STORY OF THE DAY - CLOSE TO THE GROUND

I still fly a lot in my dreams, she told us, but I try to 
stay close to the ground. At my age, a fall can be pretty 
serious.

Indeed.  :-)

From StoryPeople.

SPEAKING OF NIGHTMARES

John Fuseli - The Nightmare

Early this morning, I had not one, but two nightmares.  The first is all but forgotten, but it involves a head-and-shoulders picture of a young woman with reddish-brown hair, wearing a green dress or blouse.  In some way, the picture is vitally important in my nightmare and causes me great anxiety, but why I don't remember.  I woke up, went to the bathroom, and went back to bed.  The question as to whether I dream in color is definitively answered.

I slept again, as I was worn out, only to begin another nightmare.  The second nightmare is one that recurs.  Grandpère hurries me to leave to catch a plane to somewhere or other, and I realize that I've forgotten to pack several vital items, which I cannot do without.  Anxiety, sturm und drang, GP saying, "We have to leave now!", and me saying, "No, we can't!  I have more to pack!"  The items included, medications, vitamins, and a jacket, among other things.  There I am scrambling ineffectively to gather up what I need to stow in the suitcases, with GP saying all the while , "We have to go!  We have to go!" and me saying, "Wait!  Wait!"

Because I am chronically late, and GP usually hurries me along whenever we go anywhere together, my second nightmare is somewhat of a replay of real life, except that the scene plays out with me intensely fearful and anxious. Then, as usual, I woke up with the entire scenario unresolved and me exhausted already, and having to face the day ahead.  What kind of rest is that?

Some of the experts on dreams say that we dream in metaphors, and the key is to discover the significance of the metaphors.  Others, Jungian types, say all the people in our dreams are aspects of ourselves.  Whatever.  Two nightmares in one morning is too much.

Image from Wikipedia.

JESUS TRAPPED NIGHTMARE

 

By nakedpastor.

PRAYING FOR A LOTTERY WIN

Mega Millions lottery tickets from New Jersey and New York, 2012

John, who was in financial difficulty, walked into a church and started to pray. ''Listen God,'' John said. ''I know I haven't been perfect, but I really need to win the lottery.  I don't have a lot of money.  Please help me out.''

He left the church, a week went by, and he hadn't won the lottery, so he walked into a synagogue.  ''Come on, God,'' he said. ''I really need this money.  My mom needs surgery and I have bills to pay.   Please let me win the lottery.''

He left the synagogue, a week went by, and he didn't win the lottery.  So, he went to a mosque and started to pray again. ''You're starting to disappoint me, God,'' he said. ''I've prayed and prayed.  If you just let me win the lottery, I'll be a better person.  I don't have to win the jackpot, just enough to get me out of debt.  I'll give some to charity, even.  Just let me win the lottery.'' John thought this did it, so he got up and walked outside.

The clouds opened up and a booming voice said, ''John, buy a frigging lottery ticket.''


Cheers,

Paul (A.)

Is there a lesson here?

Picture from Wikipedia.

ELEPHANT REVIVAL - "BAREFOOT FRIEND"

From their album, "Break in the Clouds."

VASELINE CONTINUED...

Q. Did you hear what happened to the poor young couple that confused Vaseline and putty? 

A. All their windows fell out!

Two of my readers submitted the joke above, so what could I do?  Blame Charley and David.

BLOGGING LIFE WITHOUT PASSION

 

What am I passionate about today?  Nothing, really.  Nor was I passionate yesterday, so I didn't write anything original on my blog.  I posted a joke from my good friend Paul (A.), and I reached for the bottom to celebrate the 200th birthday of Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen's chef-d'oeuvre, by quoting myself, surely the nadir in blogging creativity.   Nor was I passionate on the day before.  I wanted to be entertained and amused, rather than offer entertainment and amusement.  So what did I do with all the free time on Sunday?  I attended the annual church meeting and the service that followed and did a little shopping for a few necessities on the way home.

