speed:

Washington DC at 40.8 Mbps
Alexandria, VA at 38.7 Mbps

And mine is 5 Mbps? Hmm. The fastest internet speeds are in Washington, D.C. and a major suburb of Washington, D.C. Hmm. And both cities happen to be home to the U.S. federal government and its bureaucrats and politicians. Coincidence? Hmm. Hey, FCC, we live in America too, where's OUR high speed internet???






mobile warming



Mobile Warming


from cnet.com

"For the first time, smartphone shipments have reached 1 billion. That probably means a lot of calling, texting, and app use. It also means a lot of phones being plugged into the grid and charging.

A new study by analyst Juniper Research found that smartphone charging could soon be a massive generator of carbon dioxide, which is one of the greenhouse gases thought to cause global warming. According to the study, greenhouse gas emissions from mobile devices will more than double within five years.

Currently, the world is generating 6.4 megatons of greenhouse gases from smartphone charging. By 2019, Juniper Research predicts, that amount will be more than 13 megatons."


There it is. Cell phones are a cause of greenhouse gases. EVERYONE has a smartphone. Practically everyone has an iPhone. That means that EVERYONE is harming the environment. Including Apple. Charging your iPhone means that YOU are harming the environment. That also means that all the liberals and extreme environmentalists, whenever they charge their iPhone (or other brand), are creating greenhouse gases, and harming the very planet they want to save!

It's not just good old Global Warming, now it's also Mobile Warming.

So if you REALLY care about the environment and reducing greenhouse gases, you'll throw away your cell phone. Oh, wait a minute, cell phones are electronic toxic waste, throwing it away will create more toxic waste. You can't throw away your iPhone, you'll have to turn it in at your local official government toxic waste recycling plant, which may be 20 miles away, which is 40 miles round trip. That means you likely have to drive to get there, and drive back, thereby generating even MORE greenhouse gases and pollution from your vehicle. Hey, your cell phone is causing Mobile Warming, you gotta do what you gotta do. Gee, saving the planet in the electronic age is inconvenient isn't it?






truck driver makes $20 million a year



from aol.com

A teacher once told Gary Cohn's parents that if they were lucky he might grow up to be a truck driver.

"I was a horrible student," Cohn, the president of Goldman Sachs (the leading Wall St investment bank), told a room full of teachers.

As a kid growing up in Cleveland, Cohn was diagnosed with dyslexia--a reading disorder.

He struggled in school. By the time he was in 6th grade, he had been bounced around to four different schools.

Sometimes he would overhear things that his teachers told his parents, particularly about his trajectory in life.

"Probably the most poignant thing I heard out of a teacher that I wasn't supposed to hear was when she told my parents if they were really lucky and spent a lot of time with me I might grow up to be a truck driver."

Cohn, 54, joked that he drove a truck when he was 16. "I was a pretty damn good truck driver. I did grow up to be a little more than a truck driver."



At Goldman Sachs, the leading Wall Street investment banking institution, as its president Cohn earned $20 million in 2014. In addition, he is reputed to have owned more than $175 million in Goldman stock.

Another good example of teachers accurately predicting the future of their students. Not.

UPDATE:January 2017: Gary Cohn, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the National Economic Council, will receive severance in excess of $100 million as he exits Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street firm where he was second in command. And and will also be permitted to cash in on $23 million of stock options. Cohn has to divest himself of Goldman holdings in order to comply with ethics requirements. Not bad for a truck driver.






doctor appointment



mission impossible

I called my doctor to make an appointment. No one answered the phone and the automated voice told me that someone would be with me shortly. I was stuck on hold for 10 minutes. I hung up and, twenty minutes later, called back again. This time I was stuck on hold for 7 minutes. Nobody answered the phone at the doctor's office. I could not make an appointment. I realized that I had to DRIVE to the doctor's office to make an appointment to see the doctor! Really? Yes. Is that crazy? Yes. Was I annoyed? Yes. I drove to the doctor's office and made an appointment. Yes, I told them that when I called I was put on hold, twice, and had to drive over here just to make an appointment. They didn't care. The office was undergoing a comprehensive computer system upgrade, presumably to be more efficient. lol.

So, in the wonderful world of instant electronic devices, I was forced to go "old school" and had to drive over to my doctor's office - to make an appointment to see him. The entire trip took me an hour. Did they let me see the doctor while I was there in front of them? No, of course not. I have to wait 2 days to see him and then will have to drive back again. I have been a patient of this doctor for over 15 years. Why should it be this hard to make a doctor's appointment?






it's winter in L.A.


Today is Monday. It's the middle of December. It's winter in Los Angeles. Again. What do I mean "again"? It was cold in early November then it warmed up and now, it's no longer warm, it's cold. It's not supposed to be cold in L.A. It's supposed to be 80 degrees! That's why I moved here from the East Coast decades ago. That's why live here!

I went out today at 11 AM and it was 49 degrees. Too f-ing cold for L.A.! Brrr. When I went for a walk at 1:30 PM I wore 2 jackets, one on top of the other.

It is cold. I am cold. It's now winter in L.A.

To get in sync with the current weather, with winter, tonight, when I go out, for the first time since last winter I plan on wearing my fur-lined boots!
Tonight I'll be wearing fur-lined boots and 2 jackets. Layering, baby!

Luckily, it will once again be 73 degrees on Friday. Yay!






cell phones and toilet seats


Your electronic devices are full of germs. More germs than your toilet seat.


from Forbes.com

Smartphones. Your smartphone is home to your photos, music, contacts, productivity apps and odds are at least one game featuring a bird, zombie, fruit or farm. Oh, and there’s something else on your smartphone, too — loads of fecal coliforms. In 2012, University of Arizona microbiologist Chuck Gerba found cellphones carried 10 times more bacteria than most toilet seats.

Keyboards. Your keyboard could be home to anywhere from three times more bacteria than your toilet seat or that of a public toilet seat. Some studies found 3,000 bacteria per square inch on computer keyboards and 1,600 on the average computer mouse.

TV Remote controls. While likely cleaner than a public toilet seat, remotes still boast a bit more bacteria than some home-thrones.



OMG! That's gross! And dirty. And germy. Ewww! So what do you do about it? Wash your hands BEFORE using your device? Yeah, that's not possible with the constant use of our cellphones. Wipe your device with device-friendly antiseptic wipes? That isn't going to work with cell phones either - we'd have to use a lot of wipes every day. OK, so what should you do? I don't know. Maybe we should start wearing surgical gloves while texting, typing and watching TV. Or maybe stop using electronic devices altogether. Yeah, that'll work.






fat school kids



Before and after. Which is healthier?


from Livestrong.com

"Ninety percent of all public high schools in the United States teach ninth- and 10th-graders basic nutrition, while 80 percent offer nutrition education to 11th- and 12th-graders, too, according to the Institute of Education Sciences.

