A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her
altitude and spotted a man in a boat below. She shouted to him, "Excuse me,
can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I
don't know where I am."

The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air
balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above
sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100< BR>degrees, 4909 minutes west longitude."

She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Republican."

"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically
correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm still
lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."

The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Democrat."

"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"

"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you're going.
You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made
a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve
your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we
met, but, somehow, now it's my fault?"

Only a Rovester would spin that into a statement of blame. She asked for help, for useful information, and he did not provide it.

Hope you enjoyed the time your party had in the White House and Congress, it's going to be all over soon. Prayers answered, faith rewarded.

VHawk

very sound and no sour grapes i like it when people use sound reason not just knee jerk reaction that is one of the problems in our gov. we go one way then we the fickle people go the other and we rock the ship insted of just moving a little at a time comicaly enough the best for the country ie the people is rep. controlled congress and dem president or the other way around so no one agrees and they dont spend money to bad really that we cant be fiscally responsible as a country on eather side we just keep running the bill up and up raising taxes is not the way to go we should try to spend some of the money that they take now and take care of our own insted of the world keep our nose where it belongs in our own buisness

what really scares me is the fact we may get a muslim in the white house. This should scare the crap out of everyone. Yes he coverted to Christianity a few years back but that just looks like someone with an ajenda set to take over the most powerful country in the world. He was born and raised muslim and I don't see how you wipe that out. Also how are we going to pay for all his "Fixes". Its gonna get real interesting in the coming months.

I got that email about Obama being a radical muslim too. Turns out to be BS. You should worry more about the coverted ajenda's of guys like Dick, Karl, George, Rummy, who have already cost us more than we could ever put a price on.

I don't need to worry about religious zealots from Saudi Arabia weakening my country. We have enough religious zealots in places like Kansas, Mississippi, and Alabama who work hard to insert the christian version of shari'ah into our classrooms and thereby dumb down an already poorly educated public.

Spin it however you like, but the fat lady is getting ready to sing for the GOP's going away party.

Well that last 8 years have shown us all what Republican policies and ideas accomplish when put into unbridled practice: Corruption, death, destruction, loss of freedom & civil rights, massive expansion of government, massive government debt, economic collapse, corporate welfare & protectionism, the return of the industry trusts, inflation, recession, erosion of secular government, and tainted consumer goods. Sprinkle in a few child molesters and restroom sodomites on top and you have The Grand Old Party laid bare under a microscope.


Thanks to the GOP a college graduate can no longer afford The American Dream. They REALLY stuck it to the blue collar class.

...And they fell for a Connecticut Yankee dudded up in a Cowboy hat and an Alaskan Tuxedo faking a Texas drawl.

Derek,


Well said, very well said and I only wish it wasn't all true.

So when are you available to fish? I'm almost completely outfitted, just got to get the trailer titled/licensed. I need to take the boat out on a shakedown trip first week of March. I've got brand new certified pro rods, including a pair of G1306T plug rods, and some new tadpollys which need fishteeth to scratch them up.

I think I've got the next big thing. I want to try threading on a 3 inch pink worm on a 510 hook, dangling off the ass end of Dr Death. It should drive the big bucks insane. I found these tiny pw's at Cabelas that are made off some GULP! type stuff, they are the perfect size.

Since finishing up the last of the line testing, I've had trouble getting anywhere near the fishing line racks at Cab's. I have this compulsion to harrass the MUG customers.

Vince

Sorry Hankster but the Republican's created their messes while controlling both houses of congress, and the White House. The GOP had so much power that I squarely remember them shutting off the goddamn lights on a Dem congressional meeting they didn't like.

There was no middle ground. They played like the tyrants they are. Laying blame doesn't solve problems, but it does help keep people from being in positions of leadership who should never be allowed the opportunity to screw us over again.

We can find no middle ground with tyrants, we should make no compromises with the devil.

YES! It is called Iraq.

VHawk

I really need to get out. Been in a crappy mood lately.