When I returned home, I put my up my feet and finished the book I was reading, The Soldier's Wife by Joanna Trollope, light fiction which I need from time to time to clear my brain.  Next up were three episodes of the TV series Treme on DVD, which I'm receiving in sequence from Netflix and watching for the first time, because we do not subscribe to HBO.  I'm loving the series.  The creators and actors in the show get New Orleans as right as any show or movie I've seen, and I've seen my share of attempts that were excruciatingly awful.  I find myself jotting down some of the best dialogue from the show and whatever else looks good and funny.  Caution: Strong language.

LaDonna Batiste-Williams, on the refusal by her musician brother, Delmond Lambreaux, who has moved to NYC, to stay in New Orleans for a while to help their father, Albert, a Mardi Gras Indian chief, whose home has been destroyed:

Delmond: "I got a gig."

LaDonna: "We all got a gig.  That's goddam life."
-------------------

Creighton Bernette, a professor of English at Tulane University speaking with a reporter in th days following the disaster:

Reporter: For the sake of argument, let's say New Orleans was, once, a great city...

Creighton: Are you saying that New Orleans is not a great city, a city that lives in the imagination of the world?

Reporter: I suppose if you're a fan of the music, which has rather seen it's day, let's be honest. Or the food, a provincial cuisine which many would say is typically American: too fat; too rich. And, yes of course, New Orleans has its advocates, but what about the rest of the country?

Creighton: Provincial, passé, hate the food, hate the music, hate the city. What the fuck are you doin' down here you fuckin' limey vulture motherfucker?
-----------------

Creighton: "This ain't Lake Wobegone, goddamit!"
------------------

Themes for some of the floats in the Krewe de Vieux parade as shown in the show during the first Mardi Gras following Katrina and the federal flood:

"C'est Levee!"

"Buy us back, Chirac!"

"Mandatory Ejaculation"

"France, please buy us back!" was an oft-heard expression of disgust and frustration at the efforts of all levels of government in the aftermath of Katrina and the federal flood. 

Close on the heels of Treme came Downton Abbey, which I remembered to watch, unlike the previous Sunday, when I had to wait for the replay on Monday and watch on the computer.  If you've watched both TV shows, you know what a mind-bending adjustment is required for the transition.  If you haven't, then you'll have to take my word for it.

Spoiler alert!  Do not read further if you haven't watched the episode and want to watch later. The death of Sybil, the sweetest of the three Grantham daughters, was very sad and perhaps unnecessary.  When the time drew near for Sibyl to deliver, Lord Grantham insisted on calling the "town" doctor, Sir Philip Tapsell, rather than have the kindly local Dr Clarkson attend the birth, because he wanted the best for his daughter, I knew there would be trouble.  And Lady Grantham wished to heed the advice of good Dr Clarkson, which, if followed, might have saved Sybil's life.  Alas.

Bates' story is being drawn out to the point of tedium.  If suspense over Bates' fate is intended to keep us interested in watching Downton Abbey, then the effect on me is the opposite.  Please get on with the story. 

Passion comes, and passion goes.  Before too very long, I assume some bit of news of the stupidity of people in high places will come along and rouse my passion once again.

Cartoon from someecards.

VASELINE

A man doing market research for the Vaseline Company knocked at the door and was greeted by a young woman with three small children running around at her feet. "I'm doing some research for Vaseline. Have you ever used the product?"

She said, "Oh, yes. My husband and I use it all the time."

"If you don't mind my asking," he said, "what do you use it for?"

"We use it for sex," she said.

The researcher was a little taken aback. "Usually people lie to me and say they use it on a child's bicycle chain or to help with a gate hinge. But, in fact, I know that most people do use it for sex. I admire you for your honesty. Since you've been so frank so far, can you tell me exactly HOW you use it for sex?"

The woman said, "I don't mind telling you at all. My husband and I put it on the doorknob and it keeps the kids out."


Cheers,

Paul (A.)

Ha ha ha.  You know who is to blame. 

I use Vaseline as a face cream, because I'm allergic to most other facial moisturizing products, including those that claim to be hypoallergenic.  Just saying.  :-)

HAPPY 200TH BIRTHDAY TO "PRIDE AND PREJUDICE"!

In a good many earlier posts, I've written of the enormous influence of Jane Austen's novels on my entire life.  The words below are excerpted and edited from my post titled. "It's Only a Novel".