The overall goal in teaching nutrition to high school students is to give them the tools they need to make healthy eating choices for a lifetime. The way the nutrition curriculum looks across public high schools can vary, but almost all of them attempt to accomplish similar goals."

From stateofobesity.org,"According to the latest Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) national survey (2013), 13.7 percent of high school students were obese, and 16.6 percent were overweight."



OK, so why are there so many overweight/obese kids at the high school level? The overweight/obesity rate for high school students in America is 30%. Nearly 1 out of 3 high schoolers is not healthy weightwise?! If high school students are being taught good nutrition in school, and there are still way too many kids in high school who are overweight or obese, obviously teaching nutrition in high school is not working. What's the problem? Are students not listening? Are they too stupid to learn? Do potato chips and ice cream and sugar-laden drinks taste too good to give up? Are they being taught proper nutrition or are they being taught mainly to be politically correct in their eating habits? Should the PARENTS have mandatory nutrition lessons?

Too many kids in America are too fat. It's not healthy and it condemns them to an unhealthy life later on. High school students in America deserve to be healthy and maintain a healthy weight - and 30% are not. Whatever the problem is, fix it.


No, I am not fat shaming high school kids, I am fat shaming the public school system.






burn, baby, burn


California regulates your fireplace




from MyNewsLA

"Much of the Southland (L.A.area) will be under a “no-burn” order through Thursday, meaning indoor fireplace use and outdoor wood burning will be prohibited due to pollution concerns.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District originally issued the order only for Wednesday for all residences in the South Coast Air Basin, including the greater Los Angeles area, Orange County and the Inland Empire. But pollution forecasts prompted the agency to extend the order through Thursday."



Our government in action. "No burn" days. The Pollution Police. The government is spending taxpayer time and money regulating fireplaces, fireplaces in private residences. Fireplaces? Yes, fireplaces - NOT the biggest problem facing the L.A. area and it's 15 million residents.

People spend a lot of money for a home in L.A. (the average price for Los Angeles County was $780,000 in 2014) and now, thanks to some anti-pollution government agency, they can't even use their fireplace(s)?

What's next, regulating home barbecues? "Hi, we're the Pollution Police. We're arresting you for polluting - and barbecuing without a license".






Laundry List



Laundry list. We've all heard the term. It means a long list of stuff, often random items. For example, "a laundry list of complaints", "a laundry list of desires", "a laundry list of problems". OK, I understand that but why is it a "laundry" list? When I do a laundry I don't need a list. I lug my dirty clothes to the washer, put the clothes in, add some laundry detergent and maybe some fabric softener, push a few buttons and wash my clothes in the washing machine. When the clothes are done I take them out of the washer and put them in the dryer. When the dryer has finished drying the clothes I take them out, sort them, fold them and put them away. I hardly need to make a list to do my laundry. And, if I have to take some clothes to the dry cleaner, I just take them, I don't need to make a list to do it. And the dry cleaner gives me a receipt.

Why do we need a "laundry list"? Why do we still use the term? How did the term "laundry list" get into our vocabulary and why does it stay there?

Other "lists" might make sense. Yes, a "shopping" list makes sense. When I go food shopping and need more than 2 items I write them all down on a yellow sticky Post It. That way, I don't forget to buy something I need when I go to the supermarket. A shopping list makes sense, a laundry list does not.

It's time to dump the term "laundry list". Dumping it is on my To Do List, my Wish List and my Bucket List, not my laundry list.






is ADHD real?




From webmd.com

Children with ADHD show signs of inattention, hyperactivity, and/or impulsivity in specific ways. These children:
  • Are in constant motion 
  • Squirm and fidget 
  • Do not seem to listen 
  • Have trouble playing quietly 
  • Often talk excessively 
  • Interrupt or intrude on others 
  • Are easily distracted 
  • Do not finish tasks 



Really? ADHD in kids? A disorder? A disorder requiring medication? An epidemic?

In the old days we used to call mild ADHD "normal", we used to call it "childhood". Aren't these symptoms what kids DO when being kids? I acted like that when I was a kid. So did all the other kids. Maybe kids are simply not developed yet, they are often ruled by hormones (and sugar), and thus have little control over their behavior. As I grew into an adult I learned self-discipline and how to better control, and apply, myself. I learned good behavior by reward and punishment. We called it real life.

Not to be overly cynical but is a lot of the ADHD diagnosis epidemic real, or merely a ploy by Big Pharma and western medicine to feed more patients to doctors and sell more meds? Hmm.







no smoke no fire


As of today, I have not smoked a cigarette for 4 years. I have not smoked cigarettes for 1,460 days. That's 35,000 hours. Thanks solely to electronic cigarettes, 4 years ago, in 1 day, I quit smoking. I was a pack a day smoker for 50 years and thanks solely to e-cigs, I quit smoking, in 1 day.

I feel much healthier, I feel much cleaner inside, and I don't stink. Plus, I also saved $4,000 in cash (e-cigs are cheaper than cigarettes).

Thanks solely to electronic cigarettes it has now been 4 years since I lit up a cigarette. I am amazed. All my friends and family are amazed. All my doctors are amazed.



Hurray For E-cigs!

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.






raise the voting age


We need to raise the voting age.

The voting age in the U.S. was lowered from 21 to 18, by Constitutional amendment, in 1971.

Voting at age 18 in America is a stupid idea. Young adults do not have any real world experience yet, they do not yet have a developed sense of right and wrong. They are not capable of voting in the best interests of themselves or their country. It's not their fault, it's normal human development. Unfortunately, today, younger people are getting stupider. They have the attention span of a goldfish. Many have dropped out of reality and tuned in to fantasy. They have a strong sense of despair, and entitlement. They want everything to be unrealistically fair and equal and free. This is not a workable basis for voting and electing people.

We need to raise the voting age.

Voting is a very important right. It has long term consequences. For everyone. Allowing young and/or stupid people to vote is not a smart idea. Just look at what happened to America. Over the past 50 years, with few exceptions, idiots and liars were voted for and elected to office time and time again. This is the fault of voters. Stupid voters. And now millennials are the largest voting bloc. People don't have a truly adequate amount of life experience until they are at least 40 years old. They tend to not know their ass from their elbow until they are in their 50's or 60's. They do not acquire real wisdom until they are mature, very mature, i.e. old. Allowing young people under the age of 50 to vote is a bad idea. As a result, we need to raise the voting age.

