(Sorry Mr. Shakespeare for borrowing your work..)

All the world's a stage and the many politicians merely players
they have their so called issues.. and agendas
and those who blindly agree
too bad one of them is not the unique one called "me"

The first act is the Republican with all his grand and glory
claimed those unpatriotic and treasonous if they dare to ask "if only"
..if you would fight to agree that the money be shared with the lowly "me"
but they are happy in their masks of red white and blue
and say screw you from their pretended thrones of gold

The Second act is the Democrat.. with his chest swollen proud
his deed of "doing good" is boasted from sea to sea
Yet it seems to this "me" that the cameras needn't be
always present to flash their bulbs and record this pretense of a good deed which is phony at best.. and done as an act of pseudo chivalry

The Final Act is the Independent.. breathing fire and brimstone on the backs
of the first and second acts.. yet their egos held high
above of our heads.. and even the heavens in the sky
They pretend they are the gods of our democracy
but all is a load of crap.. to blind us.. or is this my imagination
but let everyone know if by chance you agree..

I just wanted to take a moment to share with you all the wonderful strong ladies I have had in my life. Perhaps it will help you gain an understanding of why I turned out to be the feisty lil lady of today.. or perhaps it will just be a bit of enjoyable reading.. whatever..

My Grandma:
This lady had it hard from the get go. She knew very little of her father..in her memoirs she only said he was a criminal and never had anything to do with her.
She lived with her mom, selfish step sister and very cruel step father. The beginning of her story is not much unlike Cinderella. She had a tiny room up in the attic and whenever they had meals.. she was just given enough.
Eventually, her step father .. who knows why kicked her out of the home to live out on her own. She was very young.. I think around 16.. and she told me once.. with a very pained face of how she tore out the screen of the front door and crouched between the two doors and just cried. Her mom would sneak food out to her whenever she could. Yet, it wasn't nearly enough to sustain her.
She had to work..which thank god..back in that time.. kids her age were allowed to do.. I don't think the child labor laws were anything like they were today. She met my Grandpa.. when she was still fairly young.. I am not clear exactly how old... but he was a kind man .. from what I heard .. and took her under his wing.. and they got married and started to have a family in very hard times.
Her husband became too ill to work and my Grandma became one of those ladies you see represented by the Rosie the Riveter posters. She worked drilling the bolts into those WWI planes.. and the noise did bother her quite a bit.. She supported her husband and 7 kids on her own. They had one room that was built from a grain silo. It was tough times in the Midwest in those days but somehow my family always was able to pull through often hear hilarious stories from my dad about how the kids would misbehave.. try to take the only family car they had for a spin.. or come home a bit on the drunk side. My grandma was always good with ruling the family with a firm yet kind hand.
One fateful day.. my grandma found her husband by a tree in a nearby location from the family home. Despite all her efforts to keep her family from harms way.. the illness my Grandpa had been inflicted with had come to claim him. She was now left alone with raising 7 kids.. as well as working to keep everyone alive.
This was perhaps the darkest chapter in my dear Grandma's life. She was a survivor ..yes.. but the pressures of taking on this responsibility.. and there was a mysterious man with whom she had a relationship with. I never really heard what exactly went down.. but he hurt her very deeply.. and it resulted with her burning down some of his property.. some say his house.. some say other things. I don't know.. but my poor Grandma had a nervous breakdown and ended up spending some time in the mental ward. It was here that she discovered she had an artistic talent. I remember a beautiful sculpture she did of the praying hands.. the detail.. was absolutely amazing.. I would often admire this piece when I was at her house. Another discovery she made .. that had a lot to do with her recovery and great inner strength was Christianity. I may not be christian anymore.. but her relationship with God was touching...and still gets to me.. when I think about it.
She met her second husband at work.. a good man.. but seemingly grumpy and not very sociable. When they were about to marry .. her eldest daughter.. Margie.. took issue about it.. Grandma just sat her down and told her, " Hey.. I am going to marry him because he is a good man.. and I love him.. and he will take care of us!" My Grandma had a way with making you listen and Margie did!!
They married..and all was happy and fruitful.. her kids grew up had children of their own..I am the child of her naughtiest son.. yeah.. imagine that. Her husband did pass away when I was in kindergarten.. he was the only grandpa I knew. Once he gave me a ride home.. and I was soo scared of him.. but then he smiled sweetly at me.. and it calmed me down. He was a very good spirit. Another sad event was my Grandma saw her eldest son die. That just ripped her sweet heart out along with her granddaughter.. my sister's lil baby angel that died just short of turning one.
Yet, if anyone in the family was suffering.. my Grandma would be the first to rescue us.. she was never a rich lady..but she would do the best to either fly us home or get us the help we needed. She also became locally famous for her paintings.. A landscape including the grain elevators is still present in the state capitol in Topeka. She was just delighted when I shared her enthusiasm of art. Our last conversation was about continuing with my talent and saying to heck with all those stuck up so called art critics that put out work down.
Grandma had a stroke and was taken always her independence and freedom.. to take that away from her is like taking her heart out of her chest.. This lady who would paint an entire house in her 70's was miserable lying on the bed in the old folk's home.. just shy of making the new millennium she gave up her life to god and left us.
Even up to this day I think of her and use her as inspiration in my tough times in my life.