As a 16 year old living in a tumultuous household, Jane Austen's novels were balm to my troubled soul. What sparkling wit! No fiction writer is Austen's equal in writing dialogue. What limpid prose! Reading Jane was sheer delight, not to mention that reading her books took me out of myself and out of my environment. After reading the first of her novels, which happened to be Pride and Prejudice, and which is still my favorite although I dearly love them all, I rushed to read the other five. I wanted to be Elizabeth Bennet. I read Jane's novels, and I read them again, and again, and again, up until now, and when I need cleansing and freshening from the load of drivel in print and on the tee-vee, I plunge into the novels and come away refreshed and renewed.  One last thing: I believe that reading Jane Austen's novels in my impressionable teen years contributed for the good to the formation of my moral center, which should give pause to anyone who says, "It's just a novel."

Jane's gift for irony is, to me, unsurpassed. Disclosure: my alcoholic and verbally abusive father had a gift for irony which was not always inflicted on his wife and daughters, and I learned from him to view our mad world through ironic eyes. I owe him for his gifts of books from an early age and for encouraging me to read by always having books and magazines around the house, even when my mother had to borrow grocery money from extended family. We never lacked for music, either. There's irony for you. To this day, I feel sorry for my poor mother's plight, but, in my heart of hearts, I can't regret that the books and music were present.

So.  My tribute to Jane Austen and her lovely novel, originally titled First Impressions, which is 200 years old today, is a rehash but is no less fervent and admiring than if I'd written the words today.

Thanks to MM for sending me the link to an article in The Atlantic, which shows covers of many different editions of P&P that have been published over the years.  

ELEPHANT REVIVAL - "NOSTALGIA"

Elephant Revival, was brought to my attention a couple of weeks ago, and I thought their sound was terrific, so I ordered their album, "Break in the Clouds." The song in the video, performed at the Americana Music Festival and filmed by Music Fog, is, as yet, unreleased.

THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN SOUTH CAROLINA

Click for the larger view

When the former leaders of the Episcopal diocese left the church, they initiated a suit to keep the name, assets, and property of the diocese in their control. A judge issued a temporary restraining order yesterday.

A state judge this week issued a temporary restraining order saying the diocese is the only group that can use the name Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina. A hearing on whether to make the order permanent is set for next month in Columbia. So one of the things the group must do is give themselves a working title.

Again from The Lead:

A photo from the convention of the Episcopal Church in South Carolina - temporary name for the diocese and missing seal.

I hope and pray the loyal Episcopalians in the original diocese in South Carolina will have their name restored, but, in any case, life goes on in the continuing diocese.  "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."  Their choice of a working title is excellent.

The faithful members of the diocese met in convention and elected a provisional bishop:

The Most Reverend Katharine Jefferts Schori was celebrant and preacher at a Choral Eucharist that opened the Convention. After his installation, Bishop [Charles Glenn] vonRosenberg addressed the Convention. The Reverend Gay Clark Jennings, President of the House of Deputies of The Episcopal Church, also addressed the Convention. She was one of many Church leaders from across the nation who traveled to Charleston to show support for continuing Episcopalians in South Carolina.

----------------------

Welcome!

The Episcopal Church in South Carolina is continuing. We are reorganizing with renewed dedication to carry forward the work of our Lord Jesus Christ, just as prior generations have done since 1789. We have much to do and  many challenges to meet, but we are confident that by moving forward together in unity and faith, with God's help, we will flourish.

Your participation in this new ministry is encouraged. The Episcopal Church always welcomes you!

Blessings and prayers for Bishop Glenn and the continuing members of the historic diocese.  May the peace of God that passes all understanding keep their hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

STORY OF THE DAY - VOICE OF REASON

Sometimes I think I should just keep my opinions 

to myself, she said, but someone has got to be the 

voice of reason.

From StoryPeople.

I HEAR YOU KNOCKING - FATS DOMINO

Friday night with Fats Domino.