For the safety and security and continuation of the United States of America, I hereby call for an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, to raise the voting age, to age 65.




Yes, this is satire. If you don't know what satire is, look it up.




missing the point


Donald Trump is running for President in 2016.

Donald Trump is a successful businessman, a political outsider, a fighter, and an immature child-man who sometimes speaks before he thinks. He is not a politician. He doesn't care. And he makes lots of faux pas. He often goes too far. The media covers Trump extensively, especially when he says something inappropriate. And endless TV debates ensue as to whether Trump is a qualified or suitable candidate. That is not the point. The point is that the 2016 Presidential race is not about Donald Trump at all, or about how qualified or unqualified he is. The 2016 Presidential race about how lousy - and out of touch - all politicians in America are. Including the other politically correct Presidential candidates, of both parties. Supporting Donald Trump is a rebellion. A revolution. Americans are disgusted with their politically motivated elected officials. It's not so much that Americans with a brain in their head want Donald Trump as President, it's that they don't want another unaccountable lying political asshole to be running the country, running it further into the ground.

Enough is enough! Here's a message to all elected politicians in America. In the words of Donald Trump:








as time goes by



Yesterday felt like Sunday. Today feels like Monday. But it's only Friday. A new year will be upon us soon. The old year flew by, in the blink of an eye. Where, in fact, did the last decade go?

I know time goes by ... but where does it go?






suicide squirrel


from MyNewsLA

"A wayward squirrel made contact with a circuit breaker and triggered a power outage that affected 9,900 customers in the Marina del Rey and Westchester communities (Los Angeles areas), utility officials said Thursday.

The outage was reported at 3:28 p.m. when a distribution station near Los Angeles International Airport lost power, said Albert Rodriguez, a spokesman with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

Utility crews dispatched to the scene found that a squirrel had made its way onto a circuit breaker, he said."



This was not just a wayward squirrel. This was a suicide squirrel, a terrorist squirrel, sent to disable our electrical grid.


No, not really :)






shame on your dick





LA may send ‘Dear John’ letters to hooker cruisers.

"Men who cruise streets where prostitutes beckon may soon get letters from the city of Los Angeles in their home mailboxes, under a proposal from the city council.

But privacy advocates blasted the proposal to use automated license plate readers to generate the letters, which would be aimed at shaming “Johns” by alerting their wives, mothers or girlfriends as they open the mail, the Los Angeles Daily News reported Thursday."



Really? The City of Los Angeles wants to send "Shame on Your Dick" letters to men who drive or stop their car in a neighborhood that has hookers?

They want to send "Shame On Your Dick" letters that may be opened by mothers, wives or girlfriends?

THIS is a priority for the City Council in the second largest city in America? Really? And voters elected these idiots?

Instead of shaming guys who can't get laid, maybe the Los Angeles City Council should be concentrating on the critical problems facing residents, problems like high poverty, no new job creation, unaffordable housing, lousy schools, violent crime, and mind numbing traffic congestion. Shame on YOU.






Phuc Dat Bich



Phuc Dat Bich

From The Huffington Post

"Phuc Dat Bich" is not a 12-year-old's poorly spelled insult.

He's a 23-year-old Vietnamese-Australian who asserts he had his Facebook profile shut down multiple times over accusations he was using a fake name.

Bich works at the National Australia Bank. To prove his namesake to the world, he shared an image of his passport online. Originally posted in January, the photo surged in popularity online this week, with more than 128,000 likes and 68,000 shares on Facebook as of Friday.

"I find it highly irritating the fact that nobody seems to believe me when I say that my full legal name is how you see it. I've been accused of using a false and misleading name of which I find very offensive. Is it because I'm Asian? Is it?" Bich posted.


With a name like Phuc Dat Bich he should quit his job at the bank and become a rapper. He'd make millions!






bioterrorism scare



The Government Accountability Office has concluded in a report expected to be released in Washington, D.C., on Monday that the nation’s main defense against biological terrorism — a $1 billion network of air samplers in cities across the country — cannot be counted on to detect an attack.

The BioWatch system, introduced with fanfare by President George W. Bush in 2003, has exasperated public health officials with numerous false alarms, stemming from its inability to distinguish between harmless germs and the lethal pathogens that terrorists would be likely to unleash in an attack, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees BioWatch, has repeatedly touted the system’s effectiveness while seeking to upgrade it with new technology.



The U.S. government spent $1 billion of taxpayer money on an anti-terrorism air sampling system that doesn't work??? A billion dollar system that can't tell the difference between harmless germs and bio-weapons of mass destruction? And this system, which cost $1 billion, is guarding Americans from bio terrorism? Really?

And liberals in America want the government to spend MORE money, have MORE power, do MORE, control MORE of our lives?








Minimum Wage Enforcement



couldn't afford to pay its workers $15/hr?


from MyNewsLA.com

"The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to create an office to help enforce Los Angeles County’s new minimum wage and prevent “wage theft.”

Supervisor Hilda Solis recommended setting up the program to investigate claims of wage theft.

“This is a big historic step for us,” Solis told her colleagues. “It sends a strong message to employers, especially those that don’t play by the rules.”

The vote was 4-1, with Supervisor Michael Antonovich dissenting. He said it was the state’s job to enforce wage theft and he’d rather see the $408,000 needed to set up the new office spent on social service programs."


Another government office? At a set up cost of $400,000? OK, I will support creating a new government office to enforce the $15 minimum wage regulations in Los Angeles - as long as the city government workers in that office are paid no more than the minimum wage.






dirty filthy shoes




from CNN.com

If you walk through your house with your shoes on, you may be dragging in all kinds of nasty germs and chemicals from the great outdoors.

The bottoms of your shoes spread many unhealthy agents, from pollen and pesticides on the lawn to salmonella in bird poop. In fact, as many as nine different kinds of pathogens can thrive on shoes, according to a University of Arizona study.

Microbes can survive and even multiply because of nutrient-rich soil and other deposits left on the soles.



Ugh. I am not a germophobe but maybe I'll start taking off my shoes before I enter my residence. Or burn them.






new words



Among the new words added to Dictionary.com in 2015:

"Mx.: Defined as a title of respect prefixed to someone's surname. It does not indicate a gender and may be used by a person with any or no specific gender identity, according to Dictionary.com."



Huh? That's really dumb. Mx? It looks more like the abbreviation for Mexico to me. Or roman numerals. M=1000, X=10. That equals 1010. Instead of Mx how about we respectfully refer to people as 1010 + their name. Yeah, why don't you just call me 1010 Stu Pitt.