My spirit lies adrift
in the cruel confines of a gilded cage
free to only dream wistfully
or to bash my head in rage
I want to run loose and feel the wild breeze
I want to see the forbidden sight
that only the untamed soul sees
I yearned to come this
but now that I have it I no longer know
if it was worth giving up my freedoms
for this once unattainable goal
The maddened soul wants to return to the unfettered track
I want all those making unfair judgments
to get off my formerly corrupted back
give me some slack
you daunted pig headed juries of the civilized world
who lives life from point A to B
give it up.. and keep your questioning eyes under those heavy brows so furled
I will be the me I wish to be.. and there is nothing else I want to be
you will have to either take it or leave it..
but there's no coming back ..if it's understanding of the me you lack
you might find me off track... but I doubt you will find
that there will be a spirit as inspired and natural
as in this one.. it's precious and one of a kind

Your eyes have darkened my love
to the cold dark place that makes you low
I will protect your heart my love
until the warm kind rays of sunshine
reclaim your saddened soul

You spirits need nestling my love
come lay by my side
I will protect your mind my love
until I am assured you will be ok

Your arms seem lost and limp
let me drape you with my own
I will protect your body my love
My embrace will be your home

You may drip of charm
and the finer things of life
yet you're so called style has no claim on me
I won't be your Stepford Wife

You may try to whisper sweet falsehoods
and soothe my passionate fire
You can't tempt with your plastic desire
I won't be your Stepford Wife

So go ahead shower me with gold and trinkets
take me the Greece or Rome
buy me the most posh of million dollar homes
but I won't be your Stepford Wife

I may clean or cook that well
or follow that crappy Martha Stewart bull
I won't sell my soul to your conformist hell
I won't be your Stepford Wife

One thing you will get from me is the love of a Tigress
protecting it's cubs within a warm lair
a free spirit with leaves and grass in my hair
still I won't be your Stepford Wife

I am striving to be the best smart ass ever!!
http://www.sodahead.com/question/155217/

He used to live in Florida and just recently moved to Beverly Hills to start his career as a male model.. and artist or photographer or something like that.. he doesn't get out much b/c he travels a lot and hasn't had a chance to get out and meet people.. and it doesn't hurt that the man is a hottie..:))
http://www.sodahead.com/my/profile/

In Case You Were Wondering, Palin Is A Big Fat Liar!

Email Print posted by Meme Magus 09/02/2008 05:24:25 AM EST

In Palin's speech she said, "As governor, I've stood up to the old politics-as-usual, to the special interests, to the lobbyists, the big oil companies, and the good-ol'-boy network,".

According to MSNBC Palin, "employed a lobbying firm to secure almost $27 million in federal earmarks for a town of 6,700 residents while she was its mayor, according to an analysis by an independent government watchdog group."

I expect politicians to lie, but to lie this blatantly shows that Palin is either extremely stupid, or a panderer like her "soul-mate" McCain. How anyone can defend her is beyond me.