Antoine Dominique "Fats" Domino Jr. (born February 26, 1928) is an American R&B and rock and roll pianist and singer-songwriter. He was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. Domino is French Creole and Creole was his first language. Domino was delivered at home by his midwife grandmother. Like most families in the Lower Ninth Ward, Domino's family were new arrivals from Vacherie, Louisiana.  His father was a well known violinist, and Domino was inspired to play himself. He eventually learned from his uncle, jazz guitarist Harrison Verrett.  Fats released five gold (million-copy-selling) records before 1955.  Domino also had 35 Top 40 American hits and has a music style based on traditional R&B ensembles of bass, piano, electric guitar, drums, and saxophone.

UN LAUNCHES INVESTIGATION ON DRONE ATTACKS

The United Nations has launched an investigation into the use of unmanned drone strikes and targeted killings in counterterrorism operations.

The probe will investigate 25 strikes in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, Afghanistan, and the Palestinian territories. It also will focus on civilian killings and injuries caused by the strikes.

British lawyer Ben Emmerson, the U.N. special envoy on counterterrorism and human rights, will carry out the probe.

Emmerson says the use of drone technology is "here to it stay," adding it is imperative that "appropriate legal and operational structures are urgently put in place to regulate its use."

Most attacks by unmanned drones have been carried out by the United States.  Israel has used them and other nations have access to the technology. 

It's about time.  Although President Obama did not mention the drone war in his inaugural address, the drone attacks in Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia may well kill terrorists, but the attacks also kill innocents, including women, children, and people who happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.  The attacks are not as precise as the administration claims.  In addition, fear of drone attacks traumatizes people who live in the areas where the attacks occur.  It's accountability time, and I hope the investigation by the UN sheds more light than the Obama administration has been willing to do.

JESUS AND MO - GUESS

 

Click on the strip for the larger view.

From Jesus and Mo.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRANDPÈRE!

May you have a great day, Tom!

My gift to Tom will be a nice pair of jeans.  When we go out to eat or to a movie, Tom will often ask if he can wear his jeans, and I have to say, "No, not with me."  People wear jeans nearly everywhere, but Tom's jeans are another matter.  They're from Walmart, which would not be so bad, but they usually have holes in them or are stained with black grease or blood from the many small and not-so-small wounds he accumulates from his yard work.  The other day, I persuaded him to go to a store other than Walmart to try on nicer jeans.  It took us a while and many tries before he found a pair that suited him, so now he has one pair that he can wear to a restaurant or a movie and look decent.  Now that I know the style and size, I will buy him another pair for his birthday, and he will have two, which should do nicely for now.

Tom doesn't like to have too much made of his birthday, because it's sort of a sad day for him, since he's one year older, but I see birthdays as a reason for celebrating having made it through another year more or less intact.  Glass half-full or half-empty?   

He's off working at the boat center today.  He was on TV a few nights ago on Channel 8 in New Orleans.  The reporters visited the center and did a fine job with a lovely news piece on the museum during the nightly news.    

FOX 8 WVUE New Orleans News, Weather, Sports New Orleans News, Weather, Sports

NEW BUBBLE SITES AT BAYOU CORNE SINKHOLE

 

BAYOU CORNE — Eleven new bubble sites have been found in inundated swampland west of an 8.5-acre sinkhole in northern Assumption Parish, including a frothing spot dubbed the “mother of all bubble sites,” officials said Tuesday.

The sites are roughly in a row west of an unnamed oilfield access road extending south from La. 70 South through the wooded swamp, a parish map shows.

The sites bring to 34 the number of known bubble sites in the Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou areas in the vicinity of the sinkhole on Texas Brine Co. LLC’s leased property.

My guess is that the people who were ordered to evacuate from their homes last year will very likely never be able to return.  The troubling situation in the area is worsening, and who knows when or where it will end?  I wonder if further numbers of residents of nearby areas may be asked to leave.  Highway 70, a much used road, is near the sinkhole activity.  If the highway is impacted and forced to close, it will greatly inconvenience workers and travelers in the area. 

The "mother of all bubble sites"

If we take stuff out from under the ground beneath us, why are we surprised when the ground beneath us collapses?  When will we ever learn?

LUTHERAN ORDINARIATE? THANKS, BUT NO THANKS

Two leading Lutheran clerics have rejected suggestions from the Vatican that it could create a subdivision for converted Lutherans similar to its structures for Anglicans who join the Roman Catholic Church.
....