Free the orcas



from MyNewsLA

A federal law to phase out killer whales in captivity is the aim of a Burbank congressman ...

Rep. Adam Schiff said at a Friday press conference that he would introduce the Orca Responsibility and Care Advancement (ORCA) Act, which would end Shamu shows with this generation.

“Specifically, it would prohibit the breeding, the taking (wild capture) and the import or export of orcas for the purposes of public display,” said his office ..."


Really? This is what our elected Congressmen, our representatives to Washington, do all day, save the orcas? Though it's a wonderful and humane thing to save animals (and mammals) I think there may be other more crucial issues facing our nation and it's taxpaying citizens. Issues like the economy, poverty, the loss of U.S. status around the world, crime, terrorism and, last but not least, out-of-touch politicians who do not address and fix the REAL problems of we, the people.






new death penalty




from the Los Angeles Times

California unveiled a new method for executing condemned prisoners Friday, proposing a single-drug lethal injection protocol that could restart capital punishment after a 10-year hiatus.

More than 30 states and the federal government use lethal injection as their primary method of carrying out executions, according to the Death Penalty Information Center, a group that has been critical of the way capital punishment has been administered. Eight states have used a single-drug method for executions, while six others have announced plans to do so.

The proposed California regulation estimates the cost of a single execution to be just under $187,000, with more than $97,000 of that expected to go to crowd control outside San Quentin State Prison, where executions take place.



Each execution costs $187,000? Of taxpayer money? For EACH execution? Really? China puts the condemned person in front of a firing squad, shoots them dead, and then sends the bill for the bullets to the family of the executed person. Cost = 0. How about hanging? Maybe we could bring back hanging. Hanging worked in the Old West. The person got caught committing a death-penalty crime and they took him out and hung him. Hanging is time and cost effective - all you need is a jury, a rope and a tree.

Or we could continue to spend $90,000 a year to keep each condemned person on death row until the state kills them, decades later, at an additional cost of $187,000. Hmm.






driving while holding it



I see everyone driving and holding their cell phone in their hand. Not necessarily using the phone or texting, just holding it in their hand. In other words they are always driving with only one hand on the wheel.

Driving with one hand can be dangerous. If you are holding your cell phone you have only one hand to steer the car. If you have to make a sudden turn, or a sharp turn, you may suddenly need two hands. Two hands on the wheel. If you need to make a sharp turn, will you drop your cell phone and grab the wheel with the other hand? Maybe. If you do, your phone can fall on the floor and interfere with your brakes or accelerator. BOOM!

If you are holding your cell phone in your hand while driving you are "driving dangerous", you are not in full control of your vehicle. BOOM!

And, if you drive with your cell phone on your lap it can slip off and, when you go to grab it, BOOM!

If you are driving you are steering thousands of pounds of moving metal. That being the case, please be alert and in control and don't go BOOM!

Driving is dangerous enough. While driving with your stupid cell phone in your hand I don't want you to kill someone, kill yourself or worse, me. Don't hold your cell phone in your hand while driving. Put it away. Leave it in your pocket or purse. Your life may depend on it.






winter in los angeles



Ben Affleck - ready for winter in L.A.

I'm Stu Pitt and I'm COLD. At my Los Angeles residence, it was 48 degrees at 8 AM today, November 4. I went out to empty the trash, it was c-o-l-d outside! L.A. is supposed to be WARM, not cold. In warm and sunny L.A., when it's under 50 degrees, we're not used to it and it feels like it's freezing.

I have now taken out my winter jackets and will have to start wearing them. With long underwear and sweaters underneath. I will have to switch from air conditioning to heat, both in my residence and in my car. Today I'm thinking soup for lunch!

Suddenly, it's winter in Los Angeles. Boom! Suddenly, it's cold. I don't like it. I like 80 degrees or more. And sunny. That's why I moved here, decades ago, from the East Coast!

Luckily, it's usually 72 degrees in L.A. on January 1st, New Year's Day.






new trend in job interviews



You just interviewed, and now you have 24 hours to give a yes or no.

By Laura McMullen, jobs.aol.com

"Pat yourself on the back, because you just nailed the interview. It was a long, exhausting day that left you with a lot to think about, but now you're just focused on rewarding yourself with a glass of wine and a Netflix binge.

Except – wait – what's this? Your interview finished minutes ago, and these guys are offering you the job! Oh, by the way, they need to know if you'll accept within 24 hours.

These on-the-spot job offers are becoming increasingly common, says Ryan Sutton, a district president for the specialized staffing firm Robert Half. "Companies, rightfully so, are afraid they might not have the opportunity to get a candidate back in for one more step," he says.

Some companies have had an opening for months and are eager to pounce when they finally find a good fit. Others are giving you only, say, 24 hours to decide in an effort to avoid the counter-offer, Sutton says, or to prevent you from considering your pipeline of competing opportunities. "They're almost trying to catch the emotion of the job search, versus the intelligence of a job search and making sure it's a good fit," Sutton says."


Hey, this is not new. It happened to me, way back in 1969, on my first job interview in ruthlessly competitive New York. The company needed to hire some good new people ASAP. The interviewer assessed me, told me about the job, asked me a probing trick question (which I answered correctly) then excused himself, checked with his boss and came back and told me, "You can start TODAY".

I thought about it, not for 24 hours but for 24 seconds, said "Yes", and started the job 24 minutes later.


And if you want to read a great book about how to get a job I can recommend one. It's called: How To Get A Job






why ban the box is stupid



WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama on Monday will announce a series of measures designed to reduce obstacles facing former prisoners reintegrating into society, including an executive action directing federal employers to delay asking questions about a job applicant's criminal history until later in the application process.

Many states, cities and private employers have already taken steps to "ban the box," which refers to the checkbox on employment applications asking if the applicant has ever been convicted of a crime.

Civil rights activists have urged Obama to propose the measure, noting that such questions can limit the ability for people with a criminal record to gain employment and get their lives back on track after prison. Advocates argue that those formerly in prison should be allowed to prove their qualifications for a job instead of being eliminated early in the process due to their criminal background.



Another liberal good idea that won't work and, in reality, will make matters worse - worse for the very people they want to help - convicted felons.

Here's the real deal:

A convicted felon applies for a decent job in the private sector. According to the ban the box federal executive action (Obama's pen and phone) the job candidate will not asked or will not have to reveal whether they have been convicted of a crime. The applicant is therefore not eliminated for being a convict and perhaps proceeds to the next stage of the employment process. Assuming the ex-convict is qualified for the job, he/she continues through the employment hiring process.

Well into the hiring process, the private sector employer THEN does a background check (yes, they will do that) and finds out that the candidate has a criminal record. At that stage the candidate is then disqualified and will not be hired, will not get the job.

