01 May 2006

More May Day commentary

Just saw on CNN where they estimated contributions to the American economy by undocumented workers is at just under $1.3 Billion per day!
Just something else to think about.

May Day thoughts

Well, it is May Day again. Funny how that can have many meanings. Yes, I mean the use of "mayday" as a distress signal. Not a bad idea for America to send out a "mayday" signal for help. We sure are in a mess mostly of our own making.
Iraq is not quite going to plan. It gets worse there every day, if not every hour. Afghanistan isn't in much better shape. War lords still rule there. Opium production is hitting new highs, in every meaning of the term.
Our "Great Leader" still has "on the table" the option to use nuclear weapons against Iran. Holy crap! Does anyone in D.C have any idea how huge a war crime that would be? If there are any future generations after such an act, our great-great-great grandchildren will still be trying hard to live it down as they die from old age. Iran doesn't even have one nuclear weapon at all. Using such weapons against a non-nuclear state must be a war crime of the highest order. Iran is not a military threat to America. India has more than one nuclear weapon and has never signed onto any international nuclear protocol. Why do they get off, but Iran, just wanting to use the technology for generating electricity gets punished? Can you say double standards? Of course you can. Apparently our "leaders" don't care. I guess that when the only thing that drives you is profits, one has a much different view on the world.
There is some debate about abolishing FEMA now. I don't know if that is a good idea or not. Yes, based on the response (?) to Katrina, FEMA sure doesn't look like it could find its' hind end with both hands in its back pocket. What would replace FEMA though? Another bloated government agency. That would be like trading breast cancer for lung cancer to me. Either way, you get the dirty end of the stick.
The levees in New Orleans are still not back to pre-Katrina levels yet. Um, hurricane season is just 30 days away now folks. Why the delay? Well, somebody has to approve the funds. Then somebody else has to authorize the work to begin. Government at its finest. God helps us all, as our "leadership" sure as hell isn't. Things will start to get done as soon as our "glorious leaders" smell the profits and kickbacks. Just my take on this mess. Ain't America grand?
On a positive note, actually many very good notes, Neil Young has a new album coming to the stores soon. You can listen to it completely and for free at www.livingwithwar.blogspot.com. For this long time "fan" of Mr. Young and his music, I say "Thank you Neil. Right on man!" Yes, I like the entire cd. Neil Young sings his songs as he wants to sing them. Songs for our times, in my opinion. I do have just two very, very minor criticisms of the cd. In one song he mentions sending our men off to war. Um, we have more than a few women in the war zones today. Maybe it would have been better to say sending our troops off to war. OK, it is very "nit-picky" and I admit it. Just stating a fact is all. I am NOT trying to "score points" with any feminists.
The other is that in the song about looking for a leader, he mentions by name Obama and Colin Powell. Sorry Neil, neither of those two would be worth much in my opinion. They are both followers, NOT leaders. Powell, the "good soldier" goes out and does what he is told to do. That is what soldiers do. Obama, well, he does what the DLC tell him to do. That is what the Democrats do. I do not see much of a leader in either. Maybe Neil was naming them "tongue-in-cheek" style. I don't know, he didn't ask my thoughts on it. Why would he? Ok, so my "negatives" on the new cd are very,very minor indeed. What the hell, anybody can be a critic. Not much skill involved in being critical of the work of another. All you need to do to be a critic, is say; a) I like this work, or b) I don't like this work. See, it is very easy.
Well, overall, I like the entire album. Yes, I will be out and buying a copy as soon as it is available. Songs for our times indeed.
One last note. This blog is not updated with any regularity. My fault. Well, of course it is my fault, it is my blog. Even being "retired" means you some times run out of time for everything you want to do. That and some personal issues that are needing to be dealt with means that I get to this blog very infrequently. Well, for that, please accept my most sincere apology. I never intended for this to be a daily thing. I do not have the talent nor the ability to do a daily or even every other day blog entry. I may not even have the talent to do this once a year. I do try though. I do intend to keep at this as I think I may actually have something to say. My blog, my voice. Until I get shut down at least. Or sent off to Gitmo, which ever comes first.
Again, I encourage everyone to do their best to stay informed about the things happening around us. It takes hard work as you cannot depend on the mass media to inform you honestly. Search the web for the real news. It is out there. One reason I don't write that often is that I spend so much time reading. The truth is out there, we need to seek it out. See my earlier posts for some good news sites on the web.
Got to close for now. Time to see how the May Day walk out is going. Maybe some day the workers of America will realize they are all in the same boat. On that day, we might see a true national strike, just like happens sometimes in Europe. If the American workers ever do unite, the "rulers" will be running scared.
Just my 2 cents worth on this May Day, 2006.