Monday Morning Rant 160

I read on the net this morning that Houston has yet to record a 100° day this summer. We are over 500 miles north and have seen little else the last two weeks. We got our first rain in about two weeks last night and it amounted to a .17th of an inch. We rejoice in that piddling amount. Thank God for the Ozark aquifer and that of the Springfield Plateau. Local inquiries at various extension facilities reveal no problems with local wells so that is a blessing. The local crops appear parched but the livestock seem fit and happy. God is good.

Presidential Vacations and Citizen Response

Being president certainly has its limitations. Obama has only been able to schedule 5 vacations since July 1st. He made a “mercy” stop in Panama City with the wife and one kid (Malia is at camp) to bolster the local economy. Just slightly over 24 hours to devote to enhancing the finances of the gulf coast and their prospects for the future? Panama City is dangerously close to New Orleans so I hope James Carville doesn’t realize Obama’s in the vicinity. The last time I saw him he was one angry “coon ass.” (Ed: as a former Louisiana and Gulf Coast resident, I may assure you that Mr. Carville would take no offense at the description.)

Then it’s off to Martha’s Vineyard to suffer with those poor rich folks for ten days. Hey, it’s no snap counting all that money. Just finding the dough the late Kennedy (which one?—pick ‘em!) dropped could affect the total recovery in the nation. Do you find it curious that all these public servants managed to get filthy rich? I guess publishing books is more profitable than I thought.

I fully realize that being a retired geezer in the Ozarks is not as demanding as being the president of the entire country. However, since his election in November 2008, I have chosen to abandon some distracting activities to devote un-committed time to ensure the halt of advancing socialism in our federal government. I put my golf clubs away and swore not to pick them up again until this scourge was gone from the land. I have also forsworn long distance travel (my favorite activity) to free up time for more writing and activism. I have engaged in more pressing exercise (walking a minimum of twenty miles a week) to insure continued good health until the conclusion of this struggle. My application to research, reading, writing and computer time is set at a minimum of forty hours a week. I now share the results of my inquiries with an exponentially greater number of people than I ever have in my life previously. I also share with others at least three times a week in services aimed at giving the credit for my good life to my Creator, God Almighty. The net financial gain from this effort equals $0.00.

I also spot the relatively youthful Obama a twenty-nine year age advantage. However, as a former employee used to remind me when I managed to outfox him on occasion: “Old age and treachery will consistently defeat youth and skill.” Through observation of those around him, he enlarged his capacity almost perceptibly. After I sold him the business, I forgave a large outstanding debt because of an obvious business down turn to allow him an unfettered opportunity for success. He had a rare understanding of life.

Although unnecessary in most cases, I encourage every reader to set aside more time and energy to engage the threats to our nation. Only through your activism can we ever expect to regain the control, ceded and protected by our constitution, of our country. Thank you for participating.

A Mosque at Ground Zero

This is, no doubt, a polarizing issue. After the traditional Ramadan dinner at the White house, the president finally took an aggressive posture on building this edifice on the sacred ground of the World Trade Center Ruins. He decried it as an affront to the first amendment to oppose it’s erection on the grounds of religious freedom. He had no more uttered the words than the qualifications followed to extricate him from his commitment. He commenced to make his excuses claiming those in New York held the responsibility for the decision. By that time, however, it was clear that he stood four-square in favor of the proposition.

The best response I have seen so far is expressed by Debra Burlingame, head of 911 Families and cited on Ace of Spades blog.   Mrs. Burlingame lost a brother in the tragedy of 9/11. The piece was co-written with Tim Summer.

"Barack Obama has abandoned America at the place where America's heart was broken nine years ago, and where her true values were on display for all to see. Since that dark day, Americans have been asked to bear the burden of defending those values, again and again and again. Now this president declares that the victims of 9/11 and their families must bear another burden. We must stand silent at the last place in America where 9/11 is still remembered with reverence or risk being called religious bigots.


"Muslims have worshipped in New York without incident both before and after the attacks of 9/11. This controversy is not about religious freedom. 9/11 was more than a 'deeply traumatic event,' it was an act of war. Building a 15-story mosque at Ground Zero is a deliberately provocative act that will precipitate more bloodshed in the name of Allah. Those who continue to target and kill American civilians and U.S. troops will see it as a symbol of their historic progress at the site of their most bloody victory. Demolishing a building that was damaged by wreckage from one of the hijacked planes in order to build a mosque and Islamic Center will further energize those who regard it as a ratification of their violent and divinely ordered mission: the spread of shariah law and its subjugation of all free people, including secular Muslims who come to this country fleeing that medieval ideology, which destroys lives and crushes the human spirit.


"We are stunned by the president's willingness to disregard what Americans should be proud of: our enduring generosity to others on 9/11--a day when human decency triumphed over human depravity. On that day, when 3,000 of our fellow human beings were killed in a barbaric act of raw religious intolerance unlike any this country had ever seen, Americans did not turn outward with hatred or violence, we turned to each other, armed with nothing more than American flags and countless acts of kindness. In a breathtakingly inappropriate setting, the president has chosen to declare our memories of 9/11 obsolete and the sanctity of Ground Zero finished. No one who has lived this history and felt the sting of our country's loss that day can truly believe that putting our families through more wrenching heartache can be an act of peace.


"We will honor the memory of our loved ones. We will protect our children, whose lives will never be the same. We will not stand silent."


In a spirit of empathy, one can easily understand Burlingame’s position. 70% of Americans stand with her to raise their voices in protest to anyone who would allow the erection of a building which represents a “victory lap” for Muslims in their continued effort to corrupt America. “Anyone” in this case is quickly identified as the president of the United States.

And finally

Gus has recovered fully from his wasp bite but continues to give the area around the downspout a wide berth. The ants continue to pollute the hummingbird feeder. The mutts continue to share the legless giraffe toy they both love. The kitties can’t make up their mind which side of the door they need to be on. The bird feeder continues as a popular attraction for the gold finches, cardinals and others. We continue to drag 100’ hoses around the yard to various suffering plants. We are on the verge of wearing out the computers watching ever changing weather maps looking for sign of impending showers. In other words; it’s business as usual here on the ridge. God is still in charge and that’s good enough for us.

In His abiding love,

Cecil Moon