The real-world effect of "ban the box" is that the convicted-felon-job-applicant is given false hope, will not get the job anyway because their criminal record will come to light anyway, and both the ex-felon and the prospective employer have wasted their time by extending the employment process. In fact, thanks to ban the box, the ex-con is likely to become even MORE frustrated and upset when trying to get a job in the private sector. Ban the box is, once again, another good idea from liberals, another good idea from liberals that doesn't work in the private sector, in the real world, where most of the jobs are.

The scariest words in the English language: "Hi, we're from the government and we're here to help."






fill er up

from newsmax.com

"The Department of Defense poured $43 million into an "ill-conceived" project to build a gas station in Afghanistan — "an outrageous waste" of taxpayers' money and 140 times more than it should have cost, according to a government watchdog.

Even more troubling, according to the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction report was the Defense Department couldn't even explain why the compressed natural gas filling station was so expensive. "In comparison, [the inspector general] found that a CNG station in neighboring Pakistan costs no more than $500,000 to construct.



Really? A $43 million gas station? In Afghanistan? And we, the American taxpayers, paid for it? And nobody in the government knows anything about it? WTF???????

Hey, Washington, D.C., what the _____ are you doing?






toilet to tap



urine - California's new water


California has had a severe drought for 4 years. There is not enough water from natural sources.

from msn news

"Now comes "toilet-to-tap" water, a concept, which involves treating sewage water for human consumption. Toilet to tap had until now failed to gain traction in the water-starved West Coast state largely due to the "yuck factor"

The idea, for many, may be too hard to swallow.

Few could stomach the idea that water coming out of a tap -- however purified -- was being flushed down a toilet just hours before.

But as California's historic drought drags on, experts and politicians are taking a serious look at "toilet to tap" options to guarantee long-term water supply."



Yes, this stuff is actually true. My response? Yeah, I'm gonna trust the government to turn toilet water into drinkable water. Why not, they do everything else so well. Not. Hey, maybe Californians can just start drinking their own urine, direct from their genitals, and eliminate the middleman. Or maybe Coke and Pepsi could start bottling and selling it. Diet Coke Urine? Pepsi Pee?

Who knows, drinking urine could be the next big trend in trendy California. Oh, wait a minute, I live there, let's NOT do it.






why winter is good for you



Bad weather is good for you, if it doesn't kill you first.

I grew up in Upstate New York. We had winter. Real winter. Winters there were long and hard. From November to May, winter brought cold, snow and ice. Lots of cold, lots of snow and lots of ice. Months and months of it.

Early on, by age 5, I learned that Nature could hurt you if you weren't prepared or paying attention. As a child, the first time I went out the front door in January without a coat or mittens, into below-zero weather, I learned something, something important. I learned never to do that again. It was painfully cold. My hands, nose and ears were ice cold in seconds. It hurt. If you do not know what it feels like, stick your head in the freezer for 5 minutes, that's what it feels like. That pain taught me something about Nature and about life. It taught me to be aware of my surroundings, evaluate reality, and to be prepared for what it may bring. It's a good way to avoid pain. Or death. Yes, a deep new snowfall is often picturesque and beautiful. It's also a pain in the ass, cold as hell, and it can cause you to be snowed in and stranded for days.

Later on, at 16, I learned to drive. I learned how to drive in snow and ice. If you are not careful and knowledgeable about driving in severe weather, like blizzard conditions or ice on the road, you can easily die. Or quickly slide right off the road and into a ditch. Nature can be beautiful and comforting. Nature can also be unforgiving and deadly. It's smart to be able to tell the difference. Living in the harsh natural conditions of Upstate New York winters, I learned the difference in my formative years. And, as a result, throughout my life, learning and applying this first-hand experience with hard and long winters has made me stronger and smarter and forced me to deal with reality. Because if you don't recognize or deal with reality, or prepare for it, it can cause you a lot of pain, or kill you. In real winter, if you go outside without paying proper attention, you can die.

I am lucky. I grew up with beautiful and deadly Winter. She was a harsh teacher. And she forced me to learn some valuable life lessons. For that, I am truly grateful.

Now I live in sunny warm Los Angeles. We don't have real winter. We don't even have four seasons, we only have two seasons: hot and hotter.






solar polluter



Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System

From Fox News

"Even as the Obama administration announces another $120 million in grants to boost solar energy, new reports indicate a centerpiece of the administration's green-energy effort is actually a carbon polluter.

Located in Southern California's Mojave Desert, the $2.2 billion Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System benefited from a $1.6 billion Energy Department loan guarantee, and a $539 million Treasury Department stimulus grant to help pay off the loan.

Yet it is producing carbon emissions at nearly twice the amount that compels power plants and companies to participate in the state's cap-and-trade program."


Huh. So the government gave $2.2 billion dollars in TAXPAYER FUNDS to a solar power plant that ended up actually polluting the environment at twice the acceptable rate? There are so many things wrong about that:

Green energy that doesn't work or isn't green

Extreme environmentalists

Global warming zealots

Wasteful government spending

Why is the government promoting and funding and forcing alternate power sources that don't work efficiently or are economically unfeasible? Or, in this case, why is the government wasting $2 billion of OUR money on a solar power system that pollutes?

Obviously, this is another brilliant government idea that, in reality, cost a fortune and went way wrong, making things w-o-r-s-e. And, according to liberals, we should have MORE government?






I stopped smoking in 1 day


I stopped smoking in 1 day. Thanks to electronic cigarettes. I smoked a pack a day for 50 years and, thanks solely to e-cigs, I stopped smoking in 1 day. It has been 3 years and 10 months since 1 smoked a cigarette. I don't even want a cigarette.

Thanks to using e-cigarettes instead of smoking cigarettes, I feel better, I feel 10 years younger, and I don't stink! Plus, I have saved thousands of dollars by using e-cigs as opposed to tobacco cigarettes.

I couldn't be happier.

And the government wants to prevent me from doing this???






medicare is stupid




Medicare.gov is stupid, really stupid.

I'm on medicare and today I went to log in to my medicare.gov account online. I did so in order to convert my monthly medical summary from snail mail to electronic delivery, which will save the government paper, time and money.

Medicare.gov is the government run website for medicare. I have an account there and my medicare info is kept there, online. I go to log in to my account and it won't let me. I get a notice that my password has to be updated every 60 days. This is for privacy protection. And the new password must be different from the previous six (6) passwords. That makes it IMPOSSIBLE for me to remember (or write down) my password, or store it on my computer, if I have to keep changing it every 60 days. I'm old - I am NOT going to try to dream up a brand new 8-16 character password every 2 months and write it down somewhere or try to remember it.