$27 million for a town of less than 8,000 (I have heard so many different numbers that I am going to remain vague intentionally) is an alarming figure. McCain really has picked someone who's corruption rivals his own.

post comments to the author of this blog here
http://www.theyoungturks.com/story/2008/9/2/52425/88241/Diary...

I just wanted to share my morning with all of you.. since you have been all so kind and caring concerning my issues with my marriage..
This morning my husband simply by 1.) sharing he thought I looked pretty 2.)hitting me with those sweet brown eyes.. and 3.) sharing his usual humor reminded me of hwy I married him..
I was being all silly gloom doom while I went out on a cold fall like chill to walk and jog some.. and when I was done dressing from work.. my partner in life seemed to come back to me.. in all his original glory ( sweet and charming as he was when we first met)
Once again.. I think I can see myself growing old with him.. and having a baby or two.. once again... I feel as though we can continue through whatever hardships and make it out alright with one another..
We have been through a perpetual hell and back.. perhaps I was just worn out and pessimistic.. I don't know.. temporary insanity.. or perhaps I am crazy right now.
He has been the one to get me out of some major funks in the past.. and to hold me when I cried about past family tragedies... perhaps I have been too hard on him
This might last just a day.. the weekend.. who knows.. maybe forever.. but I guess what I am saying it that now.. I am reminded the work it takes to keep a marriage going.. and as of right now I feel up to the job..

again.. not written by me :))
Blogs » Adam Knight's blog
Thinking about voting for McCain? Don't.

Are you considering McCain for president? Think he’ll help out with the Iraq mess? Think again. Six months before September 2001 he was already pushing for war in Iraq, even if we couldn’t get people to go with us. Yes, this was before the attacks on America. This was before they were considered a direct threat by any stretch of the truth. This was before the administration had an excuse to invade. Before that, he was already drumming up support for a peacetime invasion of a country that had done nothing to us.

Which is to say that while he’ll talk up the attacks and talk up all the events since then, he’s a member of the group of Republicans that has been wanting to go into Iraq ever since Bush Sr. refused to in ’91. His agenda is quite clearly not what he says it is for remaining there, and remain there we will as he’s said, repeatedly, that we could be there for over one hundred years.

One. Hundred. Years.

Can it get worse? Sure it can. McCain is expected to select Rudy as his running mate. Mr. 9/11 himself. Why is the dollar crashing? 9/11. Why can’t we get healthcare? 9/11. Why is my dog at the pound? 9/11. Yeah, him. By all accounts, McCain/9/11 would be worse for America than Bush/Cheney ever was (and make no mistake, they’re the worst pair ever put into office).

Even Pat Buchanan chimed in: McCain “will make Cheney look like Gandhi.”

Voting in the Republican primary? Vote for anyone else. Vote for your plumber. Don’t support this man.

Registered Democrat or independent and have a choice of which to vote in? Fear Hillary as well. She’s no better than McCain. Really.

Our greatest fear as Americans should be a McCain vs. Clinton general election. There will be no hope left if that happens.


ON IRAQ, GOP SPLIT OVER GAINING WORLD RESPECT OR ENFORCING IT

March 3, 2001

When Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) battled George W. Bush for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000, one of the few GOP senators who supported McCain was Nebraska’s Charles Hagel, a fellow Vietnam veteran.

But today, McCain and Hagel define the poles of Republican thinking on Iraq.

McCain, who’s often feuded with President Bush on domestic policy, has become one of the administration’s staunchest supporters on Iraq. Hagel, who’s been closer to Bush on home-front issues, has emerged as perhaps the congressional Republican most critical of the administration’s strategy for confronting Saddam Hussein.

While never rejecting the use of force, Hagel has repeatedly warned that the United States must disarm Iraq in a way that reinforces international alliances. In that, he’s close to Democratic “tough doves,” such as Gen. Wesley K. Clark, the former NATO supreme allied commander. McCain has become the champion for the hard-line, neoconservative thinkers who want to move quickly against Iraq, no matter how many countries agree.