Bishop Friedrich Weber, the German Lutheran liaison with the Catholic Church, said the idea was unthinkable and amounted to "an unecumenical incitement to switch sides."
....

Archbishop Gerhard Mueller, head of the Vatican's powerful doctrinal office, was reported in Catholic media last week as saying Rome might envisage a special section for Lutherans.

[The Rev Martin] Junge said very few Lutherans wanted to switch to the Catholic Church and creating a special subgroup for them would complicate ties between the churches and confuse Lutherans who wanted to work in harmony with Catholics.

I can only conclude that the arrogance of the authorities in the Roman Catholic Church is without bounds.  Lutheran leaders told Rome what to do with their my-way-or-the-highway offer for Lutherans to have their own separate pen similar to those of the converts to the Anglican Ordinariates.  Lutheran Bishop Weber suggested that those members who want to be in full communion with Rome should simply join the Roman Catholic Church, which I think is very sensible.  The "Anglicans" in the ordinariates are, in fact, Roman Catholic converts.

Thanks to Ann V for the link.  

BO - THE FIRST DOG

President Obama and Bo - BFF

"How could you?"

I love Bo's white boots.

Photos by Pete Souza and Sonya N. Hebert / The White House

MICHELLE OBAMA'S VIRAL EYE-ROLL

Was it something John Boehner said? :-D

Geaux, Michelle!

H/T to Addicting Info.  Thanks to Doug for sending the link.

KRUGMAN ON DEFICIT SCOLDS

The reality, first, is that the deficit scolds — who are, after all, making a living by scolding — depend on constant warnings of imminent fiscal crisis to drum up interest. Saying that it’s a longer-term issue, and not our first priority right now, is not something they can afford to hear.

Ain't that the truth?  Read Krugman's post.

NO BETTER CHOICE THAN PAUL

• Paul Ambos, Esq named acting Chancellor

Dear Friends in Christ, It is an honor to announce that, with the concurrence ofthe Standing Committee, I have appointed Paul Ambos, Esq., to theposition of Acting Chancellor of the Diocese of New Jersey.

That the position title includes the adjective “acting” is a reminder that this appointment is effective for the remainder of my tenure as Bishop Diocesan; that is, through November 2, 2013. It will be up to the Twelfth Bishop of New Jersey to determine – again, with the concurrence of the Standing Committee – who he or she will appoint to serve the Diocese in this ministry.
Paul Ambos is well known and widely respected in our diocese. For many years he has been active and effective in advancing the mission of our Church through his parish, this diocese and the wider Church. He has a keen intelligence, a faith-filled heart, a firm foundation in the Gospel of our Lord and an inexhaustible energy for our mission. Those who have attended our Convention in the past ten years and more are aware of the tremendous volume of work that Paul has contributed to the Convention through the Standing Committee on Constitution and Canons and the Committee on Resolutions. In addition, he presently serves as Senior Warden of Christ Church, New Brunswick and sings in their choir. His devotion to our Church is lived out in activities too numerous to mention. His service and sacrifice are exemplary.

I have had the privilege of working closely with Paul Ambos throughout my years as your Bishop. I have often drawn upon his wisdom, grace and good counsel. I have a very high regard for his love of our Lord and his loyalty to our Church. He is well-versed in the laws, statutes and canons that govern our lives and the life of our Church. I believe that he will be a wise counselor and strong advocate for the Diocese and for its Bishop. In the aftermath of the sudden death of our beloved brother, Canon Chancellor John Wood Goldsack, I believe that Paul is well qualified for the role of Chancellor and I have confidence in him.

This is an extraordinary season in the life of our Diocese. I am grateful for Paul and for all those leaders who are working so hard to help with an orderly transition to the next chapter of our ongoing mission in the name of Christ our Lord. Thank you. Thank God for you.

May the Lord who has given us the will to do these things, give us the grace and power to accomplish them, with joy. Right onward!

Faithfully yours in Christ,
 
+George
 
To think I knew Paul when he was only a member of a Standing Committee of the national church, Senior Warden of his parish, and member of the choir in his parish church, and look at him now, Acting Chancellor of the Diocese of New Jersey.  My question:  Do I have to call him "Sir"?

Seriously, I could not think of a better man.  Paul is a mensch. 
  