Being very annoyed at this, I find a feedback area on the website and decided to send feedback about this issue to the government. I clicked on "Submit Feedback to Medicare.gov". Nothing happened. It did not go to a feedback form or another page or anywhere. Nothing happened. I clicked on it 5 times, with the same result. This, of course, made me even more annoyed and disgusted. They invite you to send feedback but prevent you from doing so!

Thanks to the idiots who are forcing medicare recipients - old people - to do something they can't do - create and remember a new password every 60 days - I will no longer be using the medicare.gov website. Nearly 50 million people are on medicare in the United States. In trying to protect us, by forcing us to change our password every 60 days, medicare has made old people's lives more difficult. And that's just plain stupid!






wash your hands



Washing your hands often may prevent spreading diseases. When should you wash your hands? According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control):

Before, during, and after preparing food

Before eating food

Before and after caring for someone who is sick

Before and after treating a cut or wound

After using the toilet

After changing diapers or cleaning up a child who has used the toilet

After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing

After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste

After handling pet food or pet treats

After touching garbage


So, you pretty much have to wash your hands like 10-20 times day.

I think the CDC left off some other times when you should wash your hands. I would add:

After shaking hands with someone. "Hi, nice to meet you. Excuse me, I have to go wash off the germs you just infected me with."

Before, during and after sex

Before and after using your TV remote control

Before and after typing on a computer keyboard

Before, during and after using your dirty, filthy cell phone

AFTER washing your hands, because the faucet was full of germs when you touched it

After touching money. Unless you have a lot of it.

After voting for any politician






eat meat and die


from motherjones.com

"A new report released by the World Health Organization on Monday reveals that processed meats such as bacon, hot dogs, and sausage cause cancer. Red meat, while carrying a slightly lower risk than processed meats, likely does as well.

According to the organization, daily consumption of 50 grams of processed meats—defined as meats that have been transformed by salting, curing, or other taste-enhancing methods—increased the likelihood of cancer by 18 percent.

Processed meats, which are linked to an increased likelihood of bowel cancer, were found to be as carcinogenic as cigarettes, arsenic, and alcohol."



OMG! Processed meat is as carcinogenic as smoking? OK, everyone says smoking causes cancer. And, as a result, in many/most public places in America it is illegal to smoke. What about second hand meat, does that cause cancer too? Here's a thought: if processed meat causes cancer, if "Processed Meat Kills", why don't all the anti-smoking state and local governments in the U.S. make eating meat i-l-l-e-g-a-l, like they did with smoking in public!?






biopsy bullshit


I had a skin rash for a few weeks on my arms. Flaking skin, red welts. It did not itch and did not hurt but it was unsightly. I finally went to the dermatologist. He diagnosed me with eczema. He gave me some creams and made an appointment for me to come back in two weeks. I used the creams, 5 different ones, still had the flaking and red welts and went to the derm appointment two weeks later. My eczema was still the same, no improvement. Just in case, the doctor cut off a piece of my arm and sent it out to the lab for a biopsy test. The doctor said it would take like 3 days for him to get the results. One week later I am still waiting.

For a full week I have been very anxious and nervous about the results yet I am forced to keep waiting - for the lab to do the testing, send the results to the doctor, and for the doctor to let me know the outcome. The procedure is taking too long, or the results are too slow to get to the doctor, or both. A week? Two weeks? A month? That's not acceptable. Patients throughout America are sitting on pins and needles awaiting biopsy results and being told whether or not they have cancer. In some cases, the biopsy results can mean life or death, yet these patients are being forced to wait weeks or longer to find out their lab results. That's bullshit. Biopsy bullshit.

The U.S. labs that do biopsy testing MUST speed up the process and/or get the results to the doctor faster. Why? Because biopsied patients in the United States of America should NOT have to wait weeks, or months, to find out if they have cancer!!!






California floodslides



Here comes El Nino. It's here already, in Los Angeles. Recently we had huge rainfall and mudslides which closed the main road from Los Angeles to Las Vegas and stranded hundreds of motorists for days.

The worst is yet to come.

According to meteorologists, in L.A., "We will encounter numerous stormy periods. The biggest problems will result from heavy rainfall. These storms could produce flash floods and all the associated calamities. If we receive large amounts of precipitation in short periods, flooding could develop in unexpected areas. Mudslides and debris flows will likely start in the numerous burn areas across the region. After extended periods of rainfall, the potential for mudslides will spread to all the foothills and mountains.

Coastal flooding will also be a major problem. Strong storms can produce enormous waves. Combining elevated surf with increased sea levels, due to the warming, increases the likelihood of damaging tides and flooding. Numerous piers and coastal structures have been destroyed during previous El NiƱo events."


Oh, great! Flood and mud. Floodslides. As for me, I live at the base of a small mountain in the heart of Los Angeles. Just what I need this winter, to be swept away in a furious flash flood or a murderous mudslide! So, what will I do? Well, I could move before El Nino hits. I could move to what will become a warmer, safer Alaska this winter. Or maybe I will beat the rush and move to Cuba, soon to be the #1 travel destination in the world, as soon as the Castro brothers finally die and Donald Trump builds a bunch of casinos and hotels there. Or, I could simply stay here in Los Angeles and hope to survive numerous floods and mudslides (floodslides) this winter, a winter which will prove to be extremely miserable weather-wise. Hmm, yes, maybe I will just stay in L.A. and buy some new rain gear -- and a kayak.






anti-oxidants can kill you



Since the term "antioxidants" made the leap from the realm of biochemistry labs and into the public consciousness in the 1990s, Americans have come to believe that more is better when it comes to consuming the substance that comes in things like acai berries, green tea and leafy veggies.

A provocative new study published Wednesday in the journal Nature raises important questions about that assumption.

Antioxidants — which include vitamins C and E and beta-carotene, and are contained in thousands of foods — are thought to protect cells from damage by acting as defenders against something called "free radicals" which the body produces as a part of metabolism or that can enter through the environment.

That's all great for normal cells. But what researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center found is that antioxidants can work their magic on cancerous cells, too — turbo-charging the process by which they grow and spread.

Researcher Sean Morrison and his colleagues conducted experiments on mice that had been transplanted with skin cancer cells (melanoma) from human patients. They gave nothing to one group. To the other they gave doses of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) which is a common antioxidant that's used in nutritional and bodybuilding supplements and has been used as a treatment for patients with HIV/AIDS and in some children with certain genetic disorders.

The results were alarming: Those in the second group had markedly higher levels of cancer cells in their blood, grew more tumors and the tumors were larger and more widespread than in the second.