You know my number, and I always bring trade goods.

Oh would I be taking the kind of attitude that the GOP had in 2002? I believe their reaction to calls for bipartisanship was "if the American public wanted the Democratic party involved in decision-making they would have elected them into office."

Hey I think I found some common ground with the GOP.

Well Hankster, I have to give you some credit for participating in a debate in which you are far outnumbered here. You're also giving thoughtful responses, and making (a couple) sound points. It's refreshing, given the latest round of RWWJ's we've had trolling around these parts. Keep on fighting the good fight, even though I disagree with you, and want you to lose.

I wish I had 30 minutes to go thru one by one and knock down Hank's points, but I'm going to be late for a party if I do.

I do echo LoweDown's sentiments. Even though your argument rings as true as a wooden church bell, you seem like you've put some thought into things. After Obama wins, I'll make sure to put a good word in with the local dem committee for you. I hear the reeducation camps they are planning are going to be pretty plush.

Just kiddin, I hear the camps are going to suck. Better scratch the Bush/Cheney '04 sticker off your truck before it's too late.

Hankster,

The well thought out material you've presented - interspersed with a goodly dose of anti-liberal drivel - suggests that we probably have more values in common than not. Most of us voting Dem have no illusions that Obama is much of anything beyond a charismatic speaker who appeals mostly to shallow liberal minds. Kind of like the Rep candidates who offer little of substance, except to the super-rich who will benefit from the corporate welfare/fascism, and play well to shallow minded conservative audiences. I'm not looking for any handouts or entitlements from Obama. I think he's smart enough to be a leader and less likely to be corrupt than Hillary. But to think any of us would reward the Rep party that has screwed us so royally these past 7 years by voting for McCain is beyond rational thought. And that is especially so when one considers how McCain has repainted himself to mirror Bushco colors. That would be equivalent to voting Bush for a 3rd term. Unspeakably impossible to a morally and ethically grounded American who doesn't benefit from the government's largess to the super-rich corporate culture.

Sg

Right Wing Whack Jobs.

The way the government calculates inflation is a joke anymore. Just go to the grocery store or the gas pump. How much did your health insurance premium increase this year? How much did you property taxes go up? Oh but the Republicans will give everybody a tax break even if it means paying more taxes in the long run. Haven't had a balanced budget since the Dems were in the White House. Oh yah but the Dems are a bunch of socialists.

But McCain is always pulling the Patroit card. If you are against the war in Iraq then you're a commie. It doesn't matter that Sadam was executed and Bin Laden is still hiding. Got to go after those Muslim terrorists. We've got to keep spending money on the war. A little corporate welfare for defense contractors. Doesn't matter that Iran is making nuke fuel.

Lets just support big business and let them go unchecked. The oil companies deserve to make billions in profits. Even if they don't upgrade their refineries and let them explode. Just another excuse to raise gasoline up to $4 per gallon.

Why would anybody vote for a black man or a woman as president? The neo Nazis are getting organized and arming up. The Republican extremists against those damn green liberals. Lets pollute the earth and then space later.

Another point lets save the farmers and kill the Chinook in the Klamath. Dam every river because water and electricity are more important than salmon.

Rush Limbaugh and the Republican right have been brainwashing America for too long.

Sometimes I just can not resist myself, I would like to introduce you to your new boss if Obama gets elected. Frankly I am old enough that I will not have to put up with much of it.

What are you talking about, that is our boss. How much of what Bush has done as our fearless leader, has been out of the fear of what Bin Laden might do next?
My patriotism is based on the promise of what we as a people can be, as guided by the law, values, and principles set forth in the US Constitution, and the Declaration of Independence. My country is not so much defined by it's geography as by those shared values in the founding documents. As such there has been no greater threat since the Civil War to my countries health, as to what the GOP has done. No external enemy can cause us as much damage as we can inflict upon our own flesh.

I hereby nominate V-Hawk for a piss test...