Blessings and congratulations on your appointment, my friend.  Amen to Bishop George's prayer.

UPDATE: Post corrected to show that Paul was not a member of the Standing Committee of the Episcopal Church, however he was was an early friend of Fr Jake, Worldstopper, which is where Paul and I "met".  Then, we met face to face in New York, at GC2009 in Anaheim, and again in New Jersey.  Paul and his wife Catherine are two of the finest people I know.    

---

WE THE PEOPLE

We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truths –- that all of us are created equal –- is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and unsung, who left footprints along this great Mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot walk alone; to hear a King proclaim that our individual freedom is inextricably bound to the freedom of every soul on Earth.

It is now our generation’s task to carry on what those pioneers began. For our journey is not complete until our wives, our mothers and daughters can earn a living equal to their efforts. Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law –- for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. Our journey is not complete until no citizen is forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to vote. Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity — until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country. Our journey is not complete until all our children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia, to the quiet lanes of Newtown, know that they are cared for and cherished and always safe from harm.

(Barack Obama - Second Inaugural Address - January 21, 2013)

IS THE WILL STILL ALIVE?

Icon by Tobias Haller

"In a few weeks some of us are coming to Washington to see if the will is still alive or if it is alive in this nation. We are coming to Washington in a Poor People’s Campaign. Yes, we are going to bring the tired, the poor, the huddled masses. We are going to bring those who have known long years of hurt and neglect. We are going to bring those who have come to feel that life is a long and desolate corridor with no exit signs. We are going to bring children and adults and old people, people who have never seen a doctor or a dentist in their lives.

We are not coming to engage in any histrionic gesture. We are not coming to tear up Washington. We are coming to demand that the government address itself to the problem of poverty. We read one day, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." But if a man doesn’t have a job or an income, he has neither life nor liberty nor the possibility for the pursuit of happiness. He merely exists.

We are coming to ask America to be true to the huge promissory note that it signed years ago. And we are coming to engage in dramatic nonviolent action, to call attention to the gulf between promise and fulfillment; to make the invisible visible.

(Sermon by Martin Luther King, Jr at the National Cathedral, Washington, DC, on 31 March 1968.  The Rev King was shot on April 4, 1968.)

Tobias Haller blogs at In a Godward Direction.

SWEARING IN IS DONE

Cancel tomorrow's festivities.

H/T to Athenae at First Draft.

ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION, BOBBY?

The recent mass killings in Tucson, Aurora and Newtown have sparked public conversations about the deficiencies in state-run mental health systems across the United States. But few states are poised to spend their own money to reverse as much as a decade of budget cutbacks in those areas.

Instead, many of them are counting on an infusion of federal mental-health dollars. Because Medicaid includes mental-health benefits, those states that opt into the Medicaid expansion included in President Obama’s Affordable Care Act will be able to make mental health coverage available to thousands of their citizens who do not now have it.
For the first three years that additional coverage would cost the states nothing: Under terms of the Affordable Care Act, the federal government  will cover 100 percent of the costs of new Medicaid enrollees for the first three years and 90 percent after 2020.

Louisiana is not presently known for its sterling mental health care system.  Nevertheless, our governor, Bobby Jindal, has opted out of the Medicaid expansion which would cover mental health care on conservative principles, but I wonder if he may reconsider.   The majority of the citizens of Louisiana are against any sort of regulation of firearms or ammunition, giving as their reason that it's not guns that kill people, but deranged individuals who manage to get their hands on guns who kill people.  How about it, members of the NRA in Louisiana?  Why not start a campaign to urge the governor to sign on to the expanded Medicaid program that will enable more persons with mental illness to get treatment? 

The mentally ill deserve the same treatment as those with physical illness, because it's the right thing to do, but whatever your motive behind opting into the Medicaid expansion, just do it, Governor.  The Medicaid expansion program would serve a good many people with physical illnesses and offer preventive care.  What's not to like?  If conservative principles prevent you from giving the citizens of Louisiana services they need, then, in the name of simple compassion for the well-being of the people you serve, you should ditch your principles.