This argument between two friends crystallizes the choices America faces at a perplexing moment when our military power is unmatched and our sense of security is unraveling.

Hagel believes that to succeed in the struggle against terrorism and weapons proliferation, the U.S. needs cooperation from allies. “All of [our] great power will not be enough to assure American security and prosperity in the 21st century. The threats to both our country and the world will require strengthened alliances,” Hagel said.

Therefore, he argues, if we go to war in Iraq in a way that divides us from our allies, we could harm our security more than help it. “If that is the price of waging war in Iraq, then victory … in the war on terrorism, in the Middle East, on the Korean peninsula, and against weapons of mass destruction, will not be ours,” he said in a recent speech.

In the broad sense, that means we must be humble in our approach to foreign policy, respectful of others’ views, aware of anxieties about our motivations and power, and committed to solving problems multilaterally whenever possible. “We must avoid the traps of hubris and imperial temptation that come with great power,” Hagel said.

More immediately, he said, before we go to war, we should give inspections another “two or three months,” with a firm deadline for Iraqi compliance, to build international consensus. That way, he said, “if a military option is required, we would have the legitimacy of the United Nations, our allies and world opinion.”

Hagel also insists we must balance our military thrusts against terrorism with global initiatives to solve problems that he believes breed extremism, such as poverty and hunger. “Military power alone will not end this scourge of mankind,” he said.

At the same time, the United States should build international goodwill by renewing our efforts to broker agreements between Israel and the Palestinians, Hagel argues. And we should be sanguine about neoconservative claims that a war in Iraq will trigger a democratic domino effect across the Mideast; that will require the hard work of specific initiatives to encourage economic development and educational reform across the region.

McCain marches from very different premises to very different conclusions.

The new “existential” risk of terrorism, he argues, compels America to act boldly against emerging risks around the globe. To safeguard its security, the United States cannot rely on others, either international institutions such as the United Nations or traditional European allies, much less the Arab world.

“Does anyone really believe that the world’s will to contain Saddam won’t eventually collapse, as utterly as it did in the 1990s?” McCain said in a mid-February speech.

In this dangerous environment, the U.S. must be willing to act alone, not only in Iraq but in North Korea, if necessary. While other nations “may risk their own populations, the United States will do whatever it must to guarantee the security of the American people,” he wrote in January. “And spare us the usual lectures about American unilateralism.”

While Hagel believes the U.S. must demonstrate its commitment to international institutions, McCain reverses the equation: He argues that international institutions must demonstrate they are still relevant to American security by supporting military action against Iraq.

“Should great powers determine that multilateral institutions such as NATO and the [U.N.] Security Council cannot protect their interests when they are imperiled, countries will increasingly be tempted to go it alone,” he warned at a conference in Germany last month.

While Hagel attributes much of the tension with traditional allies to American actions, McCain pins most of the blame on the “calculated self-interest” of France and Germany and “Arab tyrants” who fear the example of a democratic, post-Hussein Iraq.

As a result, McCain argues that we cannot delay an invasion much longer for an international consensus that may never come. McCain also puts much less emphasis than Hagel on the role of economic development, or new efforts to broker an Israeli-Palestinian peace, in discouraging terrorism. And he is much more optimistic that the overthrow of Hussein will encourage a democratic chain reaction through the region.

In all, while Hagel argues that broadening international cooperation is the key to security in this new era, McCain believes “credibility” in delivering military force is the top priority. The one is focused on winning respect; the other on enforcing it.

Hagel is 10 years younger than McCain. But McCain is closer to the thinking in the emerging generation of conservative foreign policy thinkers inside and outside the Bush administration. Hagel is upholding an earlier Republican foreign policy tradition, a sober realism that worries about overreach, backlash, the law of unintended consequences.

Both men know better than most that war is a risky, unpredictable business. But like the nation, they have divided on whether the greater risk in Iraq is that America will act so quickly that it alienates its friends, or wait so long that it emboldens its enemies.

Submitted by Adam Knight on February 8, 2008 - 10:57am.

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and if you wish to comment to Knight go here..
http://www.hopelessgeek.com/2008/02/08/thinking-about-voting-...