"What we're starting to learn is that there can be bad cells from cancer that appear to benefit more from antioxidants than normal cells," he said in an interview.



Here we go again. Everything that we were told was good for us turns out to be for us. Antioxidants: ANOTHER good thing turns out to be bad for us!

C'mon, you stupid scientists, something is either good for us, bad for us, or neither good nor bad. Make up your minds, stop doing a 180 on everything we consume, get it right the first time!






prepare for zombies



Zombie Preparedness Month

“KANSAS CITY, Mo. September 30, 2015 — Absent a zombie apocalypse before then, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback this week will sign a proclamation designating October as "Zombie Preparedness Month" in his state.

The ceremony is planned for Wednesday at the Capitol, a reminder of the need to be prepared for any emergency. Kansas Division of Emergency Management staff will be on hand.

"If you're prepared for zombies, you're prepared for anything," Brownback said in a statement.”



Zombie Preparedness Month? In Kansas? Really? And is this what elected state politicians in America think is important, spending taxpayer time and money preparing their residents for a zombie apocalypse? And people wonder why American voters are fed up with politicians?

According to a Gallup Poll, the most important problems facing Americans in 2015 were: Government, The Economy, and Unemployment. Though issues such as terrorism, healthcare, race relations and immigration have emerged among the top problems in recent polls, government, the economy and unemployment have been the dominant problems listed by Americans for more than a year. Zombies did not make the list.






from dusk to dusk



Turn on your headlights!

Dusk is the transition between daylight and darkness. The sky is still lit, the streets and roads are not yet lit. It is the time when many vehicular accidents take place, because it is somewhat more difficult to see things without light. While driving at dusk yesterday I witnessed at least a dozen cars that did not have their headlights on. No headlights, no parking lights, nothing. I could barely see the unlighted oncoming cars. This is very dangerous, for the driver of the unlit car, for me and for other drivers.

I also noticed that even some brand new cars did not have their lights on. Newer vehicles have an automatic feature which turns on a car's headlights when it gets dark. Yet, these drivers did not have that feature selected. Instead, they were subjecting themselves to trying to see - and drive - in near dark conditions, and driving while other drivers could not easily see their vehicle. Not only is that dumb, it's dangerous!

When daylight is done, and you decide to drive, DRIVE SAFE - TURN ON YOUR LIGHTS!






selfies can kill you



No, this is not me taking a selfie with a Great White shark

Taking a photo of yourself can be deadly. Death by selfie. Here are some reported deaths-by-selfie ...

from Wikpedia:

An American woman fell to her death while taking a selfie with her boyfriend on a cliff in South Africa.

Two Russian men were killed while taking a selfie with a hand grenade.

Three Indian students were killed by an oncoming train while taking selfies on train tracks.

A Romanian teenager was electrocuted when she was taking a selfie on top of a train and touched a high-voltage wire.

A Russian teen was also electrocuted after touching live wires while taking a selfie near railway tracks.

A Russian woman shot herself in the head while trying to take a selfie with a gun.

A woman in Moscow City died falling from a bridge, where she was trying to take a selfie.

A teenager in Houston, Texas, fatally shot himself while taking a selfie with a gun.

A Japanese tourist died falling down the stairs while taking a selfie at the Taj Mahal.



Death by selfie. What a way to go. "Hey, everybody, look at me!" Oops.






made in China



Practically everything in America is made in China. And many Americans, and politicians, want to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. The problem with that is that American labor costs are much higher than in China. The hourly rate for manufacturing jobs in the U.S. is five times higher than in China. Nearly $20/hr in America.

So, is American labor likely to reduce its hourly wage to compete with China? Not a chance. So the question for all those Americans who want to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. is: are they, and you, willing to pay 5 times MORE for the same products to be made in America?

Let's take a perfect example. Apple products are made in China. The iPad, Apple computers, iPhones - everything Apple - is made in China. So, if Apple products were to be made in America, are you, and all your friends, willing to pay 5 times MORE for your beloved Apple products? I thought not.






ipad death penalty


from City News Service

"Two men and a woman pleaded guilty Tuesday to their parts in a burglary spree that Irvine police say was active throughout California and in Washington states and Oregon and were immediately sentenced to 136 days to two years in jail.

Isaiah Woods, 21, of Sun Valley and Vernon Hill, 20, of Ethrata, Wash., pleaded guilty to four felony counts of second-degree burglary, and Victory Rogers, 25, of Southwestern Burien, Wash., pleaded guilty to a felony count of forgery, according to court records.

Woods and Hill were sentenced to two years in jail and Rogers was sentenced to 136 days behind bars.

Three male suspects stole 17 iPads from a Target store at Irvine (California) Spectrum in July, according to Farrah Emami of the Irvine Police Department. One of the suspects distracted a clerk, who unlocked a case full of the computers, before the others grabbed the devices and ran, Emami said.

A female suspect was the driver of the getaway car, Emami said.

Surveillance video footage of the theft and detailed descriptions from witnesses helped police track down the four suspects outside of a Best Buy in Moreno Valley on Wednesday, where a similar caper had occurred, Emami said.

Investigators suspect the four were involved in 20 similar heists throughout the state from Lathrop to San Diego as well as about a dozen in Oregon and Washington, Emami said. The thieves targeted Target, Walmart and Best Buy stores, Emami said."


Two years in jail for 30 store robberies in three states? They robbed Target, Walmart and Best Buy stores? They stole iPads? For stealing iPads they should have gotten the death penalty! (That's a joke)






college sex gets you expelled


from MyNewsLA

"An Occidental College student who was expelled after being found in violation of school policy for having sex with a 17-year-old female classmate when he was a freshman sued the Eagle Rock campus Tuesday, alleging gender bias.

The suit states that on Sept. 8, 2013, John Doe’s accuser sought him out in his dormitory room and told him that she wanted to have sex with him. She left, but returned to his room, and they had sex, according to the complaint.

Published reports stated that an attorney hired by Occidental to investigate the matter concluded that the female student did indeed consent to sex, but that because she was intoxicated, her consent was invalid.

“Even though Jane Doe initiated sexual activity with John Doe, Occidental ultimately and unlawfully expelled John Doe from Occidental,” the suit alleges.

In December 2013, John Doe was found to have violated Occidental’s sexual misconduct policy by engaging in a sexual assault and non-consensual contact with Jane Doe, according to his court papers."



Hey, wait a minute. I am not a lawyer. I believe the legal drinking age in California is 21, so why wasn't the drunk 17-year-old college female arrested for breaking the law? Instead, when she initiated sex with a boy, he gets expelled and she doesn't? He gets expelled for breaking "college rules" and she doesn't get arrested or expelled for breaking the law? And this makes sense to the college officials?