Also, Governor, in the event you hadn't noticed, the line of Republican governors who refuse to participate in the Medicaid expansion program is broken.  I expect more Republican governors will decide to adopt the program, so you would not stand alone if you changed your mind.  Perhaps you and your good friend Rick Perry (Tweedledum and Tweedledee?) from Texas might have a conversation about a change in policy. 

Arizona will participate in the expansion of Medicaid, Gov. Jan Brewer said Monday in her State of the State address, making her the third Republican governor to agree to one of the key components of President Barack Obama's health care reform.

Brewer said that if she did not accept the Medicaid funds for Arizona, other states could claim those federal dollars and create jobs that otherwise would be created in Arizona. Fellow Republican governors Susana Martinez of New Mexico and Brian Sandoval of Nevada also plan to expand Medicaid to anyone who earns up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, which is currently $14,856 for an individual.

But 10 other Republican governors have already decided not to participate. The Supreme Court's 2012 ruling that affirmed Obama's health care law allows states to refuse to take part in the Medicaid expansion.

"TENSE" - A POEM

Tense

What was or is or will be, no sense

in this craving certainty

facts on which to safely stand, defense

the default pose of wisdom

as if all imperfect past pretense

of knowing could guarantee

passage through high reeds or forest dense

tangle of conformity

assumed, silent threat of violence

individuality

an idea, in practice the province

of lone eccentricity

tolerated in rare great talents

muffled in society

where ritual mutes the mass conscience

to accept disparity

as the price of managed turbulence

balance of security

held in place by a gossamer fence

decorum of brevity.

The perfect, not without flaw, complete.

Some believers claim just one

error free leader, teacher, God’s Son

fret that he/she/it with us is done

indulge the urge to compete

mark clear grace with penitence

as if the gift was some short-term loan

a debt re-paid in fragments

pain the test of unearned interest

currency of consequence.

Love, the real thing, is given, not lent

no tensile integrity

of high wire show, by no human rent

just response ability

the impulse to pray, a need intense

to veil the fragility

of subjunctive, iffy existence

in terms of nobility

power vested in high thrones

armaments, mobility

secrets glorified, the work of drones

scorched credibility

on the altar of the last unknowns

what shall not, cannot, should never be?

To lose the true living sense

present tense, that life is, is holy

each and every one intense

precious, not some beta test worthy

only if one can convince

some self-appointed authority

eager or reluctant prince

to hold Love bestowed as surety

against the void, the absence

of even one, small, humanity.

(Marthe G. Walsh)

"Love, the real thing is given, not lent..."   True and lovely words.  Thank you for the poem, Marthe.  It is all good.

"THE SON COMES OUT TO HIS MOM"

I like men, too, so everybody's happy?  It ain't necessarily so.

From nakedpastor.

THAT KRUGMAN GUY AGAIN

It’s looking increasingly as if House Republicans won’t crash the world economy by refusing to raise the debt ceiling, at least not right now. Score a big one for the White House (provisionally); its bet that it wouldn’t need a way to bypass the ceiling is looking like a winner (although it ain’t over until the tanned guy cries).

Paul nearly caused me to spew orange juice all over my keyboard with his final parenthetical comment.  Don't misunderstand me: Krugman has a biting wit, but it's not usually of the sort that will cause liquid to be spewed, so I was unprepared.

The reality that they will be blamed for a default seems finally to be dawning on Republicans.  That they would even contemplate such a move as not paying bills that the government owes seems quite reckless.  Their chief supporters of the GOP, investors, banks, and corporations, don't like the present uncertainty either.  Even now, the fact that the matter of the debt ceiling is not settled puts a drag on economic recovery.

DOGS WILL GET THEIR REWARD

Our Diana wearing her Mardi Gras beads

It is taught that in the World-to-Come, dogs will lead in singing the praises of the Almighty. They will say to other creatures "Come! Let us prostrate ourselves and bow, let us kneel before G-d, our Maker".

Throughout classical Jewish literature they are portrayed as the most insolent of animals. How could it be, he wondered, that this very same creature will merit to lead in the singing of praises to G-d in the World-to-Come?

(Rav Yishaya)

A charming commentary on dogs as portrayed in classic Jewish literature.  Thanks to my friend Linda, who posted the link on Facebook.

The answer to the question may be found at torah.org.

Good Shabbos!