Quotes of the week: ''Half the world is composed of idiots, the other half is clever enough to take indecent advantage of them.''-- Walter Kerr
''Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscious stupidity.''--Martin Luther King, Jr.
You bitch about gas being $1.29 a gallon. Check out these per gallon figures:--
Gatorade $10.17--
Evian (water) $21.19--
Scope $84.84--
Pepto Bismol $123.20--
Vicks Nyquil $178.13
I'm told one of the fastest growing crimes in America is stealing someone else's identity. Hell, I try to give mine away and no one will take it.
I see Louie Anderson has scolded the Zephyr staff for not being able to keep his rambling letters in order. If I had anything to say about it, I'd throw the damn nonsense away.
I knew the educational system in Illinois was in sad shape but I didn't quite comprehend the exact state of its deterioration until recently. I happened to catch Gary Bauer, the anointed one of the right-wing Christians who has stepped forward to run for President, bragging about how he got Illinois to remove ''evolution'' from its textbooks. I don't recall any teachers protesting such stupidity at the time. In fact, I don't remember hearing anything about it, period. The State Board of Education must be quite a group to draw to. This is a sad situation that teachers should be protesting and politicians should be correcting, although I don't know any two groups more devoid of leadership and filled with so much cowardice.
Can you remember the big commotion that was caused by Elvis moving his mid-section and the length of hair the Beatles had? Ministers raged that it was the devil's music and our parents thought the world was ending. Today, long hair and gyrating body parts are conservative behaviors in the music industry. Dressing like the opposite sex, pierced everything, tattooed anything and naked body parts are the norm. Ministers rage that it's the devil's music, and we think the world's ending.
It's about time the human relations commission got on with including homosexuals as a protected class of citizens in Galesburg's discrimination ordinances. Let's see how many homophobics we've got sitting on the council. Otherwise, we need to get some people on the commission who are going to do something. It's a waste of time to look to the council for direction. Do what's right and what your heart tells you, then let the council undo it, or remove you. That will help define for the voters exactly where it is those folks stand. As a sidelight, I love to watch the local fundamentalist ministers squirm when this subject comes up. They don't want to appear harsh, but these sick, sorry souls need our sympathy and help to become heterosexuals who can enter the kingdom of God walking a straight line. These guys haven't got a clue which side Christ would be on. For that matter, they haven't got a clue that Christ would have much preferred to hang around with homosexuals than with them. It seems he was an earthy, diverse sort of guy who didn't much care for the norm and seemingly preferred a diverse crowd. I don't believe he would care for these Right-Wing Christian soldiers.
And Happy Thanksgiving. Here are some things I'm thankful for this November 25th:--
I'm thankful I live in a country where I can freely write such nonsense.--
I'm thankful I know a lot of diverse, open-minded people who don't cower down to stupidity and right-wing ideology, which might well be one and the same.--
I'm thankful that I have a family, a house, and food and a bit ashamed that I have so many things I don't really need.--
I'm happy for the letter I received concerning someone who has seen my baseball field and understands it. I'm usually proud of my game but, unfortunately, not always.--
I'm thankful for the wife I have and my two children, although I've never been able to figure out how to cook them.--
I'm thankful I don't see most things in black and white, but glad for the few things that I do.--
I'm thankful that I don't look at anyone and fear their color, ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual preferences or social status in life. How it all happened I don't exactly know, but I'm thankful it did.
Have a good Thanksgiving and pray for the turkeys.