If an attractive legal-age-for-sex female invites me to have sex with her, and I'm a 17-year-old male, I don't think, I say "YES".






students can't read


from MyNewsLa


The California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress, was administered to about 3.2 million students across California in the spring. Los Angeles Unified School District students fared slightly worse, with only 10 percent exceeding the English standard, 23 percent meeting the standard, 26 percent nearly meeting the benchmark and 41 percent not meeting it.

LAUSD Superintendent Ramon Cortines stressed that it is too early to be “pleased or displeased” with the results, saying they will “provide a roadmap for how we can better prepare our students for college or the workforce.”

“As we all expected, the overall results of these more rigorous assessments show that we still have more work to do,” Cortines said. “However, we are committed to strengthening our efforts and providing the support our students need to meet these challenging new standards.”



41% of students in Los Angeles don't meet the standard for English? Nearly half of students in the L.A. school system can't read or write English? And the Los Angeles school Superintendent stresses that it's "too early to be pleased or displeased"? It appears to me that the school system in L.A. is a complete and utter failure - and has been for decades! Yet, nothing is done to fix the problem. Here is my solution. "Hey, all you L.A. taxpayer-paid politicians, taxpayer-paid teachers and taxpayer-paid school administrators, in the words of Donald Trump, "You're FIRED!" And, since they have all failed, for many decades, it's time for government-run school systems, where way too many kids can't read or write English or do basic math, to be replaced with "privatized" schools. Privatized education, where there will be actual accountability, excellent efficiency, and much much better results. Our kids need to read!






are you self-absorbed?



from ABC News

"A Pew study released Thursday shows 59 percent of millennials described their generation as "self-absorbed."


Really? By "self-absorbed" do they mean being on their cell phone 100% of the time and being 100% unaware of anything else around them, including other cars and other people?

And where on earth did millennials get the idea that this is a good thing?






more government more cats



From MyNewsLA

A Los Angeles City Council committee will consider Wednesday a proposal to raise the number of cats allowed per household from three to five.

Los Angeles households are currently only allowed to keep a maximum of three spayed or neutered cats, whether indoor or outdoor.

Under the proposal before the council’s Personnel and Animal Welfare Committee, households would be able to keep up to five spayed or neutered cats, though all must be kept indoors.

If the Animal Services Department’s proposal is ultimately approved by the full City Council, the City Attorney’s Office would be asked to prepare and bring back an ordinance with the new cat limit.


Allowing more cats? THIS is what the Los Angeles City Council is spending taxpayer time and money on? Apparently, deciding whether or not to allow people to have 2 more cats in L.A. is more important to the elected City Council than creating jobs, reducing the absolute horrific traffic congestion, reducing local taxes and regulations, and promoting more affordable housing - NONE of which they have done in the past decade. Instead, the Los Angeles City Council has been cat napping.






get a real life




Smartphone and tablet users just can't get enough of their mobile devices. Some do nearly everything with phone in hand.

U.S. consumers spend, on average, three hours and 40 minutes each day on their mobile devices, an increase of 35% from a year ago in the second quarter of 2014. And that time spent on mobile devices continues to increase, said Simon Khalaf, senior vice president of publishing products at Yahoo.

Globally there are 280 million "mobile addicts," who use apps more than 60 times daily. Effectively, "these folks are conducting their lives on mobile," Khalaf said.


People are conducting their entire life on a mobile device? If that continues, I predict that human interaction will eventually cease to exist, leading to the extinction of the concepts of "right and wrong" and causing bad anti-human things to become commonplace and acceptable in society. If you don't believe me just read the classic science fiction of the 1940's and 1950's. Then, get off your phone - and get a real life!






bicycling in belgium




rider not using the bike lane

When it comes to bicycling, Los Angeles thinks it's Belgium. Or Beijing. It's not. Unlike Belgium or Beijing, L.A. is spread out, encompassing over 400 square miles.

The L.A. City Council, as a major priority, wants area residents to bicycle everywhere, even though in many cases that is 100% impractical. Many area residents commute dozens of miles to work everyday, each way, via freeway. Many people shop for food, filling an entire shopping cart, and simply cannot lug their food home via a bicycle.

Regardless of the common sense and the reality, L.A. is in the process of converting hundreds of miles of streets and roadways into "bicycle lanes". To do that, the government is taking away a lane of traffic from those streets, thus making the horrific traffic congestion in L.A. even worse. Does that make any sense at all???

Here is an event I personally witnessed at 6:45 PM on Tuesday, August 25, 2015:

I was driving my car north on a newly "bicycle-laned" major street near where I live. It was beautiful summer evening. As I was driving I noticed that there were no bicycle riders ahead of me using the bicycle lane. Not one bicyclist. I looked in my rear view mirror and finally saw one, a twenty-something guy pedaling his bike in the new bike lane. As I watched him, he rode in the bicycle lane for about a block then veered onto the sidewalk, where he rode for several more blocks. Why on earth did he leave the dedicated bicycle lane and continue riding his bike on the uneven, cracked and broken sidewalks of L.A., weaving around pedestrians? I don't know.

I DO know that it makes no sense to add hundreds of miles of bicycle lanes to the streets of L.A., at taxpayer expense, and make vehicular traffic congestion worse, if the bicycle riders are not even going to use the bicycle lanes!

People in Belgium and Beijing and in other places around the world do indeed ride their bikes everywhere. In many other places, bicycling makes sense. for work and play, where distances are short. Los Angeles, however, is spread out. In L.A., it is common to have to travel 10-20 miles or more to get to where you want, and need, to go. And the buses and subway often don't go anywhere close to where you want to go. Unfortunately, all too often, in Los Angeles, you do need a car.

Los Angeles is not Belgium. Or Beijing. And, regarding bicycling lanes, the Los Angeles city government, no matter what it thinks or what it does, will not and cannot make it so.






3-year-old mayor



the 3-year-old Mayor

from Reuters.com

"A freckled-faced three-year-old boy has gotten a few valuable pieces of advice from his six-year-old bother since he succeeded his elder sibling as mayor of a small town in northern Minnesota.

"I told him to be nice when you talk to people and don't say any poopy talk," Robert Tufts said, relaying the conversation he had with his younger brother James after he became ceremonial mayor of Dorset, Minnesota, on Aug. 2.

James was named mayor of the town of 22 residents during the annual Taste of Dorset food festival. His name was drawn from a bucket during a $1 raffle to become mayor for a year,"



Maybe this should be the way we elect ALL politicians!